Kim - Mental Health Tips

Kim - Mental Health Tips Certified mental health counsellor who sees individuals & couples and offers mental health tips on social media. I earned my B.S. in Counseling Psychology.

Conseillère clinique certifiée qui soutient les adultes et les couples, et offre des conseils en santé mentale sur ses réseaux sociaux. There is no perfect recipe to healing, and each of us needs a unique combination of ingredients. However, compassion, empathy, non-judgment, and loving-kindness are necessary to the process, and I commit to bring those qualities into our interactions. My role is to be present to your explorations, and help you identify steps you can comfortably and safely explore. Regardless of the reason for your desire to start therapy, consent throughout is of primordial importance, and my approach is client-centered: that means I pull from an eclectic set of tools to provide a space, pace, and environment that works for you. In addition to more traditional talk therapy, I often draw from cognitive behavioral models, mindfulness, guided imagery, creative expression and art therapy, and some body-oriented techniques. A Little Background:

As a multilingual, transnational, and multicultural person who embodies social justice ideals, an appreciation for diversity is a key motivator to my understanding the unique strengths of individuals, couples, and families. I therefore seek to use my clinical skills, cultural humility, passion, and love for humanity to help effect positive social change in whichever way I can, and deeply believe that working from within leads to positive outward change. from the University of Toronto, where I pursued a double major in Biology and Forensic Science, with a minor in Psychology. I have several years of experience in the food and wine industry, in organizational development of a government agency, as an independent marketing consultant and translator, and as a private tutor and nanny, working with children and adolescents. After considering several avenues to pursue my counseling career, I proudly chose the Institute of Transpersonal Psychology (currently Sofia University), which focuses on mind, body, and soul integration, to earn an M.A. What To Expect:

As a therapist, I have had the privilege of working as a bereavement counselor at Pathways, where I assisted adult individuals through the painful, yet indiscriminately transformative journey of intense grief. I also worked at an elementary school within the Santa Clara Unified School District, where I support children ages 5 to 11. I have a particular affinity to working with grief and identity issues (specifically, cultural and multicultural identity, gender and/or sexual identity, religious/spiritual identity). In addition, I have worked with a variety of clients facing depression, anxiety, chemical and substance dependence and abuse, relationships and codependency, domestic violence, major life transitions, and various forms of acute and developmental trauma. I am happy to provide a 20-minute consultation over the phone at no cost to answer any questions you may have, and to help you book your initial appointment.

02/26/2026

Which is EXACTLY why I like to cap my days at 4 clients max.

02/26/2026

I’m focusing on everything you’re saying, I need a minute please and thank you!

02/26/2026

You are the expert on your life. The goal of therapy isn’t dependence.
It’s helping you trust your own judgment again.

A therapist may understand attachment theory, trauma responses, nervous systems, and relationship dynamics — but they do not live inside your body. They don’t carry your history in their bones. They don’t wake up in your home, in your culture, in your relationships, with your consequences.

Therapists are trained in patterns.
You are living the specifics.

Therapy is not about being told what to do. It’s about helping you hear yourself more clearly — beneath fear, people-pleasing, trauma, or old conditioning.

A good therapist offers:
• perspective
• reflection
• curiosity
• gentle challenge

But they do not take the steering wheel.

Because if someone else decides for you, you may comply — but you won’t own it.

And real change only sticks when it’s chosen.

02/25/2026

Find something that makes your brain go quiet. For me, it’s kickboxing. It forces me fully into the present moment.

You’re coordinating your feet, your hands, your breath, your timing — there’s no room left for rumination. The overthinking part of the brain quiets down and your body takes over.

It also activates a controlled “fight” response. Adrenaline rises, stress gets discharged through movement, and your nervous system completes a stress cycle instead of holding it.

For an hour, you’re not analyzing your life.
You’re moving.
And movement is medicine.

02/25/2026

When a client tells you something they’ve never told another living soul, they are not just sharing information — they are handing you something sacred. A memory wrapped in shame. A fear they thought would make them unlovable. A truth they’ve protected for years.

To be trusted with that is an honor.

It means:
• You created enough safety for their nervous system to exhale.
• You held enough neutrality that they didn’t brace for judgment.
• You earned enough consistency that they believed you wouldn’t misuse their vulnerability.

But inside that moment is courage. Inside that moment is healing already beginning.

It is a profound privilege to sit across from someone while they rewrite their own story out loud for the first time.

02/24/2026

Sometimes a therapeutic rupture isn’t just a misattunement.

Sometimes it crosses a line.

If a therapist violates boundaries, dismisses your reality, shames you, breaks confidentiality, exploits power, or repeatedly causes harm without accountability — it may not be repairable. And it’s okay to say that.

Not every relationship is meant to be repaired.
Not every rupture leads to growth.

There are moments when the healthiest thing a client can do is leave.

When harm goes beyond repair, it can look like:
1. You no longer feel emotionally safe in the room.
2. Your nervous system stays activated around them.
3. Attempts to address the harm are minimized or redirected.
4. The therapist becomes defensive, blaming, or subtly gaslighting.
5. Trust feels fundamentally broken — not just strained.

Therapy relies on psychological safety and ethical containment. When that container cracks in a way that cannot be restored, continuing can reinforce harm rather than heal it.

Ending therapy in these situations isn’t “quitting.”
It’s self-protection.
It’s discernment.
It’s reclaiming agency.

A good therapist will respect your decision to leave — even if it’s because of them.

And if you’ve experienced something that felt unethical or exploitative, you’re allowed to seek consultation, supervision review, or file a complaint with the relevant regulatory body.

Healing sometimes means repairing.
And sometimes it means walking away.

02/24/2026

Therapists call it “doorknob talk” — when a client shares something really intense right as the session is ending.

There are possible reasons you might do this:

1️⃣ Safety just kicked in. It can take almost the whole session (45-50 min) for your nervous system to settle enough to access what’s actually underneath.

2️⃣ It feels less risky. Sharing something big when time is up creates built-in containment. There isn’t time to fully unpack it, which can feel safer.

3️⃣ It protects you from overwhelm. You don’t have to sit in the vulnerability for long. You get to leave before shame or anxiety fully rises.

4️⃣ It’s a trust test. “If I say this right now, will you still feel steady and safe?”

5️⃣ Avoidance and courage are coexisting. Part of you wants to tell. Part of you wants to run. Doorknob talk is the compromise.

Does it catch us off guard? Yes. But are we here for it? You bet!

02/23/2026

Telling your therapist, “I’m worried about how you see me,” is actually a really powerful moment in therapy.

Here’s why:

1. It means you feel safe enough to be honest.
Naming that fear out loud takes vulnerability. When a client can say that, it usually signals that some trust has already been built.

2. It brings the real dynamic into the room.
Many people worry about being “too much,” “not enough,” “dramatic,” or “needy” — but they keep that fear hidden. When you say it directly, therapy moves from surface-level to relational work.

3. It mirrors other relationships.
If you often manage how others perceive you, people-please, or scan for judgment, that will likely show up with your therapist too. Talking about it in real time gives you a safe place to explore and shift that pattern.

4. It gives your therapist important information.
Your therapist can’t address what they don’t know. When you share that fear, they can clarify, reassure, or explore where that belief comes from — instead of unknowingly reinforcing it.

5. It builds corrective emotional experiences.
If you expect judgment and instead receive curiosity and acceptance, your nervous system learns something new:
“Maybe I don’t have to perform to be accepted.”

Often, the moment you risk saying, “I’m worried you think I’m ___,” is the moment therapy deepens.

02/23/2026

When a client says something like, “When you said that, it upset me,” or “I can’t do Tuesdays anymore—that time doesn’t work for me,” it might seem small on the surface. But in therapy, it’s huge.

It means safety has been built.

For many clients—especially those who are used to people-pleasing, minimizing themselves, or prioritizing others’ comfort—asserting a need in the therapy room is often the first real test: Will I still be accepted if I disappoint you? If I disagree? If I inconvenience you?

When they take that risk and the therapist responds with openness rather than defensiveness, something powerful happens. The nervous system learns:
I can express myself and the relationship doesn’t rupture.

That’s corrective emotional experience in action.

The therapy room becomes a rehearsal space.
If they can say, “That hurt,” to their therapist and survive it… they can eventually say it to a partner, a friend, a parent, a boss.

For the therapist, those moments aren’t threatening—they’re a quiet sign of progress. Not because the client is becoming “difficult,” but because they’re becoming differentiated.

Assertiveness in therapy often signals:
• Increased trust
• Reduced fear of abandonment
• Stronger sense of self
• Readiness to generalize this skill outside the room

02/22/2026

When you’re used to people-pleasing, your nervous system is wired to scan the room, anticipate needs, and keep others comfortable. Therapy flips that script.

It can feel uncomfortable when the focus is only on you because:
• You’re not used to taking up space. Being the center of attention may trigger guilt or a sense that you’re being “selfish.”
• There’s no role to perform. You can’t deflect by helping, fixing, or supporting the therapist. That loss of your familiar coping strategy can feel exposing.
• Silence feels louder. Without managing someone else’s emotions, you’re left alone with your own.
• You may fear judgment. If your worth has been tied to being agreeable, sharing messy or conflicting feelings can feel risky.
• It challenges identity. When “being needed” has shaped who you are, focusing on your own needs can feel destabilizing.

But that discomfort is often growth. Therapy becomes a rare space where you don’t have to earn connection by performing. You’re allowed to exist, need, feel, and take up space — without managing anyone else.

For someone unlearning people-pleasing, that can feel unfamiliar… and deeply healing at the same time.

02/22/2026

A Sunday reset is helpful because it creates a psychological “fresh start” before the week begins. When you take even 30–60 minutes to tidy your space, review your calendar, prep a few meals, or set intentions, you reduce decision fatigue and lower anxiety for Monday. It shifts you from reactive mode to intentional mode. Instead of feeling behind before the week starts, you feel organized, grounded, and in control — which improves focus, mood, and follow-through all week long.

Address

645 Bd Décarie
Saint-Laurent, QC
H4L 3L3

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 5pm
Tuesday 9am - 5pm
Wednesday 10am - 4pm
Thursday 9am - 5pm
Friday 10am - 4pm

Telephone

+14387971503

Website

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