HEATHER FRAYNE
(she/her/hers)
Registered Social Worker
Registered Therapeutic Counsellor
Expressive Arts Therapist
I have been a Social Worker for over 20 years and an Expressive Arts Therapist for the past 8 years.
I have had a rich career tapestry weaving in the threads of sexual health, mental health, homelessness, domestic violence, anti-violence programs for youth, disabilities support, community work and clinical work. I learn something from everyone I work with.
I work in a trauma-informed way and I am a firm believer in healing through the arts. I look forward to hearing your story and helping you tap into your inner resilience and vitality.
I am here as a companion on your healing journey, and a witness to the deep and wild parts of your heart that long to be heard. Let's connect!
My style is informed by the following philosophies:
Person-centered - listening to YOUR inner compass
Somatic - learning how the body holds trauma and how it can become home again
Trauma-informed - understanding how the nervous system gets stuck in fight/flight/freeze and how to self-soothe
Post-modern - deconstructing and reconstructing identity, listening to the voices from the margins of self and society
Mindfulness - compassionately noticing without judgment
Gestalt - seeing what's coming up in the moment as a fractal of what's happening in the psyche
Depth psychology - honouring the protective impulses of the psyche and tapping into the collective unconscious
Transpersonal - connecting with the Great Big Nice Good (however you define that)
Existential - accessing meaning-making
Feminist - layering in contexts of historically contructed privilege
Acceptance & Commitment (ACT) - embracing unconditional self-love AND meaningful action, guided by your core values
Narrative - reframing and retelling the story of you, locating yourself within your hero's journey
Expressive Arts Therapy (EXA) - following creativity as a path to healing and reactivating joy