Jessica Dawson obtained her Bachelor of Arts (majoring in Psychology) and Masters of Counselling degrees through Athabasca University. She is a Registered Psychologist with the College of Alberta Psychologists and a member of the Psychological Association of Alberta. Prior to registering as a Psychologist, Jessica was also a member of the Canadian Counselling and Psychotherapy Association and worked as a Canadian Certified Counsellor.
Jessica has always had a passion for helping and working with others, which is reflected by both her educational and occupational choices. Jessica’s Masters of Counselling degree and additional training have provided her with a variety of approaches and tools to provide tailored service to her clients. For over a decade, Jessica has worked with children, youth, and their families across school, home, and community settings, and now focuses her time on Couples’s Therapy and adults with anxiety/high stress. In her personal life, Jessica volunteered for Hospice Calgary by providing support to bereaved friends and family members.
Jessica has an integrative approach to counselling in order to provide personalized service based on client needs. Some of her favourite modalities are:
- Person-Centred Therapy, an approach that holds that when given the right conditions, including developing a trusting therapeutic relationship, every human has an innate capacity for positive growth;
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, an empirically tested model that can help you monitor and modify your negative automatic thought patterns towards your emotional, behavioural, and interpersonal relationship goals;
- Postmodern/ Brief Therapy Models such as Solution-Focused and Narrative, to enhance your own resources and strengths;
- Mindfulness, to help support stress reduction, decrease rumination, alleviate symptoms of depression and anxiety, relieve chronic pain, and generally increase a sense of wellness by honing a non-judgmental and accepting stance to whatever life throws your way;
- Attachment, an approach that can help you consider the impact of early life caregiving experiences on later intra- and interpersonal domains.
As a parent, Jessica has learned firsthand how it feels to put yourself and your own needs on the backburner. She truly believes in the transformative power of taking the time out for self-care in order to be a better you for yourself and those around you. Jessica is excited to be a part of your wellness journey!