Therapy for Family Patterns and Intergenerational Trauma
Navigating the complexities of intergenerational trauma can feel like carrying the weight of the past on your shoulders. Unresolved emotional pain, coping mechanisms, and belief systems are often passed from one generation to the next — frequently without awareness. These inherited patterns can show up as relationship difficulties, chronic stress, depression, or a sense of disconnection from yourself or your culture.
I offer a supportive, judgment-free space to gently examine these generational wounds, whether you're aware of long-standing family pain or simply feel stuck in patterns you can't quite explain.
My approach
This work is especially meaningful for those navigating intergenerational trauma within Indigenous communities, including the long-standing effects of residential school legacy and colonial impacts on families and identity. My practice is grounded in Two-Eyed Seeing (Etuaptmumk), holding Indigenous knowledge and Western clinical care together, alongside trauma-informed, body-aware, and EMDR-based approaches. I also draw on narrative therapy — exploring how inherited stories and patterns can be gently re-authored, rather than simply endured.
Sessions are available in person in Sidney, Victoria, and Langford, and virtually across Vancouver Island and BC, helping you begin this work wherever you are.
What this work can offer
Understanding your roots — exploring family patterns and their effects on your current emotional and mental well-being
Building healthier relationships — recognizing inherited trauma to help break cycles and foster more empathetic connections with yourself and others
Empowerment through awareness — building resilience and a more grounded sense of self for you and the generations that follow
Frequently asked questions
How do I know if what I'm experiencing is intergenerational trauma? Signs can include relationship patterns that feel inherited rather than chosen, chronic stress or anxiety with unclear origins, or a sense of disconnection from your own history or culture. We can explore this together at your pace.
Do I need to know my full family history to begin this work? No — many people begin this work with only partial understanding of their family's story. Awareness often deepens through the process itself, not before it.
Is this only for Indigenous clients? No. While this work holds particular significance for Indigenous communities navigating colonial impacts and residential school legacy, intergenerational trauma affects families across all backgrounds, and this space is open to anyone carrying inherited patterns they're ready to understand.
You are not alone, and you don't have to carry the past by yourself.