I am a first generation Canadian whose parents came to Canada from England in the mid-1950s. I was born and raised mostly in Ontario, moved to Saskatchewan for my graduate studies, and have lived in the Yukon for over 30 years. I came here for a canoe trip and felt, for the first time in my life, that this was a place I could happily make my home. Canoeing, birding, cross-country skiing, and being alone in the bush nourish my soul. I am married with no children, cats, or dogs, but I have soft spots for all of these.
I fell into psychology somewhat by accident, but it’s been a good fit for me. I completed my undergraduate degree in psychology at Trent University in Peterborough, Ontario, and followed that with a master’s and Ph.D. in clinical psychology from the University of Saskatchewan. After that I spent two years in Cleveland, Ohio, at the Centre for Human Sexuality, University Hospitals of Cleveland/Case Western Reserve University. There I completed a post-doctoral fellowship in human sexuality, with specialization in “sexual deviance” and “gender disorders”, as they were called at that time.
I have 37 years of experience in providing psychological services, over 30 of those in the Yukon. My experience has spanned a variety of settings: out-patient non-profit counselling agency, private residential treatment group home, First Nations counselling service, government sexual offender treatment program, and serving on the Yukon Review Board. My roles have been primarily as a clinical supervisor and as a therapist. I have worked with adults and adolescents, and with both typical persons and those who have intellectual disabilities or FASD. Being able to help people figure things out for themselves and find some peace inside, especially when they are faced with complex or stigmatizing difficulties, is part of what draws me to this work.