Hi, I am Pamela Young. I am a Registered Psychotherapist and Certified Coach.

I help those depleted by life gain the power of faith, hope and love to accomplish their life purpose.

It was 10 years ago that life depleted me.  I had gone back to get my Masters after being home for several years with young children. It was hard work, but I got through it with the support of my husband and I enjoyed my job as a Psychotherapist. I gained credentials in EMDR, a type of therapy with trauma, and began to see some clients who had experienced complex trauma. As part of this work, I ended up having a heavy client load of victims of abuse, veterans, first responders and accident survivors ranging in age from children to seniors.

My home life was the first to start to slip. I had no patience in dealing with issues related to my kids. My son began to tell me he was being bullied and I had no energy to help support him. I presumed that he had done something to encourage it or was overreacting to what the kids were saying. Worse than that my marriage began to fall apart. I had no tolerance for anything my husband would say that was negative. Again, I always assumed that he was in the wrong or just had a poor attitude. I couldn’t talk about my work and would get mad if he received recognition at work. I would say to him, “must be nice to get a bonus for working overtime”. He would try to understand me but he was pretty much in a no-win situation.

This was where things were when we went on a cruise in 2010. I was looking forward to the time away with family and being able to rest. However, I found it hard to relax and it just gave me more time to brew inside. On that cruise, I got stung by a jellyfish and with my run down body, I got what is called Neurotoxicity. My brain and my body began to shut down to the point where I couldn’t work anymore and my Supervisor strongly encouraged me to take a leave of absence.

During my time off, I had time to think and evaluate how I had gotten into this place. I wasn’t aware of Compassion Fatigue and Secondary Trauma as it was not something we studied in my program. My husband and I went to a marriage intensive to begin to heal the damage of our marriage and it was there that I realized the cost of my work. I worked with a Naturopath who helped my body to get rid of the toxins and to heal, but it has been a slow road to recovery. Three years later, I ran a half marathon and found my time running to be a place where I could get grounded and have a chance to focus on my life outside of work. However, an injury means I am no longer able to run and I have needed to be actively engaged in ensuring that I do self-care so that I can be there for those I love.  I am back working part-time with trauma clients and have filled in the rest of my work with leading Hope Harbour, leadership coaching, Enneagram assessments and consulting with non-profit organizations.

This blog is about the journey I am on and the things that I have learned in working with those longing to restore their freedom.

My Family

I have been married to my husband, Phil for 30 years. We have 3 adult children who have launched out on their own and having their own adventures.  We live outside of Toronto, Ontario, Canada.  In my free time, I enjoy reading, knitting and playing board games with the family.  In the summer, you will find me at our trailer in the beautiful Prince Edward County.