Counselling offer guidance to individuals, couples, families and groups who are dealing with issues that affect their mental health and well-being. Frank approaches his work holistically, using a “wellness” model which highlights and encourages and builds on strengths.

Frank can assist individuals to better their lives, improve their ability to establish and maintain relationships, enhance their effectiveness and ability to cope, and promote the decision-making process to facilitate their full potential. Through the counselling process, Frank can assist with:

· Work with individuals, groups and communities to improve mental health

· Encourage clients to discuss emotions and experiences

· Examine issues including substance abuse, aging, bullying, anger management, careers, depression, relationships, LGBTQ issues, self-image, stress and suicide

· Work with families

· Help individuals define goals, plan action and gain insight

· Develop therapeutic processes

· Refer people to psychologists and other services

· Take a holistic (mind and body) approach to mental health care

Grief

Grief is a strong, sometimes overwhelming emotion for people, regardless of whether their sadness stems from the loss of a loved one or from a terminal diagnosis they or someone they love have received. They might find themselves feeling numb and removed from daily life, unable to carry on with regular duties while saddled with their sense of loss. Grief is the natural reaction to loss. Grief is both a universal and a personal experience. Individual experiences of grief vary and are influenced by the nature of the loss. Grief can include the death of a loved one, the ending of an important relationship, job loss, loss through theft or the loss of independence through disability.

Grief hurts, but it can be helpful. The process of grieving often involves sadness, anger, loneliness, and other painful emotions. However, grieving can help you come to terms with loss and move forward in life, while still cherishing memories of your loved one.

Everyone grieves differently. Although others may have opinions about how to grieve correctly, your grief is yours and yours alone. Some people need to express their grief, while others prefer to process in silence. Some feel anger, while others feel sadness, numbness, or relief. Everyone has different reactions to loss, and different needs during the grieving process.

The circumstances of a loss have a major impact on grief. Deaths that are unexpected, traumatic, or stigmatized (e.g. suicide) can complicate the grieving process. Personal factors, such as a history of mental illness, or a strained relationship with the deceased, can also contribute to difficulties.

Grief does not have a set time frame. Grief can last for weeks, months, or years. It may come and go around holidays, anniversaries, and major life events, or it might always be in the background. However, grief does tend to lessen in intensity over time.

Grief may contribute to other problems. Grief increases the risk of developing other health problems, mental illness, and relationship difficulties. This is especially true if the death was traumatic, if you feel guilt about the death, or if grief is prolonged.

It’s okay to seek help. Support from family and friends can prevent grief from growing out of control. Although grief will improve over time for most, this isn’t always the case. When grief is especially debilitating or long-lasting, support groups, therapy, and other resources may be beneficial.

Not everyone experiences significant distress. About 1 in 3 people respond to a loss with resilience or relief. Feeling this way does not mean that you don’t care, or that you love the person any less. Nor does it mean that your grief is unfinished, or that you have a problem.

Moving on doesn’t mean forgetting. You can continue to live your life, have new experiences, and form new relationships, while continuing to love the person you lost. The goal of grieving isn’t to forget, but rather to figure out how you would like to remember, while moving forward.

Clinical Traumatology - Trauma Informed Practice

Frank is a Clinical Traumatologist and he places a great emphasis on trauma informed practice. Trauma-Informed Practice is a strengths-based framework grounded in an understanding of and responsiveness to the impact of trauma. It emphasises physical, psychological, and emotional safety for everyone, and creates opportunities for survivors to rebuild a sense of control and empowerment. The three pillars for trauma-informed practice are:

• Awareness of the prevalence of trauma, and how common it is for all people.

• Recognition of the signs of traumatic impact and how the survival stances of fight, flight, or freeze may show up in the people they serve, support, or work with.

• Engagement in taking steps to avoid re-traumatizing people while supporting healing from past traumatic experiences.

A trauma-informed approach is important for the counselling setting because the impact of trauma can show up in people’s day to day lives more often than is typically recognized, and in a variety of different ways. Frank has a critical understanding of how trauma impacts individuals and safety is Frank’s utmost priority for his clinical practice.

In Frank’s clinical practice, trauma recovery occurs in three stages:

• Safety and Stabilization - The central task of recovery is safety. Victims of chronic trauma are betrayed both by their experiences as well as their own bodies. Their symptoms become the source of triggers that result in re-traumatization. Our goal is to help regain internal and external control.

• Trauma Memory Processing - We begin to work more deeply with exercises to work through their trauma history, bringing unbearable memories to greater resolution. The objective is to create a space in which the individual can safely work through traumatic events and begin to make sense of the devastating experiences that have shaped their life.

• Reconnection - The final stage of recovery involves redefining oneself in the context of meaningful relationships and engagement in life activities. Trauma survivors gain closure on their experiences when they are able to see the things that happened to them with the knowledge that these events do not determine who they are.

Frank Morven is a Registered Clinical Counsellor (RCC) with the B.C. Association of Clinical Counsellors (BCACC) (Member ID: 18289) and is a Canadian Certified Counsellor (CCC) with the Canadian Counselling and Psychotherapy Association (CCPA) (Member ID: 10006800), confirming that he has met specific educational and training criteria for clinical competence and the professional requirements for practicing in accordance with an ethical code and standards of conduct. Frank is also a member in good standing with the Canadian Psychological Association (CPA) (Member ID: 117791). Frank is a Clinical Traumatologist certified with the Traumatologist Institute of Canada.

Next Level Counselling and Mediation Services has direct billing agreements in place with the First Nations Health Authority for the Mental Wellness and Counselling Program, Indian Residential School Resolution Health Support Program, and Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls Health Support Services Program.  There are also direct billing arrangements with the Nisga’a Valley Health Authority for Nisga’a citizens, Coast Mountain College for college students and staff, Métis Nation British Columbia, and I.L.W.U - B.C.M.E.A. (Longshore) company.

Link to BC Association of Clinical Counsellors Profile: BC Association of Clinical Counsellors (bcacc.ca)

Frank can be contacted at 250-600-7598 or via email at frankmorven@gmail.com and he would be happy to answer any questions.