Shawnda Johnston

About Shawnda

When patterns are broken, new worlds emerge – Tuli Kupferberg

There are many ways to approach human hardship and suffering. My goal is to assist you in your journey by providing a safe environment in which to grow and heal. In both my personal and professional life, I continue to be amazed by how we adapt and persevere through life’s challenges and difficulties. I believe we are not meant to go through this journey alone, and in our difficult times it is important to find extra support. It is my hope, as a counsellor, to encourage you in this journey and provide you with some extra tools for the road ahead.

My history includes 20 years of working in non-profit settings with vulnerable children, youth, and adults of various backgrounds. This experience started in the downtown east side of Vancouver working with high-risk youth and has expanded throughout the lower mainland where my focus has predominantly been in individual trauma. Throughout my experiences on the front line of community service, I have worked with many individuals who have varying histories, with overarching themes of: intergenerational trauma, foster care involvement, extensive childhood abuse or neglect, concurrent and complex mental health concerns, addictions, adults with developmental disabilities, previous incarceration, and homelessness. In my work as a therapist, starting as a Stop the Violence counsellor, I worked predominantly with issues concerning domestic violence, harmful power imbalances in relationships, cycles of abuse, sexual assaults, family justice and child custody concerns, and safety planning for women fleeing violence. The culmination of my frontline community work and work as a therapist, within very difficult systemic and interpersonal concerns, has taught me a lot about human suffering and human resilience. The people I have worked alongside to support, have taught me that change, although hard, opens the door to new possibilities and growth.t

As a therapist, I take a person-centred approach to therapy and customize my approach to an individual?s needs. I am committed to providing a collaborative, non-judgmental, safe environment, as a way to explore new possibilities for growth. I bring a calming presence and genuine care into sessions, and have found that this provides an openness for deeper understanding, which aids in the healing process. Finally, it is my sincere hope that therapy will empower you to build the life you want to live.

I am trained in Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), and use other counselling theories and strategies, namely, Internal Family Systems (IFS), Polyvagal Theory, Somatic Information Processing, Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT), and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)., in my practice. t