Sarah MacGillivray | Halifax Based Therapy

MSW, RSW

  • Life Transitions

  • Women’s Issues

  • Trauma and PTSD

  • Addiction

  • Alcohol Use

  • Anxiety

  • Coping Skills

  • Depression

  • Domestic Violence

  • Family Conflict

  • Grief

Areas of Practice

  • LGBTQ+

  • Mood Disorders

  • Peer Relationships

  • Personality Disorders

  • Relationship Issues

  • Self-Harming

  • Sexual Abuse

  • Spirituality

  • Stress

  • Substance Use

  • Suicidal Ideation

I believe that healing happens in relationship with ourselves, others, and the communities we’re part of. My work is grounded in values of relationships, connection, justice, and equity. I see many of our struggles not as personal failings, but as natural responses to systems and experiences that have shaped us.

My experience includes working with youth and adults of diverse identifies and backgrounds who have experienced gender-based violence, homelessness, criminalization, as well as in schools, residential care facilities, and shelters. These experiences not only shape my practice, but how I aspire to show up in the world.

My goal is to bring warmth, curiosity, and humanness to each session. I value authenticity, and my first priority is building a sense of safety and trust together. I view the people I work with as the experts in their experience, and my role is to provide the relational environment and safety to explore and strengthen their relationships with themselves.

I am trained in Narrative Therapy and the Integrative Trauma and Attachment Treatment Model (ITATM), which is a gentle, neuroscience-informed approach to trauma healing that draws on somatic, creative expression, and parts work. I also hold specialized training in counselling people who have experienced sexualized violence. Using my experiences, combined with these approaches, I strive to help people make meaning of their experiences, strengthen inner resources, and gently process trauma and attachment wounds.

My style is collaborative, relational, and compassionate. I currently offer in-person, virtual and phone sessions for youth and adults seeking support with trauma recovery, anxiety, relationship patterns, depression, self-esteem, identity, and meaning-making.

Interested in connecting with Sarah?