After nine months away, playing in the hot springs and dense forests of the Kootenays, while focusing on growing new skills and certifications that include designations in Trauma and Integrated Mental Health Care, and bonding with my new therapy dog, Ash, I am excited to be returning to the sights and sounds of Summerland and the small, soothing space of our therapy office on December 10!

Reinvigorated, I am looking forward to introducing you to Ash and helping him develop in his role as a gentle comfort and support to individuals and families. I am also thrilled to be unveiling a refreshed office and new therapy groups. 

Similar to the intensive DBT-based BED group, "Break the Binge", in 2018, new groups will focus on providing education, supports, and skills for understanding, coping with, and recovering from Binge Eating Disorders and Body Image. Separate groups will be available for Adolescents and Adults in 2020. Groups will take up to 10-participants, and registration fees will be reduced to make the groups accessible. 

Another exciting add-on will include brief Eco-therapy groups that blend Mindfulness and Somatic-based therapies with the tranquility of nature. Effective for increasing connection, interoception (inner awareness) and improving emotional regulation, these small groups will assist individuals wishing to create positive change around Body Image and Anxiety disorders. 
​
If participating in these new groups or meeting with me individually in the Summerland office with Ash sound like a fit for you, I look forward to hearing from you and learning more about how I can help you to meet your therapy goals and greater freedom with food, relationships, and your body. 

I am in the office Tuesdays and Thursdays from 10 am to 7 pm, and Fridays, 10 am to 2 pm and welcome you contact me by phone at 250-859-8671, or by email at  michele@elementalpsychotherapy.com .
​
We look forward to connecting with you.

Warmly,
​Michele & Ash

We are excited to announce the official opening of Elemental Psychotherapy in Nakusp, on
Saturday, April 6th!.

Visits are by appointment only at
250-859-8671
michele@elementalpsychotherapy.com

Office is located at: 
Suite B
422 .9th Avenue 
Nakusp, BC
​
​

Nakusp mountains in winter offer fantastic snowshoeing, hiking, and cross country skiing experiences, and lakes provide paddling year round. 

Nakusp's natural hot springs are a soothing delight for any body across the seasons! 

​​Nakusp indoor hot springs and spas may be a consideration if a little luxury is your preference.  Discover more by visiting Nakusp Hot Spings: 
​

September 2018
Have you spent more years than you can remember dieting? Do you struggle with weight fluctuations, difficult emotions such as anxiety, anger, depression? Do you fear being around food and  find yourself in experiences where your behavior feels impulsive and beyond control? Do you spend time judging your body, spending more and more time in front of the mirror checking your body for dreaded imperfections? If you answered yes to these questions, our 2018 Fall BED Group may help!

​Format:
This is a CBT-based BED Therapy group that combines Mindfulness Eating and Stress Reduction skills. The group will take place Saturday morning for 8-weeks, and will include 6-10 participants. 

The Group will be held at a private location in Summerland, BC, and will be facilitated by Michele Gardiner. Michele is a Registered, Canadian Certified Counsellor (CCC# 10000685); she holds a Masters' degree in Counselling, a Bachelors' degree in Psychology, and offers more than 10-years' experience facilitating inspiring, interactive therapy groups focused on Eating Disorders, Anxiety, Substance Misuse and Addictions, Compulsive Behaviours, and Emotional Regulation in the Private, Public and Not-for-Profit sectors. 

Cost:
This group is being offered at a significantly reduced rate, $350 per individual for completion of 8, 2-hour sessions, to provide individuals who cannot afford individual therapy at $100/hour an opportunity to access treatment, tools, and resources needed to create greater freedom from on-going struggles with food, weight, self-esteem, and a better ability to notice and manage difficult emotions such as anger, sadness, loneliness, and boredom. 

Who is a Fit:
This initial BED group will be formatted for individual aged 19 and over, struggling to overcome 'binge eating' and 'compulsive/emotional overeating', that does not include purging behaviours.     

​How Do I Participate
If you are interested in attending, please contact Michele for an opportunity to complete a formal BED screening. The screen can be completed by phone, takes approximately 15 minutes, and is free of charge.  

Contact Michele before February 25, 2019, for more details and to complete a BED group screening.   ​

"Trigger warning: article contains references that could trigger self harming behaviour." ​

I can’t really remember my first time on the psych ward, but I can tell you, it was the first time I made connections with people who were, at their core, just like me. On the psych ward, you can openly talk about suicide, overdosing, or you can just shoot the shit. You gain perspectives of people suffering with PTSD, of alcoholics struggling to become sober, of suicide survivors who may or may not be happy to still be breathing.

Walking onto a psych ward as a patient is akin to walking into a post-game discussion; you don’t know the score nor do you understand the game. No one has explained to you what the protocols are, and you certainly don’t have a copy of the playbook. You feel out of place, you feel like you stick out like a sore thumb, and you feel that you don’t belong.

Then, not long after your arrival, someone says hi, and before you know it, there you are, sitting amongst people and carrying on a most excellent conversation with folks you’d never choose to associate with in the ‘real’ world. It’s at this point where you understand the meaning of humility if you hadn’t before. There are paramedics, teachers, addicts, students, alcoholics and mothers, all living with demons. You rub elbows with high school dropouts who weren’t educationally stimulated enough to graduate, with musicians whose parent(s)/teachers gently suggested that music wouldn’t pave the way to success (meaning what, exactly), and astrophysicists who were told repeatedly that they were losers because they didn’t fit into societal “norms.”

Background or status aside, the gaggle of us who have needed a safe place so as not to harm ourselves, or others, suddenly becomes one in the same ilk. Sure, our ‘real world’ levels of education and/or experience and/or “success” are a mish-mash of hierarchy, but this holds no clout on the psych ward. Here, we are flung together, and while we connect with those who most closely resemble ourselves, there are micro interactions that hint of acceptance because you are “one of us.” There are people on the ward who personify the kind of folk your parent warned you about, like the scary looking dude with a blanket over his head who you tiptoe gently around any time he comes near you. Like any real world situation, you judge, but then you hear his soft whisper greet you with a heartfelt “good morning.” Suddenly, you have a significantly tighter grip on the meaning of humanity.

On the psych ward, societal ‘rules’ and judgements are cast aside because you realize that every patient is both as different from you as you can imagine and just like you in the most intimate way. You are one in the same, and you are sharing the same space for the same reason: your brain has failed you.

The ward is, beyond doubt, a safe place. It is a place where you can truly be yourself. It is a place where you can openly talk about taboo subjects such as self-harm and suicide. It is a place where you cry with others who share their pain one minute, while you laugh hysterically about something as simple as a belt in the next. Think about it. A belt on the psych ward. I remember laughing uncontrollably with a new-found friend over the fact that she was allowed to keep her belt while I had to turn over my headphones ‘cause they were worried I might harm myself with them. You just don’t get this freedom of expression anywhere else.

Many of the connections I’ve made in the psych ward have burgeoned into intimate friendships, friendships unlike any others I have. I have cried and laughed with these friends; I have listened to and shared difficult, personal moments; and they have pulled me from suicide’s grasp. These friends know. They understand. They get it. They’ve lived it.

I would not trade any of my psych ward ”visits” for anything. Besides the wonderful human connections I’ve made, being on the ward has made me a better, more empathic, and most certainly, a less judgmental person. What could be more beautiful?

About the author:
​NKC is an animal lover, adores nature, and strives to be outside enjoying any one of the seasons. She is a passionate advocate for the rights of animals, the environment, youth, and mental health, something she has struggled with for many years. Her favourite quote: “I’m here to pet all the dogs.” She is also a self-professed grammar nerd​. Feel free to leave her a comment.