Chrissandra Unger

ALCM, RTC, MA (she/her)

I specialize in helping people with anxiety, depression, trauma and professional burnout.

Finding our way during transitional times can be difficult and I walk with people through them, because I’ve walked (and stumbled!) through them too. Each person has the capability to gain a renewed quality of life and find that they are resilient.

I use an authentic and original approach to verbal and non-verbal therapies including music, sound therapies and gentle movement to guide you through your story’s journey. Nothing is forced on or required of you.

I’ve found that compassionate listening along with the option of sound, music and vibration can help to ground the nervous system and allow healing to begin. We can be the hero/ine of our own story if we have the help to rewrite the story.

Asking for help and following through can be challenging. Change is inevitable, how we respond to it is what matters.

To ease the decision making process and any questions about therapy, I am available to “meet & greet” before you book at no charge.

Please contact me for more information and to set up a free 20 minute session.

a little about me…

Before embarking on my Masters degree (MA) in Expressive Arts Therapy and Psychology from the European Graduate School in Saas-Fee, Switzerland, I taught piano and music theory for 15 years (ALCM) and have exhibited as a professional artist in Canada, the U.S. and Europe. I believe we're all capable of renewing ourselves over and over as we courageously walk this path of becoming more of who we truly are. We create and re-create ourselves everyday.

I’m a counsellor in Nanaimo who has experience working with young adults, women and professionals, as well as people on the autism spectrum. For 7 years I worked in an addictions treatment center using Expressive Arts for First Responders and Veterans struggling with trauma, PTSD and substance abuse. In addition, I’ve lead multiple workshops for professionals in the health care and coaching industries.

The option of using Biofield Tuning, sound and voice as a accompanying treatment has yielded results for clients in relief from these emotional and physical symptoms stored in our body’s memory that stem from our past issues.

Facilitating empaths, sensitives (HSPs) and introverts through their experiences is a passion of mine, helping to guide & develop their self-value and sense of belonging in a fast and busy world.

Methods

Trauma Informed Practices

Internal Family Systems (IFS)

Jungian approach to symbol and metaphor

CBT approaches

Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT - or “tapping”)

Mindfulness

Expressive Arts Therapy (EXA) including Sandtray Therapy

Recognizing and Befriending the Voice of Shame (and the other talkative parts of ourselves!)

Resource Oriented (finding what helps you to find peace and calm)

Biofield Tuning & Sound Healing Modalities

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Message from Chrissandra

Life is a spiral… the universe, flowers, shells, nature and our DNA show us this. So is our path as we journey through this life. The arts bring us back into our senses, enlivens our imagination, and breathes aliveness into our mind and body.

I have experienced the spiral and rugged terrain of the inner landscapes, and know that life doesn’t move in a straight line!

It is not always a simple task to journey through these landscapes of mountains, desert, forest, valleys and rough seas alone, but with the help of another who has been there, the journey becomes do-able.

At the center of this work is love. Love and hope, and the continual tending of my own garden with the practice of self-compassion. Building the strength and courage to bridge shame and self-love is a critical part of healing.

Mental Health, wellness, Nanaimo counsellor, healing space, sound healing

“The Birth of Venus… Again”

©️2020 digital collage by Chrissandra Unger