Testimonials

I have the best life.

No, seriously, I do.  

On an almost daily basis I annoy my friends and family by sighing out those words in breathy exaggeration.

But I haven’t always felt this way.

It was nine years ago that I found myself in Valerie Peter’s office in a state of panic and uncertainty.  I had just lost my job and was more terrified than I probably should have been. My acute anxiety was what lead me to seek an outside perspective.

From the moment I walked into Valerie’s office I knew I had found a safe, judgement free place that I could show up as myself, for better or worse.  At the end of our first conversation, a two hour overview of my life to date, Valerie thanked me for the honour of being invited into my life. She thanked me!  That was the beginning of what I know will be a lifelong relationship with my trusted guide and mentor.

Valerie has been my beacon of hope through many of life’s ups and downs.  Seeing me through career shifts, existential questioning and, most recently, the end of my marriage.  She has held my darkest secrets and most tender dreams. She always knows the right questions to ask at the right time.  Her patience is incredible; her love for people boundless. But most importantly, Valerie holds space for me to just be. That “just being” might be any number of things given the day: fearful, anxious, joyful, manic, delusional.  It is a magical thing to be accepted for who you are in this very moment. It’s in that space that I’ve come alive, and in large part Valerie is to thank for that.

This beautiful life that I live is not one of wealth or extravagance.  But it’s one of clarity and peace. I know I am loved and seen and accepted.  Valerie is one of the people in my world that has knit those essential things into my heart of hearts.  

– Melissa