About Sarah Sheahan

Sarah Sheahan is a Registered Psychotherapist #13759. She completed her Master of Arts in Counselling Psychology at Yorkville University and her Bachelor of Science in Psychology and Neuroscience at Wilfrid Laurier University.

Children & Youth

Sarah is passionate about supporting children and youth 5+. Her extensive experience includes providing therapeutic support in schools, homes, and community-based clinics. In her previous role as a Child and Youth Therapist at the Canadian Mental Health Association Waterloo Wellington (CMHAWW), she helped children ages 6 to 18 facing behavioural issues, anxiety, and a range of other mental health challenges.

Sarah brings a playful, engaging, and relaxed approach to meet each kiddo where they’re at. She believes every child has the potential to grow, heal and shine, even in the face of adversity. Sarah creates a safe space to support children in finding their path to healing and growth, while enhancing key areas like emotion regulation, interpersonal skills, self-esteem and confidence.

With a strong focus on collaboration, Sarah partners with parents and caregivers when appropriate to foster their children’s mental health. Through her training in the Supportive Parenting for Anxious Childhood Emotions (SPACE) program, she’s able to provide guidance and support to families navigating youth anxiety, OCD, and related problems, helping them strengthen their children’s coping skills.

Adolescents & Young Adults

Sarah also connects easily with teens, students, and young adults. Whether it’s dealing with stress from school or relationships, feeling anxious or down, or working through low self-confidence, she can relate to the modern pressures teens and young adults face. Thanks to her specialized training in Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT), she’s able to share practical strategies for managing intense feelings and improving relationships with family, friends, and partners.

Sarah is also experienced supporting teens and young adults going through more complex mental health challenges such as severe anxiety and depression. Thanks to her current role as a community-based therapist supporting young adults through psychosis, she understands the disruptive impact significant mental health issues can have on a person’s life. No matter how complex the issues are, Sarah is committed to helping her clients regain their well-being and supporting them in finding their own way back to living meaningful and satisfying lives.

Trauma & Difficult Life Events

Children and youth can unfortunately experience or witness traumatic events in their lives that leave them feeling overwhelmed, frightened, disconnected, and alone. These events can include accidents, abuse, violence, separation, or sudden loss. In some cases, youth may withdraw, stop communicating, and struggle with nightmares; others may begin acting out aggressively or avoid situations and people. Parents and caregivers often feel at a loss in terms of helping their kiddos feel safe again in the world. Sarah specializes in helping these families and youth begin the gentle process of working through the impacts of trauma.

Drawing from a trauma-informed approach, Sarah uses her youth-specific training in Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (TF-CBT) and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) to help kiddos work through their traumatic experiences, manage their emotions, and regain their sense of safety and control.

Personal Interests

Outside of the office, Sarah enjoys spending time with loved ones and her silver lab Bentley, traveling to new places, and staying active through outdoor activities such as hiking and running. She finds it important to maintain a healthy and balanced lifestyle to stay grounded and energized in her personal and professional life.

Email: sarah.sheahan@mylifecounselling.ca
Phone: 1-800-828-9484 (ext. 139)