Counselling in Victoria, BC & Online
Ready for change? Let's turn your storm into a story of strength.
Trauma-informed counselling for individuals, couples, families & teens, in person at our Victoria, BC office or online.
- Free 20-minute consult
British Columbia Registered Clinical Counsellor (RCC), Canadian Certified Counsellor (CCC), Registered Psychotherapist - Qualifying
Penny Smith, MA, RCC, CCC
Free consultations · Direct billing · Online booking
“You deserve a space where you feel truly seen and supported. I offer a warm, non-judgmental presence and walk alongside you as you discover small shifts that lead to lasting change.”
Individual Counselling: $150 per 50 minute session.
Existential Crises
Emotional Regulation & Mindfulness
Relational Issues
Family Dynamics & Intergenerational Patterns
Grief, Death & Loss
Accepting new individuals for counselling in Victoria, BC & online in BC & OntariO
Counselling for leaders, professionals & high achievers
If you're the person everyone relies on, you may be great at pushing through and out of practice at checking in with yourself. After more than 15 years in corporate leadership, I know how success can look solid from the outside but feel hollow inside. Together we'll look at what you value, where your life has drifted, and map out what will bring you back to centre.
My Approach
What matters to you? What do you value, and where in your daily life do those values show up? Most of us lose touch with them at some point. Therapy gives us a place to pause, reflect, and realign, at your own pace, with small changes that add up.
My approach is relational, strengths-based, and intuitive. I work with trauma, life transitions, depression, anxiety, grief, and the integration of expanded states of consciousness. Healing happens when we feel safe enough to be seen and heard, so my aim is to offer a space that is warm, non-judgmental, and free of pressure.
My Story
I grew up in the Niagara region of Ontario, on the traditional lands of the Haudenosaunee: the Seneca, Cayuga, Onondaga, Oneida, and Mohawk nations. After a Biology degree at Queen's University, I spent more than 15 years in corporate leadership in Toronto. On paper it was a success. In practice I was caught in a cycle of achievement and outside approval, and I felt increasingly disconnected from myself.
That led me to move to the Kootenays, where I worked at a healing retreat centre, and began my graduate training in counselling psychotherapy. My own healing took me through trauma, emotional hardship, and a long spiritual search, and eventually to a life-changing experience with traditional Amazonian plant medicine. I have since spent over a decade supporting others with integration work, and I hold deep respect for the complexity of expanded states of consciousness.
Pain brought me to this work, and so did the joy on the other side of it. I believe every person can heal, and I've seen it happen many times. Today I offer care, give back to my community, and keep learning from the people I work with.
Education & Training
Master of Arts in Counselling Psychology, Yorkville University
Bachelor of Science (Honours) in Biology, Queen’s University
Integrated Energy Healing Intensive, Langara College
Professional Memberships
Registered Clinical Counsellor (RCC) #26562, BC Association of Clinical Counsellors
Canadian Certified Counsellor (CCC) #11261421 - Canadian Counselling and Psychotherapy Association (CCPA)
College of Registered Psychotherapists of Ontario (CRPO) – Application pending
Questions about counselling with Penny
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Yes. Penny is welcoming new individual clients at Strength in Heart Counselling, 1183 Fort Street in Victoria, BC and online. You can book directly through her online calendar or email us at admin@strengthinheart.ca
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Yes. Penny sees clients online anywhere in BC or Ontario, using the same approach as in her Victoria office. Many people choose online sessions for convenience or because they live outside the city.
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Individual counselling with Penny is $150 for a 50-minute session.
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Yes, direct billing is available. How much your plan covers depends on your insurer, so it's worth checking your extended health benefits for counselling or clinical counsellor coverage before your first session.
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The free consultation is a no-cost first conversation where you can tell Penny what's brought you to counselling, ask her questions, and get a sense of whether she feels like the right fit. You can book it online at any time, and there is no obligation to continue.
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Penny works with anxiety, depression, trauma, grief and loss, life transitions, existential questions, relationship difficulties, family dynamics and intergenerational patterns, and emotional regulation. She has a particular interest in trauma and uses a somatic approach, which pays attention to what the body is holding as well as what the mind can explain.
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Integration is the work of making sense of an expanded-state experience and bringing what came up into daily life. Penny has more than a decade of experience supporting integration, particularly after Amazonian plant medicine, which was part of her own healing. She offers a warm, non-judgmental space to talk through your experience at your own pace.
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Penny holds a Master of Arts in Counselling Psychology from Yorkville University and a Bachelor of Science (Honours) in Biology from Queen's University. She is a Registered Clinical Counsellor (RCC #26562) with the BC Association of Clinical Counsellors and a Canadian Certified Counsellor (CCC #11261421) with the Canadian Counselling and Psychotherapy Association.
Your first step is a free conversation