Inka Hart

 Hello! I’m Inka

About Me

As a child, my family immigrated from Poland to Victoria. I grew up in Central Saanich and attended the University of Victoria, earning an Undergrad Degree in Psychology.  My interest in Psychology took me to Alberta where I obtained a Master’s of Counselling Psychology Degree from Athabasca University and a Career and Academic Advising Certificate from the University of Calgary. 

Over the past 10 years, I have provided support for children and youth experiencing a variety of challenges including Anxiety, Depression, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, Suicidal Ideation, as well as Borderline traits. In this work, I draw upon Acceptance & Commitment Therapy (ACT), Dialectical Behavioural Therapy (DBT), as well as Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) to customize an approach that is aligned with each adolescent’s experiences and worldview. 

When working with children, my approach is based on attachment theory and includes various expressive techniques including play and art. My goal is to make counselling fun and engaging for children and youth. It has been my experience that this approach leads to the greatest positive change in daily life. As part of this work, I offer caregiver support services based on Emotion-Focused Family Therapy (EFFT). 

I have continued to dedicate time to enriching my practice over the years. For example, developing a trauma-based approach and obtaining specialized training, including Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (TF-CBT) training, to support children and youth who have experienced trauma.

 After my daughter was born, I found that there was a lack of trauma-informed support available to soon-to-be and new caregivers. It became important to me to offer this type of support to families. I enrolled in a trauma-informed training program that supports the whole family and incorporated this learning into my approach to offer customized holistic sleep and well-being support that respects the values and identity of each unique family. You can find more information on my approach to sleep and well-being support here: https://tinyurl.com/7xbryy. After becoming a Certified Baby-Led Sleep and Well-Being Specialist, I completed the Perinatal Mood Disorders: Components of Care course as well as Advanced Perinatal Mental Health Psychotherapy training. 

 I feel very privileged to offer support for babies, new or expecting caregivers, as well as work with children and youth who have experienced trauma and their families.

When not at work, I enjoy spending time at the beach and playing in the sand with my daughter. I also love horseback riding and try to find time, whenever possible, to be at the barn. A fun fact for any wrestling fans, a number of my family members are professional wrestlers in the WWE and my husband’s grandfather started Stampede Wrestling in Calgary.