Madeleine Downey

Relationships sit at the centre of so much of what it means to be human. We long for connection, intimacy, belonging, and the freedom to be fully ourselves, yet these are often the very places where we feel most vulnerable. I’m continually drawn to the ways our stories, relationships, bodies, and desires intersect. And, supporting people in this work feels deeply meaningful to me because these conversations have the power to create profound shifts not only in our relationships with others, but in our relationship with ourselves.

• Working with me is an invitation to slow down and listen for what is asking for your attention.
  
  Together, we make space for both the story and the deeper experience beneath it. We might explore the beliefs, roles, and patterns that have shaped your life, while also becoming curious about the emotions, longings, and protective strategies that continue to influence the way you relate to yourself and others. I’m particularly interested in the places where sex, intimacy, identity, and personal growth intersect, and in helping people move toward relationships that feel more authentic and aligned.
  
  Whether you're untangling a single stuck spot or tending a deeper pattern, we'll work collaboratively and at your pace, in the direction of what matters most to you.

• My work is informed by Narrative Therapy, Depth Psychology, Attachment Theory, and Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT).
  
  I am particularly interested in the intersection of sexuality, attachment, and identity. Together, we explore how early relational experiences, nervous system responses, cultural messages, and protective adaptations continue to shape intimacy, desire, boundaries, and self-trust in the present.
  
  I take a feminist, shame-informed approach to sexuality and relationships, supporting clients in developing a more compassionate and authentic relationship with themselves. Rather than focusing on fixing symptoms, I aim to help clients understand the deeper patterns at work so that new possibilities for connection, agency, and choice can emerge.

Alongside my clinical practice, I teach workshops and facilitate groups on relationships, sexuality, intimacy, desire, boundaries, self-discovery, and personal growth.

I have co-facilitated sexuality education groups, including programs focused on sex, intimacy, pleasure, and aging, and have led workshops exploring topics such as codependency, authentic connection, shadow work, and purpose. Through my work as Head of Curriculum with the Inner Compass Academy, I have supported students in developing greater self-awareness, relational capacity, and connection to what matters most.

Additional Training:
Narrative Therapy Foundations Certificate, Vancouver School for Narrative Therapy (2024)

Healing from Justice: Supporting Adult Survivors of Sexual Assault, Deirdre McLaughlin (2025)

200-Hour Registered Yoga Teacher Training (RYT-200)

A Somatic Guide to Working with Shame, The Embody Lab (2026)

I am curious, warm, and have been told that I can hold space for emotions no matter how big, messy, or uncomfortable they might be.

My hope is that our work together feels collaborative rather than prescriptive. I don't believe you need to have everything figured out before you arrive. We can start wherever you are, bringing curiosity to the patterns, questions, and experiences that are asking for your attention.

I am honoured to do this work and to be invited into people's stories. My aim is to create a space where you feel safe enough to be honest, supported enough to take risks, and empowered enough to move toward the life and relationships you want to create.

Outside the therapy room, you’ll find me teaching and practicing vinyasa yoga (sometimes to progressive house) or tucked in at home playing chess or listening to records. I love writing and the kind of existential philosophy that invites us to hold the tension of opposites, to stay with the both/and of being human rather than rushing toward tidy answers.