About Counselling/Psychotherapy
In our journey of life, we may encounter experiences, emotions, and patterns that make it challenging for us to feel a sense of fulfillment in life.
Participating in counselling and psychotherapy can help people navigate and process these challenges, either from the past or present moment, constructively and build a more meaningful and satisfying life with new skills and coping strategies, insight and self-awareness, and changes in behaviours and/or environments through in-depth exploration of self.
About Me
My name is Heejin Kim and my pronouns are she/her. I was born in Seoul, South Korea and am fluent in both English and Korean. Since my immigration to Canada in 2008, I have lived on different territories of the Coast Salish and Lkwungen peoples. Currently, I live on the ancestral, traditional, and unceded territories of the xʷməθkwəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), and sel̓íl̓witulh (Tsleil-waututh) Nations, colonially known as Vancouver, BC, and am grateful for continued tolerance from Coast Salish peoples for me being on their land as an uninvited settler.
I am a Registered Clinical Counsellor (RCC) in good standing with the BC Association of Clinical Counsellors (BCACC) and a Registered Circle of Security Parenting Program (COSP) Facilitator. I have been training and working in the counselling/mental health field with diverse individuals of all ages within various contexts, including community, university, and outpatient mental health services. I received a Master of Arts in Counselling Psychology from the University of Victoria, and prior to that, I earned a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and Sociology from the University of British Columbia. I have continued to build on and strengthen my clinical practice with ongoing advanced training, research, and supervision.
I can provide counselling/psychotherapy in English and Korean.
About My Approach
I believe that my role as a counsellor and psychotherapist is to listen to you non-judgmentally with empathy and work with you collaboratively to support you in the process of progressing toward your goals for healing, change, and growth. Overall, I bring a humanistic and trauma-informed lens to my understanding of life, meaning that I see you as an expert of your life and lived experience and I am attuned to how experiences that overwhelm your internal resources for processing can impact you. I incorporate elements of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), Motivational Interviewing (MI), mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs), Solution-Focused Therapy (SFT), Narrative Therapy, and Emotion-Focused Family Therapy (EFFT) when working with clients.
