Tiffany Wu (they/she)
***October 2023 – I am currently at capacity, and no longer holding a waitlist.***
I believe people are strong and resilient, and cope with life’s challenges to their best ability. I often work alongside folx navigating intersecting identities – gender, sexuality, cultural, racial, relational – and life’s transitions. In co-creating an open and authentic space with clients, I invite them to access internal strengths and explore new possibilities. Our time together will centre a justice-seeking and anti-oppressive foundation, while being held in ongoing practices of consent. As a queer person of colour born to Chinese immigrant parents, one of my intentions during our conversations is to also provide space to celebrate racialized and/or queer joy. Being born and raised in so-called Vancouver, on unceded Coast Salish territories, I have grown up learning (and unlearning) teachings linked to hyphenated identities, and living in the third culture. I am fortunate to have conversational fluency in Cantonese, and find it sometimes important and helpful in naming and exploring certain themes not existent in the English language and western culture.
For the last eleven years, I have worked alongside youth and young adults in mental health support, and substance use prevention and intervention services with a local school board and local health authority with both youth and their support networks. Previously, I worked in the Downtown Eastside as a Case Manager and Youth Worker. Currently, I work alongside youth and caregivers, providing support in navigating stressors, intersectionality, and parenting concerns. For the past eleven years, I have volunteered with Chill Vancouver, a program that provides youth the opportunity to learn board sports, while incorporating life skills building. I believe in the value of integrating outdoor adventure with therapeutic work.
I hold a Masters in Counselling, and am a registered member of the British Columbia Association of Clinical Counsellors (BCACC). I have formal training in Motivational Interviewing, substance use interventions, including harm reduction strategies, EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing), Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, Racialized Trauma, Vicarious Trauma, Emotion Focused Family Therapy (Level 1), and Mental Health First Aid. I do however acknowledge the inherent powers of lived experiences, and often draw from Eastern cultural collectivist values and teachings.
I truly believe in the liberation of being seen, wholly, and honouring the stories and histories that have shaped us.
I look forward to collaborating alongside you.