Therapy Styles and Modalities in Kelowna
Momentous Counselling offers a diverse range of therapy styles, from Adlerian to Strength-based approaches, tailored to individual needs. Whether it’s understanding early experiences, exploring attachment styles, or utilizing techniques like CBT or EMDR, our counselors aim to create a supportive environment for personal growth. With a focus on client strengths and autonomy, Momentous Counselling helps clients achieve their therapeutic goals.
What is ACT? (Acceptance and Commitment Therapy)
ACT uses:
- Metaphors to make complex ideas easier to understand
- Mindfulness and meditation to build awareness
- Values-based work to help guide meaningful action
At its core, ACT supports people in making space for what they feel, while still moving toward what matters most to them.
ACT has effectively been used to support clients with anxiety, depression, addiction, stress, and chronic pain.
What is Adlerian Therapy?
How can Adlerian Therapy help?
Adlerian therapy helps clients understand how early life experiences influence their lives today. By increasing self-awareness clients are often able to increase self-compassion and better regulate their emotions. It can be applied to trauma, addictions, anxiety, depression, and other mental health symptoms.
What is Attachment Style Therapy?
The way we connect in relationships looks different for every partnership. Relationship dynamics, how we feel loved, and how we resolve conflict are influenced by our early childhood experiences and caregivers. Behaviours and worldviews are learned from family.
How can Attachment Style Therapy help?
Attachment Style Therapy helps clients understand how they feel connected and loved by others. It also helps us understand how we respond to conflict.
What is CBT? (Cognitive Behavioural Therapy)
How can CBT help?
Clients who want to attend counselling short-term or have funding for a limited number of sessions. It also works well for people who like actionable steps, homework, and a process to integrate change.
What is Cultural Counselling?
Culture plays an important role in our upbringing and worldviews. Age, disAbility, gender, ethnicity and other unique features that make you YOU are important in social contexts. At Momentous, we have counsellors with different cultural backgrounds. We also know that clients are the experts of their situation and remain client-centred to cater to the client’s needs. We have therapists who are BIPOC (Global Majority), and LGBTQ+ allied. Many of us have taken additional training in Indigenous Cultural Awareness, Gender Equality and Gender Diversity.
How can Cultural Counselling help?
People who want a deeper understanding of self may benefit from cultural counselling. Additionally, people who are in relationships with someone from another culture may have a better understanding when combining cultural counselling with couples therapy.
What is DBT? (Dialectical Behaviour Therapy)
How can DBT help?
DBT was first developed to treat borderline personality disorder (BPD) and suicide. However, now, it’s also widely used for eating disorders, PTSD, substance use, and mood disorders. According to studies, DBT can reduce the need for medical care and medications by 90%!
What is EFT? (Emotionally Focused Therapy)
How can EFT help?
EFT helps create awareness around attachment-based triggers, and cycles of ineffective emotional regulation, and instead, creates corrective emotional experiences. It has been effective in treating depression, anxiety, low self-esteem, self-criticism, and relationships. Those who have a better relationship with themselves will also have a better relationship with others. EFT also helps clients delve deeper into their emotions and recognize somatic symptoms and the purpose that emotions serve.
What is EMDR? (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing)
EMDR uses less talking, and more thinking, and uses loosely associated memories and images to reprocess memories. With the assistance of tapping, eye movements, or audio stimulation, clients focus more on the emotions and symptoms to help with integrating memories so clients can move beyond their trauma.
How can EMDR help?
EMDR therapy is a research-proven method to help people recover from trauma and other distressing life experiences, like anxiety, phobia, addictions, grief, dissociative disorders, and personality disorders. The duration of EMDR is often shorter than traditional psychotherapy methods, making it an affordable option for those seeking therapy.
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What is Existential Therapy?
At times, life can feel overwhelming, uncertain, or even meaningless. Existential therapy creates space to sit with these deeper questions and make sense of your experiences without judgment. Rather than viewing you as a problem to fix, this approach sees you as a person navigating universal human challenges like loss, freedom, responsibility, identity, and change.
Together, we explore what truly matters to you, helping you move toward a life that feels authentic, intentional, and aligned with your values.
How can Existential Therapy help?
Existential Therapy can be especially powerful if you are feeling stuck, disconnected, or searching for deeper meaning. It may support you in:
- Exploring questions around purpose, identity, and life direction
- Navigating major life transitions (career changes, loss, relationships)
- Working through feelings of anxiety, emptiness, or uncertainty
- Developing the confidence to make values-based decisions
What is Exposure Therapy?
This approach first prepares clients with practical mindfulness tools to help with their external triggers. Slowly, and in a controlled manner, therapists introduce the trigger either through imagination and imagery, with the use of technology or in a real-life setting. With client feedback, the therapist will increase the duration, and intensity of the trigger once the client’s level of tolerance increases. The length of therapy for Exposure Therapy can vary, depending on the complexity of the trigger.
How can Exposure Therapy help?
People with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), PTSD, social anxiety or phobias can benefit from Exposure therapy. However, it can be a distressing approach, because you will be facing your fears.
What are Expressive & Creative Therapies?
This encompasses imagery, storytelling, music, dance, movement, visual arts, or a combination. Expressive therapies use non-verbal communication as a vessel for healing. Despite the association of expressive and creative arts with children, people of all ages can use expressive effectively.
There are two main components to expressive therapy. One, art as therapy, and the other as psychotherapy. Art as therapy, such as adult colouring books, and playing music, uses art as a coping strategy. These tools can help with anxiety, depression and other mental health symptoms. It can help us calm our nervous system.
Alternatively, expressive arts as psychotherapy is more in-depth. Through expressive arts, we explore themes and meaning-making. It is often used as an alternative to talk therapy for trauma, depression and other areas of distress. Recent studies suggest that expressive therapies are just as effective as CBT.
How can Expressive & Creative Therapies help?
Sometimes traumas and memories are stored in the non-verbal parts of our brain. Through expressive and creative arts, we can process our emotions. It also helps with communication. Sometimes, things are too scary to say and easier to show or draw instead.
This approach is also very effective for children & youth.
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What is Gestalt?
Gestalt is a German word that means “whole.” It is an effective therapy that integrates real-life scenarios into counselling sessions. It is a form of therapy based on increasing a person’s awareness, freedom, and self-direction. It focused more on the present instead of past experiences. It is also based on the idea that people are influenced by their environment and relationships.
How can Gestalt help?
Gestalt is helpful when clients are experiencing difficult relationships, are stuck in conflict, and feel like the people around them impact their mood and feelings. Role plays, empty chair techniques, and externalizing emotions are commonly used techniques.
What is Gottman Therapy?
The Gottman Method Couples Therapy is a structured, research-based approach to couples counselling. Grounded in decades of relationship research, this model focuses on strengthening connection, improving communication, and helping couples manage conflict in a healthy, sustainable way. The collaborative and practical approach focuses on giving couples tools they can use daily.
Therapy supports couples in learning how to navigate these differences with empathy, respect, and effective communication, while also deepening friendship and emotional intimacy. Using practical tools and guided exercises, couples build skills to repair conflict, increase understanding, and create shared meaning in their relationship.
How can Gottman Therapy help?
- Partners experiencing frequent conflict or communication breakdowns
- Couples feeling disconnected or emotionally distant
- Those navigating life transitions (parenthood, stress, or major changes)
- Relationships impacted by trust concerns, infidelity, trauma or ongoing tension
- Couples who are generally doing well but want to strengthen their connection
This approach is inclusive and effective across diverse relationships, including same-sex and ethnically diverse couples..
What is IFS? (Internal Family Systems)
How can IFS help?
IFS has proven to be successful for clients experiencing depression, anxiety and trauma-related disorders. It is a helpful and useful tool for clients with complex trauma.
What is Lifespan Integration Therapy?
How can Lifespan Integration help?
Lifespan Integration is often used for victims of violence, abuse, neglect and other complex traumas. If you’ve tried CBT but it’s not working, let’s try something new.
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What is Mindfulness?
How can Mindfulness help?
Clients who begin to practice mindfulness often begin to feel better about themselves and have reduced anxiety. It also helps increase focus, attention, and stamina. Mindfulness can help clients live in the present moment and not be stuck in the past of future thinking and fearing what is to come and what has happened. It is an effective strategy for anxiety, depression, pain management, and stress, especially in the present.
What is Narrative Therapy?
Narrative therapy is a collaborative and empowering counselling approach that helps people better understand the stories they carry about themselves, their relationships, and their life experiences. Many individuals come to therapy feeling stuck in negative beliefs or patterns that have shaped how they see themselves over time. Narrative therapy helps clients separate themselves from their problems and reconnect with their values, strengths, resilience, and personal identity.
Narrative therapy explores how past challenges have influenced someone’s life while also highlighting the skills, strengths, and coping strategies they already possess. Through this process, clients begin to create new, more compassionate stories about themselves—stories rooted in self-awareness, empowerment, healing, and possibility.
In narrative therapy, clients are encouraged to identify:
- Personal values
- Strengths and resilience
- Meaningful life experiences
- Skills they have developed through hardship
- Preferred ways of relating to themselves and others
- Hopes for the future and personal growth
This therapeutic approach can help people shift away from shame, self-criticism, or feeling “stuck” and instead build a stronger sense of identity, confidence, and emotional clarity.
How can Narrative Therapy help?
Narrative therapy challenges clients to separate themselves from the problem to better understand the factors contributing to their situations. Narrative therapy is often effective with clients who are overwhelmed with negative thoughts, emotions, and experiences. It is also helpful for clients who are biased or are struggling to see situations from different perspectives.
Narrative therapy is integrated through a compassionate, trauma-informed lens that supports clients in reconnecting with their authentic selves, values, and inner strengths. Whether you are navigating anxiety, trauma, relationship difficulties, or major life changes, narrative therapy can help you move toward greater clarity, connection, and emotional wellbeing.
What is Person-Centred Therapy?
How can Person-Centred Therapy help?
Clients who have never been to therapy or were unsuccessful the first time could benefit from this gentle approach. Counsellors work collaboratively to determine goals and the best use of your time in counselling sessions.
What is Play Therapy?
How can Play Therapy help?
Play therapy helps children express themselves through non-verbal communication. It does not require children to understand or think about abstract concepts. Play therapy allows children to communicate in a language they understand.
What is Sandtray Therapy?
How can Sandtray Therapy help?
Clients who have language barriers or have a tough time talking about their concerns often benefit from Sandtray Therapy. Clients who like the use of imagery, and metaphors also find sandtray therapy beneficial. It has many applications and can be effective for a myriad of mental health concerns, including anxiety, depression, identity, emotional regulation, trauma, self-discovery, compassion and more.
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What is Reality Therapy?
At its core, Reality Therapy is based on the idea that emotional distress often comes from unmet needs, such as connection, belonging, freedom, and a sense of control. Together, we explore whether your current actions are helping you move closer to the life you want, or keeping you stuck. This approach is collaborative, direct, and goal-oriented. We focus on what is within your control today and build clear, realistic strategies to help you move forward.
How can Reality Therapy help?
Reality Therapy is especially helpful if you are looking for practical tools and measurable progress. It may be a good fit if you:
- Want to focus on solutions
- Feel stuck in patterns and want to create meaningful change
- Are motivated to take action and build accountability
- Are working toward goals like returning to work, improving relationships, or increasing stability
- Prefer a structured, short-term approach to counselling
What is SFBT? (Solution-Focused Brief Therapy)
SFBT is a short-term, evidence-based approach that focuses on the solutions, rather than the problem. Hope and positivity can help you feel a sense of direction and can create great future goals. This friendly, motivating approach helps clients co-construct positive and sustainable solutions that explore the ideas of previous “exceptions” to current beliefs and ways of living. Using these exceptions, therapists emphasize implementing more exceptions to create positive momentum.
There are three major principles of SFBT:
- If it’s not broken, don’t fix it
- If it’s working, do it more
- If it’s not working, do something different
So how can a therapist work with you in this lens? SFBT respects client autonomy and uses a lot of questioning. We will look at your current resources and strengths so you can be a catalyst for change.
How can SFBT help?
The brevity of this approach suits clients with financial constraints and has been successfully implemented with various client populations. It is equally effective in-person, and virtually, and has been implemented effectively for anxiety, depression, addictions, coping, with youth, BIPOC, and 2SLGBTQ+.
What is Somatic Therapy?
Many people notice that when they are overwhelmed, anxious, or triggered, their bodies react first — tight shoulders, a racing heart, or a sense of shutdown. Somatic therapy helps you learn how to notice these signals and regulate them in a safe and supportive way.
How Somatic Therapy Can Help
Somatic therapy can support people who are experiencing:
- Anxiety and chronic stress
- Trauma and PTSD
- Emotional overwhelm or shutdown
- Difficulty feeling present in their body
- Burnout and nervous system dysregulation
Through gentle awareness practices, grounding techniques, and nervous system regulation, somatic therapy helps your body and mind work together so you can feel more calm, connected, and resilient.
What is a Strength-based Approach?
Using a strength-based approach counsellors help clients recognize their skills, strengths, and accomplishments. As clients begin to recognize their strengths they often begin to feel better. Our counsellors walk alongside clients as they identify times they have been successful and managed difficult situations.
How can Strength-Based Approaches help?
Strength-based therapy is effective for clients who struggle with anxiety, depression, self-acceptance, self-esteem, self-confidence, and self-compassion.
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