top of page

Therapy Groups Held by Dr. Dawn

Due to my schedule, unfortunately I am not planning to facilitate any therapy groups until 2025. 

Dr. Dawn is currently collecting names of adults who would like to be placed on an interest list for 2026 (maybe 2025). Your name and contact information will be stored, in a confidential matter by DPS, so you can be contacted when the groups will be offered.

​​​​​

​​​​

​

​​

The following are the three therapy groups Dr. Dawn plans to facilitate:

 

1.  Enhancing Personal Growth Group  - will likely be held one Saturday or Sunday 1-2x a month (usually 4 hour group session), as an ongoing group, with open registration every 8 weeks. This group is open to anyone age 18 and older. Contact me for the dates this group is offered, cost, and other details. Limit of 12 adult (co-ed) group members (minimum of 7 adults need to be registered before the group will be held). The growth group will be semi-structured with ample time for processing and discussion. To enhance interpersonal skills and awareness the group will tend to draw from, but not be limited to:

  • emotional regulation theory and strategies;

  • EMDR and tapping,

  • ego-state work;

  • expressive arts;

  • somatic experiencing; and 

  • transactional analysis (strong emphasis).

​​

  • Additional details about this group:

    • This group could be regarded as the type of work typically reflected in the middle phase of therapy–inner work characterized by discovery, discussion, insight, work, connection, empathy, and change.

    • Members will be invited to participate in a variety of experiential exercises that will require members to be comfortable working/talking in groups, expressing empathy to others,  and staying grounded during conversations involving tough topics related to personal growth work. As a result,  this group will not be suitable for those who: (a) are highly anxious, (b) do not like to talk in groups, (c) suffer from serious bouts of depression, and/or (d) are not able to keep themselves safe from harm, and/or have difficulty returning to a regulated state after experiencing a trigger.

    • There will be a group orientation meeting, for free, before the group starts so potential group members can have an opportunity to determine if this group will be a good fit.

​

​

​

2.  Concussion Support Group - Please contact me for the dates this group is offered, cost, and other details. The group is open to anyone on a drop-in basis; however, there is a brief intake to complete before attending your first group so please contact Dr. Dawn before attending. The focus of this group will be on support, normalization, education (e.g., strategies to adapt to a change in one's life), and helping to regulate the trauma symptoms of the injury event. It will be semi-structured. Rotating group facilitators (2) with guest speakers will be part of this group. Limit of 12 group members (minimum of 7).

 

​

​

3. Women's Trauma Healing Group: Moving Beyond the Emergency Stage - Usually, this group will be held one Saturday or Sunday a month for 3-4 hours, as an ongoing group for those who identify as adult women, with open registration every 12 weeks.  There is a limit of 12 group members (minimum of 7 women need to be registered before the group will be held). The focus of this group will be on promoting and expanding one's inner support resources to cope with the aftermath of traumatic events (e.g., medical trauma, car accidents, interpersonal trauma), and, when the group and the group members are ready, we will be shifting towards exploring and changing the mixed-up stories from the heart, body, and mind that tend to linger when we experienced or witnessed something that was overwhelming. This group is not about processing the specific trauma. Rather it is about promoting compassion and healing of some elements of the trauma effects since trauma recovery often entails knowing we are more than our trauma.

​

Additional details about this group:

  • This is a semi-structured group where a variety of resourcing options will be presented, discussed, processed, and explored. There will be a heavy emphasis in helping group members offer and receive emotional safety, utilize various grounding resources, and create an encouraging space to reclaim one's right to exist and thrive.   

  • This group is suitable for those who identify as having several coping resources to help them reduce traumatic symptomatology, who have a safety plan that is comprehensive when they feel too overwhelmed and want to engage in self-harm, and are wanting to learn about additional strategies to cope with their stressors, often related to the trauma.  

  • Before joining this group, potential members need to meet with one of the  facilitators (for 45 mins, for a small fee) to ensure this group will be a good fit.

  • Two or three facilitators will be part of this group experience.

  • Contact me for the dates this group is offered, cost, and other details. All members of this group will be required to have an individual therapist (other than the facilitators) who can be seen between the group therapy sessions, if needed.

Get in Touch

Thank you for submitting! We will connect with you in 2-3 days. If you have not heard from us then please reach back out to our admin. team: admin@dawn-mcbride.com.

FYI --IT IS IMPORTANT YOU KNOW there is no guarantee of privacy of your contact information or this message due to: 

    

(a) inherent privacy flaws when using any technology, such as email/text (e.g., security breaches);

​

(b) your contact information may need to be released to relevant individuals/professionals if you disclose to a DPS staff member that there is a risk of potential harm to self or others (including animals), as we may need to alert others/arrange for outside help to attend to those who may be in distress or who we believe could be at risk for harm;

​

(c) you are not a client/customer of DPS yet, since we have not had the opportunity to put a formal agreement in place with you where we confirm everyone's understanding of what is being consented to, including your privacy limits;

 

(d) any correspondence to/from DPS staff may be kept (e.g., filed electronically via WIX) and if stored, likely for at least 11 years;

​

(e) you have not not been briefed on the Alberta laws regarding how long client files are kept when sexual violence, work injury, or disability has been recorded in the file - so at this point,  we advise you NOT to share any information related to the above (e.g., abuse /assault) until you have been informed of your privacy rights via DPS consent form/service contract.

​

​We recognize these privacy warnings may not be relevant to why you are contacting DPS :)

​

WANT TO LEARN MORE about the limits to privacy?  Great idea - please see the information under "counselling tab". We believe it is vital you know your rights before you disclosure personal information to anyone in the helping field.

​

Truly, we welcome your contact - thank you for reaching out.

OWNERSHIP STATEMENT & LIMITS OF USE: Dawn Psychological Services has been incorporated since 2005-2025.

 

All the information associated with this webpage address: (a) is authored or owned by Dawn McBride/DPS, unless noted or implied otherwise; (b) requires the written permission of Dawn McBride to be used, borrowed, or adapted. Thank you for respecting the intellectual property rules; & (c) is shared for educational purposes, so it should NOT be regarded as a substitute for therapy. And, as Dawn is well known for saying, "Please accept, modify, or reject" any information she shares here/in her trainings.

DPS welcomes clients  & professionals of all sexualities and gender identities.

​

Flag designed by Julia Feliz & Hayley Brown.

Pride flag - acceptance and safe space for all
Indigenous Canada Flag - acceptance and safe space for all

Dr. McBride welcomes clients & professionals of all Indigenous cultures.

​

Flag designed by Kwakwaka’wakw artist - Curtis Wilson.

​

bottom of page