People of the OCQ: Christine
When you walk into the space #106 – 301 Franklyn Street, you’re illuminated in bright colours that both soothe the soul and spark playfulness. It’s not a colour scheme you’d find in most counsellor’s offices, but for Christine, she says the colours are intentionally lively to mirror her work.
“I think therapy is about reconnecting with joy,” she says.
Christine states that reconnection begins in relationship. “We can be wounded in relationship, but this is also where we heal.
To foster a safe connection between herself and client, Christine began writing personalized meditations based on what matters most to her clients.
“When depression is looming large, we forget about the things that actually evoke some pleasure and provide comfort, and I call them resources in our system,” Christine dives in. “These personalized meditations are a way to take your power back and for somebody else to see you. We often feel unseen; that we don't matter. There's a depth of connection to this that's very healing.” This is interpersonal neurobiology.
Christine’s meditations were so popular with her clients that with their encouragement and other therapists’ praise, she compiled her writings into her first book, Embracing Authenticity: Therapist Meditations to Foster Love, Laughter, and Connection. She self-published the book and it is available on Amazon.
Most of Christine’s clients are ‘helpers’; people that work in careers that support others such as first responders, nurses, teachers and care aides, as well as people who have experienced childhood and relational trauma.
“The ‘helping’ demographic is most prone to burnout. And sometimes we can’t come back from burnout.”
Christine has had many careers in her life, and it was her time bartending that sparked her interest in counselling. “You are a junior counselor as a bartender,” she explains. “Of course, there was substances involved, but I think there is something really beautiful when people are vulnerable and share their stories with you.” Christine discovered she loved connecting people at the bar through their stories and finding commonalities in people’s humanity. She has been a Registered Clinical Counsellor (RCC) for the past seven years now, all of that time she’s been located somewhere in the Old City Quarter. Originally, she started her practice on Wallace street, and has been at this location for the past three and a half years.
“What drew me to the Old City Quarter is connecting with people on a personal level,” she explains. “I'm from the city. I'm from downtown Vancouver. So, I like the idea of being able to walk everywhere. I like community. I don't like the idea of getting in your car and never saying hello to your neighbors. The Old City Quarter has that.”
Her practice, Black Sheep Counselling Ltd, is a metaphor for reclaiming your identity. “I am the black sheep. There's something really powerful in reclaiming something that has been sort of weaponized.” Christine explains that embracing who you are instead of trying to fit in leads to a more authentic life, something she encourages her clients to pursue.
“My biggest joy is to see people step into their true self. There's nothing more beautiful than that.”