Diana Mitchell
MSW, RSW, SEP, Clinical Counsellor
I am a Registered Social Worker, and have provided counselling and support services to individuals, families, and youth since 2009.
I believe that it takes courage to begin the counselling process. When you make the choice to work through painful feelings, to change damaging behaviours, or to build stronger relationships your life can improve in many ways.
My role is to provide a counselling relationship that allows you to feel safe to share your experiences, feelings and thoughts. I will provide a confidential space, support and feedback in order to help you to work towards the changes you identify. ​
About Somatic Experiencing®
Somatic therapies provide a body centred approach to healing trauma and other mental health conditions by focusing on the connection between the mind and body. Trauma is framed as what happens within the body after the traumatic event(s). It is the echo which keeps us feeling as though the danger were happening now. Over long periods of time, this can manifest in a range of mental, emotional and physical symptoms associated with prolonged distress.​​
Somatic Experiencing® (SE) is a specific body based therapeutic approach developed by Peter Levine Ph.D. SE emphasizes a gentle and well resourced pace to allow nervous system dysregulation to be explored in a manageable way. A central aim of SE is to release the ways traumatic experiences manifest and become trapped in the body, thereby allowing clients to connect with the body’s inherent capacity for growth and healing.​
Services Offered
Our emotional experiences have powerful impacts on our health and wellbeing. They can leave us feeling stuck, experiencing physical health challenges and feeling disconnected in our relationships. I provide a safe, non-judgmental environment that enables individuals to address a variety of challenges, including: trauma, childhood abuse, emotional pain, depression and anxiety, and addictions.
Beginning from a person centred foundation, I use trauma-informed, attachment and mindfulness-based frameworks in my practice. I draw from a range of therapeutic modalities including Somatic Experiencing®, Emotion Focused Therapy, Cognitive Processing Therapy, Cognitive Behavioural Therapy and Dialectical Behavioural Therapy to suit individual needs.
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Counselling services offered by Registered Social Workers are often covered by private insurance companies, or through extended health care benefits and health care spending accounts. Please check with your insurance or benefit provider to determine eligibility. ​
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Registered Social Workers are authorized as medical practitioners under the Income Tax Act for the purpose of claiming medical expenses on income tax returns.
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I accept cash, cheque, debit, Visa and Mastercard as methods of payment.
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60 Minute Sessions range from $180 to $200, dependent on the services required.
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An initial phone consultation is available free and can be booked online.
Contact Me
For first sessions please call to book
Diana Mitchell Counselling
662 King St. W
Suite 3
Kingston, ON. K7M 2E8
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Some tools you will learn to use in SE include:
Grounding/Orienting Techniques: these involve practices to help individuals feel connected to safety in the present moment and the environment around them, reducing feelings of dissociation or overwhelm.
Interoception: clients are guided to tune into the ‘felt sense’ of physical sensations in the body to help identify physiological patterns connected to past events or triggers. Clients learn to track and influence their state when in shutdown or more active stress responses (fight/flight).
Resourcing/Containment: helping clients create a sense of safety and support within themselves to navigate through challenging emotions and memories during the healing process.
Pacing/Pendulation: this involves working with small increments of traumatic experiences to prevent overwhelm and safely process and release the stored energy associated with trauma.
By incorporating these tools and more, Somatic Experiencing® aims to provide clients with a holistic approach to healing trauma and improving overall mental health. When we are able to feel greater presence and safety, our ability to think clearly and make sense of our experiences supports growth and integration of traumatic experiences.