Heart Earth Services
• Individual Counselling • Groups • Art-based Workshops • Land-based Workshops • Facilitation
Counselling
I have been a practicing clinician for 20+ years. My approach to working with people is deeply intertwined with my identity and culture as an Anishnaabe woman. I focus on creating an authentic space for people to feel safe enough to be vulnerable. I believe in the power of transformation and that support and empathy are essential on the journey of change.
To help people process the trauma that they have experienced, I use a multi-modal approach to the therapeutic experience, notably EMDR, art therapy, land-based teachings, and cultural teachings.
Art Therapy
In approaching issues of the heart, verbal expression can be limiting. By using creative expression, the power of art-making is a powerful technique for self-expression and insight. Leanna leans towards sustainable and environmentally respectful materials, including found objects and natural paints.
For Leanna, working with community is an opportunity to encourage connection and strengthen relationships with all of our relatives. Leanna is a second-language learner is slowly and lovingly learning Anishnaabemowin. She incorporates concepts of the language into her practice.
EMDR
EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing): is a structured therapy that helps people increase their quality of life by focusing on beliefs connected to traumatic memories and experiences. It uses a bilateral (back and forth) stimulation (i.e. tapping, buzzers, or eye movement) to help “unfreeze” emotions that are connected to the traumatic experience. EMDR is an effective treatment for people who are experiencing symptoms from PTSD, depression, intergenerational trauma, chronic pain, addictions, and many other painful life experiences.
Land & Culture
Leanna grew up in an urban setting and as a young adult began to explore her identity and culture. It was through dancing and ceremony that Leanna started to do her own healing work and begin to feel grounded and comfortable with who she is. Working under the tutelage of her twin sister, Jean, Leanna tan hides, including fish, deer, and moose. Working with hide to make leather is a powerful and healing experience. Revitalizing traditional practices including cooking, harvesting, tanning, hunting, trapping, and so much more, is a way to feel a sense of belonging, purpose, and identity.
Our collective home is so beautiful and generous. Leanna believes that the more that we deepen our relationship with the land, the more that we can heal and build a more sustainable and balanced existence with all of our relations.
