Client Success Stories
Client Stories of Successful Therapy
*The 3 stories below are comprised of several client stories to protect client confidentiality. They are typical of the clients I see in therapy.
Kelsey, Age 36: Struggled with Chronic Anxiety and Depression
Kelsey barely remembers a time when she felt happy and at peace with herself. She always worried that something “bad” would happen or fretted about what had happened in the past.
Kelsey struggled with insomnia and panic attacks due to her anxiety and fears.
When Kelsey wasn’t anxious, she was depressed. She felt numb and apathetic about life. Nothing excited her.
On some days, she wished she could stay in bed. In fact, on weekends, she often did stay in bed. She felt safe and secure there. She could withdraw from the world, which was not a happy place for her.
Kelsey didn’t enjoy her job as district manager for a corporation. It was demanding work, and she constantly worried about making mistakes.
She was also shy, so being a manager was challenging for her. Every day Kelsey felt like she was dragging herself through the motions.
One day a colleague noticed her low mood and spoke to her about it. Kelsey confided in her workmate, who then suggested that she seek counselling.
Kelsey felt she had nothing to lose and a glimmer of hope that a better life was possible. Her friends were tired of hearing her problems, so she had no one else to talk to anyway.
Kelsey was a hard worker. She put all her children through private school and sacrificed a lot. Now that her kids are older, she could finally focus on herself and get some help.
Kelsey Attends Therapy:
When Kelsey came to see me for therapy, we talked about her anxiety and depression. It became clear that Kelsey was very hard on herself.
Using Mindfulness and other techniques [link to How I Work page], Kelsey gradually became aware of how unkind she was to herself. She learned to be more present in her mind and body, so she didn’t worry as much about the past or the future.
In therapy, Kelsey learned to have compassion for herself when she made mistakes and accepted that mistakes were part of life.
Over several months in therapy, Kelsey’s depression also started to lift. She had more energy and was more engaged in her life. She realized that she actually liked her job – it was her depression and worry that made it seem dreary in the past.
When therapy ended, Kelsey was feeling much stronger. Her anxiety and depression had decreased a lot. When she did feel them creeping back into her life, she used the tools we worked with in therapy to help manage them.
Sarah, Age 43: Had a History of Alcoholism and Being in Abusive Relationships
Sarah’s drinking problem began as a way to cope when she was in a relationship with a man who physically and emotionally abused her.
After the relationship ended, Sarah attended AA which helped her abstain from drinking. However, she got involved with a guy there who was also abusive. She ended up leaving the relationship but was devastated and ashamed that she had gotten into another abusive relationship.
Sarah heard through her friend Jennifer, who met me when she was a patient in a medical detoxification unit. Jennifer told Sarah I was very understanding and knew much about substance abuse and abusive relationships.
Sarah wanted to maintain her sobriety but was having trouble doing so. Her emotions were intense – she felt deep shame, sadness and anger. She was tempted to drink several times daily and had difficulty not giving in to the desire to have a drink.
Sarah was nervous about seeing a therapist but decided to try it.
Sarah Attends Therapy:
Sarah and I focused on her life story in our early therapy sessions, beginning with her childhood. She had a history of being abused physically, emotionally and sexually.
Sarah became aware of how her past traumatic experiences were at the root of her substance abuse and why she kept getting involved with men who mistreated her. She used alcohol to avoid the intense pain of her childhood and her abusive relationships.
Over time using Mindfulness, Hakomi and Somatic Therapy [link to How I Work page], Sarah could regulate her intense emotions better.
She was able to calm her nervous system through these methods, which decreased the intensity of her feelings.
Therapy helped Sarah manage her cravings and how to avoid getting involved with men who said what appeared to be the “right” things. She learned a lot about narcissistic men and their impact on her.
Sarah’s relationships with her friends and family improved as her emotions became more stable.
After 1 year, Sarah remained sober and was enjoying her life.
Melissa, Age 52: Grieving the Loss of Yet Another Relationship
Melissa had 3 long-term intimate relationships over her lifetime, and each ended in a disaster.
The last relationship ended a month before she came to see me. She’d been married to her partner, Kevin, for 7 years. It was a difficult relationship with a lot of fighting and pain.
Although the relationship was challenging, Melissa loved Kevin deeply. She wanted to attend couples counselling with him, but he never agreed to it.
One day Kevin came home from work and told Melissa he was leaving her. He was having an affair with a woman who worked in his office. He claimed he was in love with the woman and wanted to be with her.
Melissa was devastated.
Since that day, over a month before attending therapy, Melissa had been unable to function. She was overwhelmed with grief. She could barely keep it together at work, and when at home, she spent a lot of time crying.
Melissa felt like a failure when it came to relationships since the 3 long-term ones she had over the years were all difficult and had very painful endings.
Melissa believed she must be doing something wrong, so she decided to seek the help of a therapist.
Melissa Attends Therapy:
In our early therapy sessions, Melissa cried in despair as she grieved the loss of Kevin. I listened and was moved by how painful these experiences must have been for her.
Using Mindfulness and Narrative Therapy, Melissa discovered a part of her experiences that ignored her feelings until they became extremely painful and overwhelming.
Melissa realized she had been blind to the early signs in her past relationships that her partners did not want to commit to her.
Over time, Melissa recognized patterns in her relationships that caused her to get hurt repeatedly.
She discovered she chose very charming partners who would not meet her needs.
Melissa also realized that she based her self-worth on how much attention her partners gave her.
Through therapy, Melissa strengthened her inner world and felt her worth without needing a partner to validate it.
By the end of therapy, Melissa was able to get on with her life with an awakened sense of herself. She felt alive and joyful.