In their
own words

The support received through Colleen’s training helped me get my life back and return to work. Her understanding of the challenges first responders face and how that affects not only oneself but their families is evident and brings self-awareness and clarity so we can keep helping ourselves in order to help others. Her perception and insight is filled with wit that is easy to understand and gives a sense of perceptiveness to topics we’ve learnt to avoid. Instead of running away from our issues we should ALL be running towards this program.

After 33 years in policing, I had learned to keep people at arm’s length, so earning my trust was no small thing. Colleen did it through genuine care, honesty and an ability to challenge me when I needed it. She made me feel understood, supported and, most importantly, that I wasn’t facing things alone. Colleen didn’t just help me through a difficult chapter; she helped me find a way forward.

I was diagnosed with PTSI approximately three years after retiring from a 29-year career in policing. From my very first appointment with Colleen, through the completion of our weekly sessions a year later, she helped me understand what I was experiencing and, more importantly, gave me the tools and knowledge I needed to take back my life.

I often tell people that Colleen saved my life. At that point, I was not headed in a good direction. I had reached a breaking point, and I knew that if things continued the way they were, it wasn’t going to end well for me. I still stand by those words today, and I look back on the support Colleen provided with an enormous amount of gratitude. She truly was a lifesaver.

I had the opportunity to review Colleen’s course program when she asked me to provide my thoughts on it. I found it incredibly impactful. In many ways, I wish I had access to this type of help, education, and understanding much earlier in my career. It could have been a game changer for me and my mental health as well as my personal relationships with those close to me.

To all my brothers and sisters in uniform: please know that help is out there. Repeated exposure to traumatic events can have a profound impact on your life, especially when you don’t understand what is happening to you or when those around you don’t know what to do. Colleen’s program is a fantastic tool for helping people understand trauma, recognize its impact, and begin the road toward recovery.

I am incredibly grateful that I found that help when I needed it most and I think Colleen’s program will provide departments with an excellent tool to hopefully curb the number of good people that you’re losing on an annual basis.

I met Colleen when I was going through a major PTSD crisis the extent of which I did not fully comprehend at the time. She was exactly the right person for me in that moment and for many hard months afterwards. She is not only incredibly empathetic and caring but also blunt when it is required. She is not scared to call you out on your shit! You may not like what she says but I guarantee it will always be what you need to hear. She is passionate about the first responder community and she really and truly understands the policing culture. I was immediately at ease with her and could relate to her on a level that I still cannot fully explain. She is one of a kind in all the best ways possible.

I first met Colleen several years ago while seeking treatment for PTSD related to my career in emergency services. By that point, I had seen a number of therapists over the years, but Colleen was the first person I truly connected with and, more importantly, the first therapist I felt truly understood the world I came from.

There is something very different about working in emergency services. You spend your career seeing and experiencing things that most people will never encounter, while being expected to remain calm, capable, professional, and ready for the next call. It can be incredibly difficult to explain that world to someone who has never been part of it. With Colleen, I never felt as though I had to translate my experiences or convince her of their impact. She understood.

Her professional background gave her a perspective that I found extremely rare. Having worked as a therapist with individuals in custody and later with corrections officers, and then going on to work with police officers, dispatchers, 911 operators, and other emergency-services professionals in her private practice, Colleen developed an exceptional ability to connect with people who work in high-stress, trauma-exposed environments.

But it wasn’t simply her professional experience that made the difference for me. It was her ability to build trust. Colleen had a way of getting past the walls that people in these professions often become very good at putting up. I felt safe speaking honestly with her, without fear of judgment and without feeling that I needed to minimize, explain, or defend what I was experiencing.

I can say without hesitation that working with Colleen changed my life. At a time when I was struggling deeply, she reached me in a way that no other therapist had been able to. I have often felt that, in many ways, she saved me.

What Colleen understands about trauma in emergency services cannot simply be learned from a textbook. It comes from years of listening to and working alongside people who have spent their careers in policing, corrections, emergency communications, and other demanding frontline roles. She understands not only trauma itself, but also the culture, humour, expectations, pressures, and reluctance to ask for help that can exist within these professions.

Although Colleen has now retired from clinical practice, I am incredibly pleased that she has taken what she learned throughout her career and developed it into a program that can continue helping others. There are police officers, dispatchers, corrections professionals, 911 operators, and other emergency-services personnel who may be struggling quietly and who need someone who genuinely understands their world.

Colleen was that person for me.

If her knowledge and approach can now be passed on through this program to departments, organizations, clinicians, and the people who support emergency-services professionals, I believe it has the potential to make a very meaningful difference. I will always be grateful that our paths crossed.

Colleen came into my life when I was struggling deeply with PTSD, and I honestly don’t know where I would be without her. She has an incredible combination of compassion, knowledge, and life experience, and she was never afraid to call me out or challenge me. She helped me make substantial progress, understand what I was going through, and navigate some of the hardest decisions of my life, including leaving policing after almost 30 years. At a time when I truly needed someone in my corner, Colleen felt like an angel who showed up at exactly the right time.