A Practice Rooted in Connection,
Experience and the Belief That There Is Always a Path Forward
Guided Path Counselling was founded in 2018, following my graduation from the Master of Social Work program.
Creating a private practice had been a dream for a long time. I wanted to create a space where I could support Albertans in a way that felt personal, meaningful and connected to the realities of their lives.
I was especially drawn to the idea of supporting people living in rural and remote Alberta—communities where access to counselling and mental health services can sometimes be limited.
But Guided Path became much more than simply creating a counselling practice.
It became a reflection of how I have come to understand people, relationships, healing and the world around us.
About Guided Path Counselling
My Story: Learning from Community
Early in my career, I had the privilege of working within a Cree Nation. That experience had a profound impact on me.
I fell in love with the community, the relationships, the culture and the deep connection to nature, Mother Earth and spirituality that I experienced there.
It challenged and expanded the way I understood wellbeing.
It reminded me that healing is not always about looking inward at the individual.
Sometimes healing involves reconnecting with:
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community.
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relationships.
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nature.
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purpose.
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spirit.
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belonging.
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That experience continues to influence how I understand the people I work with today.
I believe there is value in recognizing the whole person—not simply a diagnosis, symptom or problem.
The Guided Path Philosophy
The name Guided Path comes from a simple belief: There isn't one path to healing, and there isn't one right way to live a meaningful life.
Your path is shaped by your experiences, relationships, values, strengths, challenges and hopes for the future.
My role isn't to tell you what your path should look like.
It is to walk alongside you, offer guidance, provide perspective and create a safe space where you can explore what is happening in your life.
Sometimes we need to look backward to understand where we've been.
Sometimes we need to understand our relationships.
Sometimes we need to reconnect with our bodies.
Sometimes we need to learn new ways of regulating our emotions.
And sometimes we simply need someone to sit beside us while we figure out what comes next.
You are not broken. You are a person who has lived a life—and your experiences have shaped you.
Together, we can explore what those experiences mean and what you want your next chapter to look like.
Bridging Education and Real-World Practice
My work with Guided Path is also connected to another part of my professional life: teaching.
I teach in the Social Work program at MacEwan University, where I have the privilege of helping future social workers develop their knowledge, skills and understanding of professional practice.
Teaching has reinforced something I deeply believe: Social work cannot be learned entirely from a textbook.
Students need opportunities to connect theory with real people, real relationships and real situations.
Creating and growing Guided Path has allowed me to bring practical experience into the classroom while also bringing the learning, curiosity and new perspectives of students back into my professional life.
I value the relationship between education and practice.
My hope is that future social workers graduate not only knowing what social work is, but understanding how to sit with people, listen deeply, think critically and recognize the larger systems influencing people's lives.
More Than a Counselling Practice
Guided Path Counselling brings together several parts of my professional identity:
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Social worker.
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Therapist.
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Educator.
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Learner.
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Human being.
Each has shaped the way I understand the people I work with.
I bring professional knowledge and clinical experience, but I also bring curiosity, humility and a genuine belief that people are capable of change.
I don't believe that therapy should be about an expert sitting across from you who has all the answers.
I believe it should be a relationship.
A place where we can become curious together.
A place where you can make sense of your experiences.
A place where you can develop new understanding and discover possibilities you may not have been able to see before.
Meet Jason: Life Coaching Grounded in Real Life
Guided Path isn't only about counselling.
Jason brings a different but equally valuable perspective to the practice through life coaching.
Jason is a blacksmith, a hunter, a husband, a father and a blue-collar worker.
He has worked with his hands, managed responsibilities, supervised others and experienced the realities of working hard to provide for himself and his family.
His life experience has shaped a coaching philosophy that is practical, grounded and real. He isn't approaching life coaching from an academic or theoretical distance.
He brings the perspective of someone who has worked with his hands, learned trades, taken responsibility, led others and experienced the demands of everyday life.
As a blacksmith, Jason understands that meaningful things take time to build and he understands that personal growth doesn't always happen in a therapy office.
Sometimes it happens when you're standing in the middle of a difficult decision.
Sometimes it happens at work.
Sometimes it happens in your marriage.
Sometimes it happens when you're trying to figure out what comes next.
And sometimes it happens when you realize:
“The life I'm living isn't the life I want anymore.”
Coaching for Real People and Real Life
Jason's approach to coaching is practical and down-to-earth.
His work may be particularly helpful for people who are:
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feeling stuck
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navigating a major life transition
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questioning their direction
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struggling with motivation
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wanting to make meaningful changes
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trying to find better balance
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navigating career or work decisions
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wanting to strengthen their relationships
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looking for greater purpose
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ready to take action but unsure where to begin
Life coaching isn't about someone telling you how to live.
It is about having someone beside you who can help you clarify where you want to go and identify the steps that can move you there.
Two Perspectives. One Guided Path.
Tammy and Jason bring different experiences, strengths and perspectives to Guided Path.
One comes from years of social work, counselling, trauma-informed practice, education and an understanding of the systems and relationships that shape our lives.
The other comes from a life grounded in family, work, trades, leadership, the outdoors and hands-on experience.
Those perspectives are different.
And that's a strength.
Because people are different too.
Some people need therapeutic support to understand and heal from what they have experienced. Others are ready to look forward and determine what they want to create next.
Some people need counselling. Some benefit from coaching.
And sometimes people need a combination of support at different points in their lives.
There Is No Single Path
Guided Path Counselling was built on the belief that people are complex.
Our lives are influenced by our history, our families, our relationships, our communities, our work, our bodies, our beliefs and the systems around us.
We cannot always change what has happened. But we can begin to understand it.
We can develop awareness.
We can make different choices.
We can strengthen relationships.
We can create boundaries.
We can heal.
We can grow.
And we can decide what we want the next part of our journey to look like. Your path doesn't have to look like anyone else's.
You just need a place to begin.
Welcome to Guided Path.
Where counselling, coaching, experience and connection come together to help you find your way forward.