Our 12-Week Trauma Recovery Program Services

Step 1: Your First Connection with Turning Tides

Welcome. Taking the first step toward healing from trauma takes courage, and we're honoured you're considering this journey. Step 1 of our 12-Week Trauma Recovery Program is all about getting to know you, understanding what brought you here, and ensuring we're the right fit for your needs.

What Happens in Step 1

Your first session is a conversation, not an interrogation. We'll spend time learning about your experiences, your goals, and what healing looks like for you. This is where we build the foundation of trust that makes everything else possible.

During this initial session, you can expect:

• A warm, welcoming environment where your story matters
• Time to share what's been difficult and what you hope to change
• An explanation of how our 12-week program works and what to expect
• A discussion of the therapeutic approaches we'll use, including Internal Family Systems (IFS), somatic experiencing, and other evidence-based methods tailored to you
• Practical information about scheduling, how we'll communicate, and what support is available between sessions
• A chance to ask any questions you have

What to Expect

Your first session lasts 50 minutes. We offer both online and virtual options, so you can choose what feels most comfortable. Whether you're in Vancouver or anywhere across British Columbia, you can access this support from a space where you feel safe.

We'll discuss your history with trauma in a gentle, paced way. There's no pressure to share everything at once. Healing happens gradually, and we move at your speed.

You'll also learn about the 12-week journey ahead. We'll talk about what stabilisation, processing, and post-traumatic growth look like, and how we'll work together to help you move through each phase.

Frequently Asked Questions About Getting Started

Do I need to have a formal diagnosis to start?

No. Many people come to us knowing they've experienced trauma but without a formal diagnosis. What matters is that you're ready to explore healing. If you're unsure whether this program is right for you, our free 20-minute consultation can help clarify that.

What if I'm nervous about talking to someone new?

That's completely normal. Most people feel nervous before their first session. We create a space that's judgement-free and confidential. You're in control of how much you share and how quickly you share it. We've worked with many people who felt anxious at first, and that feeling usually shifts once the conversation begins.

Will I need to relive my trauma in detail?

Not in Step 1. Our first session is about understanding the shape of your experience, not diving into every detail. As we move through the 12 weeks, we'll work together on processing trauma in ways that feel manageable and healing, never retraumatising.

Can I do this online, or do I need to come in person?

We offer fully online sessions, which means you can access this support from wherever you are in British Columbia. Many people find online sessions more comfortable because they're in a familiar, safe space. You have complete choice here.

What if I'm not sure I'm ready?

That uncertainty is valid. A free 20-minute consultation can help you explore whether now is the right time and whether this program fits your needs. Sometimes just talking to someone who understands trauma can help you decide.

How much does this cost?

We offer affordable individual sessions, and coverage may be available based on your individual insurance policy. We work with major providers including Canada Life, Green Shield Canada, Manulife, SunLife, and Pacific Blue Cross. We also offer flexible payment options and can discuss what works for your situation.

What if I've tried therapy before and it didn't work?

Previous therapy experiences matter, and we want to learn from them. Different approaches work for different people at different times. Our care is informed by trauma research and tailored to you as an individual. We'll discuss what has and hasn't worked before so we can build something that does.

Is everything I share confidential?

Yes, with very limited exceptions. Everything you share is confidential and protected. We'll explain those exceptions in your first session so you know exactly what to expect.

What if I have a crisis between sessions?

We provide between-session email support and resources for crisis situations. If you're in immediate danger, we'll discuss emergency protocols in your first session and ensure you have the support you need.

Reassurance for First-Time Clients

If you've never been to therapy before, you might wonder what it's really like. Here's the truth: it's a conversation with someone trained to listen deeply and help you find your own answers. You're not broken. You're not too much. Your trauma makes sense given what you've experienced, and healing is possible.

Kotone Frankowski, our Registered Therapeutic Counsellor, has spent years working with people who've experienced complex trauma. She brings both professional expertise and genuine compassion to every session. She's trained in approaches that honour your resilience and your capacity to heal.

Step 1 is simply about meeting, connecting, and beginning. Nothing more. Nothing less.

How to Get Started

Ready to take this step? Here are your options:

Book Your Free 20-Minute Consultation

Before committing to the full program, you can have a brief conversation to discuss your needs and see if we're a good match. This is completely free and with no obligation.

Schedule Your First Session

If you're ready to begin, you can book directly through our online platform.

What Happens After Step 1

Once you've completed your first session, you'll have a clear picture of the 12-week journey ahead. We'll have discussed your goals, the therapeutic approaches we'll use, and how we'll measure progress. You'll leave with a sense of direction and a plan that feels right for you.

Step 2 begins the deeper work of stabilisation and building the skills you'll need for healing. But that comes next. For now, Step 1 is about connection, clarity, and hope.

You're not alone in this. We're here to support you every step of the way.

Step 2: Your Intake and Goal-Setting Journey

Welcome to Step 2 of your 12-week trauma recovery experience. This is where we truly get to know you, understand your unique story, and create a personalised roadmap for your healing. Think of this step as laying the foundation for everything that comes next.

What Happens During Your First Sessions

Your first sessions are all about connection and understanding. We'll spend time together exploring your background, your experiences, and what brought you to seek support right now. This isn't about filling out endless forms or clinical questioning. Instead, we have genuine conversations where you share at your own pace, and we listen with full attention.

During these initial meetings, we'll discuss your trauma history, how it's affecting your daily life, and what you hope to achieve over the next 12 weeks. We'll also talk about your strengths, your values, and the parts of your life that matter most to you. This collaborative approach ensures that your treatment plan reflects who you really are, not just your symptoms.

Understanding Our Intake Process

The intake process is straightforward and designed with your comfort in mind. Here's what to expect:

• A warm, confidential conversation about your trauma history and current situation
• Discussion of how trauma has been showing up in your body, emotions, thoughts, and relationships
• Exploration of your coping strategies and what has helped you so far
• Conversation about any physical health concerns or medications you're taking
• Discussion of your support system and important relationships
• Time to ask questions and express any concerns about the process ahead

We may use some reflective conversations and check-ins to understand patterns in your life. These aren't tests or evaluations. They're simply ways for us to understand what's been happening and how we can best support you.

What to Bring and Prepare

You don't need to prepare extensively, but here are some things that can help make your first sessions smoother:

Preparation Checklist

Before your first session, take a moment to prepare yourself:

• Find a quiet, comfortable space where you won't be interrupted
• Gather any health or insurance documents you have handy
• Think about what you'd like to get out of these 12 weeks (no pressure to have perfect answers)
• Consider what times work best for you to meet weekly
• Write down any questions you want to ask
• Remind yourself that this is a safe space, and you can share at your own pace
• Have water nearby and wear comfortable clothing

The Goal-Setting Process

Once we've spent time getting to know each other, we'll work together to set meaningful goals for your 12-week journey. This isn't about us telling you what you should achieve. Instead, we collaborate to identify what matters most to you.

Your goals might include things like learning to manage overwhelming emotions, rebuilding your sense of safety, improving your relationships, developing a stronger sense of self-worth, or simply feeling more present in your daily life. Some goals are big and transformative. Others are smaller, practical steps that build momentum.

We'll make sure your goals are clear and achievable within 12 weeks. We'll also identify what success looks like for you. How will you know you're making progress? What will feel different? What will you be able to do that you can't do right now?

Common Concerns About This Process

Will I have to share everything about my trauma right away?

No. You share what feels safe and manageable. Healing happens at your pace, not ours. We'll gently explore your experiences as you're ready, never pushing you beyond what feels tolerable.

What if I don't know what my goals are?

That's completely normal. Many people come to counselling feeling lost or uncertain. We'll explore together. Through our conversations, your goals will become clearer. By the end of your first sessions, you'll have a sense of direction.

Will you judge me for what I've been through?

Absolutely not. We work with trauma every day. We understand that trauma responses make sense given what you've experienced. Our role is to support you with compassion and respect, not judgment.

What if I'm not ready to talk about certain things?

You're always in control. You can say 'I'm not ready to talk about that yet,' and we'll respect that boundary completely. Healing requires safety and trust, and we build that together at a pace that works for you.

How do you measure progress if you're not using formal assessments?

We track progress through our ongoing conversations. We notice changes in how you describe your experiences, shifts in your emotional responses, and improvements in your daily functioning. We also check in regularly about how you're feeling and whether the work we're doing feels helpful. Your own sense of progress matters most.

What if I have questions during the week?

You can reach out via email between sessions. We'll respond within one business day. You're not alone in this process, and we're here to support you throughout your 12 weeks.

Your Therapeutic Approach

During your intake, we'll also discuss the therapeutic approaches we'll use together. Our counselling draws from several evidence-based methods, all tailored to what works best for you. These include Internal Family Systems work, which helps you understand different parts of yourself with compassion; somatic approaches that help your nervous system find safety; cognitive and behavioural strategies for managing thoughts and emotions; and acceptance and commitment therapy, which helps you live according to your values even while healing from trauma.

We'll explain how each approach works in plain language, so you understand what we're doing and why.

What Happens After Your Intake Sessions

Once we've completed your intake and set your goals, you'll move into your weekly therapy sessions. Each session is 50 minutes of focused, dedicated time for your healing. Between sessions, you'll have email access for questions or support. We'll also send you brief reflections on what we discussed, so you can continue processing at home.

At the midpoint of your 12 weeks, we'll pause to review your progress together. We'll celebrate what's shifted, adjust our approach if needed, and recommit to your goals for the second half of the program.

Ready to Begin?

Your intake and goal-setting journey is the beginning of real, meaningful change. It's where hope meets action, and where your unique path to healing takes shape.

If you have questions before your first session or want to discuss anything about this process, please reach out. We're here to support you every step of the way.

Ready to book your first sessions? Visit our online booking platform to schedule your intake appointments at https://www.colib.io/booking/turning-tides-coaching-counselling.

Our trauma informed counselling services serving all of British Columbia are designed to meet you where you are and support your journey toward healing and growth.

Step 3: Active Healing and Skill Building

Weeks 4 through 8 of Your Recovery Journey

You've established safety and learned to recognise your body's responses to trauma. Now we move into the heart of healing. This phase focuses on processing what happened, building emotional strength, and developing practical tools you'll use for the rest of your life.

What Happens in These Sessions

During Step 3, your sessions with our Registered Therapeutic Counsellor become more focused on working through the impact of your trauma. You'll explore memories and experiences at a pace that feels manageable for you. This isn't about forcing yourself to relive pain. Instead, we create space for you to understand how trauma has shaped your thoughts, feelings, and relationships.

Each 50-minute session follows a gentle rhythm. We begin by checking in on how you're feeling and what's been happening since we last met. Then we move into deeper work, using approaches that help your nervous system process what happened while keeping you grounded and safe. We finish by reviewing what you've learned and preparing you for the week ahead.

Therapeutic Approaches Used in This Phase

Our trauma informed care draws on several evidence-based methods, all working together to support your healing:

• Internal Family Systems work helps you understand different parts of yourself that may have developed to protect you after trauma. Rather than fighting these parts, we learn to work with them compassionately.
• Somatic experiencing focuses on how trauma lives in your body. Through gentle awareness and movement, we help your nervous system complete the healing process it couldn't finish when the trauma occurred.
• Cognitive Behavioural approaches help you recognise thought patterns that keep you stuck and develop new ways of thinking that support your recovery.
• Acceptance and Commitment Therapy teaches you to acknowledge difficult feelings without letting them control your life, so you can move toward what matters most to you.
• Narrative therapy techniques help you rewrite your relationship with what happened, moving from seeing yourself as defined by trauma to seeing yourself as someone who has survived and grown.

Between Sessions: Your Healing Practices

The real work of recovery happens between our sessions. We'll give you practices tailored to where you are in your healing journey.

Reflective journaling invites you to write about your experiences, feelings, and insights. This isn't about perfect writing. It's about getting what's inside you onto the page so you can see it more clearly.

Grounding and regulation practices become your daily tools. These might include breathing exercises, body awareness techniques, or sensory activities that help you stay present and calm when difficult feelings arise.

Skill practice means using what you've learned in sessions in real life. If we've worked on a new way to handle anxiety, you'll practice it during the week and notice what happens.

Values and strengths reflection helps you reconnect with what matters to you beyond the trauma. We might ask you to notice moments when you felt capable, connected, or at peace, and to write about what made those moments possible.

Participation in our community support is optional but powerful. Our CPTSD support group and therapy book club meet regularly and offer connection with others who understand what you're going through. Many clients find this peer support deeply healing.

Tracking Your Progress

We believe you know yourself best. Rather than relying on formal testing, we track your progress through ongoing conversation. At the beginning of each session, we talk about what's shifted since we last met. Are you sleeping better? Feeling less triggered by certain situations? Noticing more moments of peace?

We also use reflective check-ins where we pause and notice together. You might say something like, 'I realised this week that I can be angry without it meaning I'm broken,' and that's progress worth celebrating.

Between sessions, you'll receive a follow-up email from our counsellor. This email reflects back what you shared, highlights insights from your session, and reminds you of the practices we discussed. Many clients find these emails helpful to review during the week.

What You're Building

By the end of Step 3, you'll have developed a toolkit of practices that work for your unique nervous system and healing style. You'll understand more about how trauma has affected you and why certain situations trigger certain responses. Most importantly, you'll have experienced moments of genuine relief and connection, proof that healing is possible.

Our trauma informed counselling services serving all of British Columbia, including Vancouver, Kelowna, Victoria, and communities across the province, are designed to meet you exactly where you are. Whether you're in a bustling city or a smaller town, your healing matters.

Ready to Move Forward?

Step 3 is where transformation begins to feel real. If you're ready to engage in this deeper work, we're here to support you.

Book your next session through our online booking platform:

Schedule Your Session

Questions about what Step 3 involves? Reach out to us at info@turningtidestoday.com or call 778-321-6058. We're happy to discuss how this phase of healing can support your recovery journey.