About Me
I grew up in Montreal in a close knit community where friends and family were very important and came with lots of stories... we spent a lot of time talking! I had an easy time talking and listening to anything from friends and family, to fitness and food, to fashion and finances. Early on, I came to be known as the resident therapist, always listening to people’s problems and stories.
I earned BA in Psychology from McGill University and then got an associate’s degree in Fashion Buying and Merchandising from Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT). Putting theory into practice in the buying office at Bergdorf Goodman taught me what it meant to be a high end buyer in the fashion industry in New York City. That experience was invaluable in that it showed me what I did NOT want. I knew I wanted to validate the positive aspects of the fashion industry (i.e. creativity, textures, fabrics) despite the chaotic nature of the industry.
Needing to dig deeper, I was determined to reveal the complexity of fashion, appearance and image and how that impacted people. But how was I to negotiate my love for all things sartorial and my desire to help people?
This lead me back to university to further my studies where I worked to marry my interests of both fashion and psychology. I earned an MA in Social Work from New York University (NYU), emphasizing body image and the external impact of physical appearance on self-esteem. I wanted to understand the link between our appearance and our internal worlds; the ambivalence between who we appear to be, and who we actually are.
My Experience
My international experience allows me to be sensitive to cultural aspects of what it means to be living in a different country. As a working mother of 3, I fully understand the complexities, expectations and anxieties that often accompany 21st Century London life. My combination of compassion, understanding and experience enables me to connect positively with my clients, allowing them to make the positive changes in their life that they are seeking.
My interest in how physical change affects how people feel about themselves has been a constant source of curiosity throughout my life. As a teenager, I witnessed the impact of physical changes caused by cancer treatment on the emotional well-being of a close family member. From then on I became acutely aware of how external changes impact the internal self.
Whether it be a physical part of yourself that you don’t like or a physical change brought upon you by accident (scarring, burns, pregnancy, ageing, etc.) I help people overcome the limits and challenges that prevent them from living their lives fully and authentically.
I work with clients through a body image lens which allows me to help them in a more holistic way by looking at how they feel in their bodies, what roles food and appearance play, and how to be able to ultimately tie up their experience of their physical selves internally, to feed their self-esteem.
In 2020 I became the Wellbeing Director of The Soke; a private mental health & wellness centre in Chelsea for common behavioural health issues like depression, anxiety & other non-acute disorders.