Tag Archive for: warman

You are here: / / warman

Posts

, , ,

Counselling for Neurodiverse Individuals and Families

Honouring Strengths, Supporting Authenticity

Neurodiversity is not something to be “fixed”—it is something to be understood, accepted, and supported. Whether you’re navigating life as a neurodivergent child, youth, or adult, or you’re a family member of someone who is, counselling can provide a powerful space for growth, connection, and self-understanding. At Warman Physiotherapy & Wellness, our therapist Shireen Abedi offers counselling for neurodiverse individuals and their families in both our Warman and Evergreen (Saskatoon) clinic locations.

What Is Neurodiversity?

Neurodiversity refers to the natural variation in how brains work. It includes conditions like autism, ADHD, dyslexia, and others. Each neurodivergent individual has unique strengths, needs, and ways of experiencing the world. Counselling for neurodiverse individuals is not about changing who they are—it’s about honouring their individuality and supporting them in leading fulfilling lives that reflect their values, preferences, and potential.

How Counselling Supports Neurodiverse Individuals

When working with a counsellor who understands neurodiversity, therapy becomes a space of empowerment and acceptance. Counselling can help neurodiverse children, teens, and adults in the following ways:

1. Emotional Support

Navigating a world that often misunderstands or underestimates neurodivergent individuals can be challenging. Therapy offers a safe space to explore emotions, manage stress, and work through anxiety, depression, or low self-esteem.

2. Improved Self-Understanding

By learning how their brain works and how neurodivergent traits shape their experiences, individuals can better understand themselves, build confidence, and develop a stronger sense of identity.

3. Coping Tools for Daily Life

Counselling provides practical strategies to help with:

  • Emotional regulation

  • Sensory sensitivities

  • Executive functioning (like organization and time management)

  • Adjusting to change and routine

 

4. Support with Social Skills and Communication

If desired, therapy can help individuals navigate social situations in ways that feel safe and authentic. This could mean building self-advocacy skills, developing clearer communication, or simply finding ways to feel more confident in relationships.

5. Promoting Self-Acceptance

Perhaps most importantly, counselling fosters a sense of self-compassion. It supports individuals in challenging internalized stigma, building a narrative of empowerment rather than limitation.

How Counselling Helps Families of Neurodivergent Individuals

Raising or living with a neurodivergent loved one can be both deeply rewarding and at times, complex. Counselling for neurodiverse individuals also includes support for families, helping parents, siblings, and caregivers better understand and navigate the unique needs of their family member.

Here’s how counselling can help families thrive:

1. Education and Perspective

Understanding the brain-based differences behind behaviours can transform frustration into empathy. Therapy helps families learn what neurodiversity really means and how to adapt support in ways that make a difference.

2. Enhanced Communication

Families often benefit from tools to improve everyday interactions. Counselling can help identify communication strategies that honour each member’s style and needs—reducing conflict and building connection.

3. Emotional Support for Parents and Caregivers

Caring for a neurodivergent family member can be emotionally taxing. Counselling provides a non-judgmental space for family members to process their own emotions, reduce burnout, and gain support.

4. Problem-Solving for Everyday Challenges

From school advocacy to supporting meltdowns, therapy offers practical coping strategies that help reduce overwhelm and promote a more peaceful home life.

5. Encouraging Independence and Advocacy

With support, families can learn to empower their loved one to express needs, make decisions, and build independence—all while feeling heard and supported.

Why Choose Warman Physio for Counselling?

At Warman Physiotherapy & Wellness, we understand that no two individuals—or families—are alike. That’s why we’re proud to offer neurodiversity-affirming counselling services with Shireen Abedi, a Registered Counselling Psychologist who works with children, youth, and adults at both our Warman and Evergreen (Saskatoon) locations. Shireen’s approach is rooted in compassion, collaboration, and the belief that every person deserves to be seen, heard, and supported in their own unique journey.

Book an Appointment Today

If you or a loved one could benefit from counselling for neurodiverse individuals, we invite you to connect with us. Whether you’re seeking individual therapy or family counselling, we’re here to help you explore your strengths, navigate challenges, and move forward with confidence.

Appointments are available in both Warman and Saskatoon (Evergreen). Reach out to Warman Physiotherapy & Wellness today to learn more!

/by

Why You Should Just Eat the Cookies

December is a time for being with friends and family and usually losing your regular routine for a while. That’s okay, even if that means your eating changes. Many people tend to both look forward to and dread the food that comes with the holidays. Here’s why you should just eat the cookies without feeling bad.

 

Foods we eat during holidays or family events are generally not foods we eat all the time. This is a special time with your family and friends and the food served tends to follow suit. It’s also special. The holidays can bring guilt and shame and other uncomfortable feelings for a variety of reasons, but food should not be one of them. Do these foods have more fat, sugar, and dreaded calories than your normal diet? Probably. Could you end up gaining a few pounds? That’s a possibility. If thinking about these things makes you nervous you need to ask yourself why. 

 

A cycle to break

A few weeks of eating special foods may lead to a few extra pounds, but a few weeks of getting back to your normal routine will have your weight back to normal. This may not be the case for everyone though, especially if you have an all-or-nothing mentality around diet, have a history of dieting or restricting foods, or are planning to lose weight in the new year. All of these reasons can lead to bingeing which can start, or continue, the cycle of restriction and bingeing which leaves people in worse health than when they started. 

 

If you are wondering if you are at risk for this kind of behaviour, consider how you feel about these special foods. Do they bring up more uncomfortable emotions than comfortable ones? Are you considering what actions you will have to take after eating this food, like skipping meals, severely increasing your movement, starting a new diet, or only eating low calorie foods after the holidays? If so, you may need to change your mentality around food, diet, and body size. This sounds like a lot of work and it is. Thankfully, there are a lot of resources to help.

Changing the status quo

Changing your mentality and doing all of that work has a lot of benefits. When it comes to the holidays, the negative feelings concerning all the special food you and your family and friends lovingly prepared will be heavily outweighed by nostalgia, joy, comfort, and pleasure. The food at these events may be culturally important, time consuming, or expensive to make but they are served because they represent something to the people present, something that often equates to love.

This holiday, just eat the cookies, the ham, the yams, the latkes, or the stollen.

 

 

 

Check out what I do in our previous blog for more information!

 

**Please note at this time we do not have a Dietitian at the clinic. We are always looking for new providers to serve our community; if you know someone or would like to join us please use  the Join Our Team link.

/by

WMBEXA Best New Business 2017!

We are totally blown away! This year seems to be a total whirlwind of activity, nominations and growth for us at the clinic.

The Warman and Martensville Chambers of Commerce presented the second annual WMBEXA, and we were thrilled to be nominated in several categories. Only able to apply for two we were floored to be a finalist in Customer Service and New Business announced March 2017. Since the announcement of finalists for WMBEXA, Haylie was also revealed as a nominee for the YWCA Women of Distinction Awards for Health & Wellness, we announced the arrival of physiotherapist Kendra Usunier to begin work as of May 23, 2017, and we also had the pleasure of welcoming a student, Jill, for her first clinical placement in the MPT program through April and the first week in May.

May 5, 2017 was the WMBEXA event and it was spectacular! Many exceptional local businesses were finalists, many more had been nominated in 5 categories, and dozens of other businesses were a part of the event to network and enjoy the event.

Much to our shock and amazement, Warman Physiotherapy & Wellness was awarded the best New Business of 2017!

    

“I was thrilled to be a finalist in the company of 4 other amazing businesses. It seems that I although I have no problem talking for hours on end about the pelvic floor and all things physio, I have difficulty standing up for a 2 minute acceptance speech!

This clinic has been a vision of mine since I was in the school for Physical Therapy and I am so fortunate to have been able to make my dream a reality. This dream coming true would not be possible without the support of my family. My parents for being supportive and providing assistance whenever needed. My wonderful amazing and supportive family; my husband, Rob, for allowing me to work days, nights and weekends; often 60+ hours a week, as well as being our resident clinic ‘handy man’. My 3 year old daughter Emily for coming to the clinic ‘to do work stuff’ and dance with the skeleton when I’m sneaking in a client in need on a day off. THANK YOU.

I must thank my wonderful therapists and our support staff. They have been an integral part of the success of the clinic, and have fully embraced my business vision. It is common to see and hear crying babies and children at the clinic since we see so many women who are pregnant and post-partum, we feel providing care is most important, regardless of the ability to find childcare. THANK YOU.

There is no doubt that without the support of the community and our wonderful clients – past, present, and future – we would not be where we are today. Our success in our business journey would not be possible without you. THANK YOU.”

Helping you, help yourself. From infancy to old age.

/by