ADHD Family Support and Somatic Therapy
In Person Services in the West Kootenays - Nelson, Castlegar, Rossland, Trail
Virtually throughout BC and Internationally
About Ari - Registered Therapeutic Counsellor in Nelson, BC
Finding My Way to This Work
I didn't set out to become an ADHD specialist. Like many paths worth taking, this one found me through lived experience, professional curiosity, and a growing conviction that the way we understand and support ADHD needs to change.
For over 20 years, I've worked with children and families—as an early childhood educator, a Child and Youth Care practitioner, a Waldorf education assistant, and eventually as a Registered Therapeutic Counsellor. I operated Hearty Roots, an early childhood center, and spent years in classrooms at the Nelson Waldorf School, watching how children's nervous systems responded to different approaches, different environments, different kinds of presence.
But it wasn't until I received my own ADHD diagnosis at 38 that everything clicked into place.
Suddenly, patterns I'd observed in the children I worked with made deeper sense. My own struggles—the overwhelm, the shutdown, the constant sense of not quite fitting the world's expectations—had a name and a framework. More importantly, I began to understand ADHD not as a deficit or disorder, but as a sensitive nervous system seeking safety, attunement, and connection.
That realization changed everything about how I work.
What I Believe About ADHD
Traditional approaches to ADHD focus on symptom management—medications, behavior charts, rewards and consequences. These can be helpful tools, but they miss something essential: ADHD is fundamentally about the nervous system, and the nervous system responds to relationship.
When we understand ADHD through the lens of attachment theory and polyvagal science, we see that many of the challenges labeled as "ADHD symptoms" are actually nervous system adaptations to stress, disconnection, or environments that don't match a child's needs. When children (and adults) with ADHD receive the relational attunement, co-regulation, and nervous system support they need, we don't just see behavior improve—we see genuine thriving.
This doesn't mean ADHD isn't real, or that medication isn't sometimes helpful, or that executive function support isn't needed. It means we start with connection and safety as the foundation, and build everything else from there.
My Approach: Attachment, Nervous System, and Somatic Wisdom
My work integrates three core frameworks:
Attachment Theory:
Understanding how early relationships shape our capacity for regulation, our sense of safety, and our ability to navigate challenges. When we repair attachment wounds and build secure relationships, we create the conditions for nervous systems to settle and heal.
Polyvagal Theory & Nervous System Science:
Learning to recognize activation, shutdown, and safety states in ourselves and others. Understanding how the autonomic nervous system drives behavior, and how co-regulation creates pathways to self-regulation.
Somatic Therapy:
Working with the body's wisdom, not just the mind's understanding. Noticing sensations, tracking patterns, and building capacity to be present with what's difficult. The body holds our stories—and our healing.
These aren't separate approaches; they're interconnected ways of understanding how human beings develop, struggle, and heal. Whether I'm working with a family navigating ADHD, an adult healing attachment wounds, or school communities learning trauma-informed approaches, these principles guide everything.
My Background & Credentials
Professional:
Registered Therapeutic Counsellor (RTC)
Child and Youth Care Practitioner (CYC)
Early Childhood Educator (ECCE)
Certified Waldorf Teacher
Currently pursuing Master of Social Work with focus on community-based participatory research
Experience:
20+ years supporting children, families, and educators
Founder and operator of Hearty Roots early childhood center
Education Assistant at Nelson Waldorf School
Extensive training in attachment-based, somatic, and trauma-informed approaches
Background in Waldorf Education, contemplative practice, and the arts
Personal:
Diagnosed with ADHD at age 38
Parent understanding both sides of the ADHD parenting experience
Deep commitment to authentic, vulnerable practice
What Guides My Work: Five Core Values
Freedom:
Creating space for authentic expression, for children and adults to be who they actually are rather than who they're expected to be.
Spiritual Engagement:
Honouring the whole person—body, mind, heart, and spirit. Holding space for the mystery and meaning in human experience.
Deep Connection:
Believing that relationship is the foundation of all healing. We grow in connection, not in isolation.
Reverence:
Approaching each person, each moment, with respect for what's unfolding. Trusting the wisdom of the body and the process.
Empowerment:
Building capacity, not creating dependency. Supporting people to trust themselves, their bodies, their intuition.
Who I Work With
Families Navigating ADHD:
Parents exhausted from behavioral battles, looking for a deeper understanding of their child's needs. Families wanting to move from surviving to thriving, from control to connection.
Adults Seeking Healing:
People newly diagnosed with ADHD trying to make sense of their lives. Adults healing attachment wounds, working through relationship patterns, navigating life transitions. Anyone ready to work with their body and nervous system, not just their thoughts.
Educators & Schools:
Teachers and school staff who know that behaviour plans aren't enough. Educators seeking trauma-informed, attachment-based approaches that actually work—and don't lead to burnout.
Why Nelson, Why Here
I'm based in Nelson, BC, in the heart of the Kootenays, and I love this community. There's something about this place—the pace, the values, the commitment to doing things differently—that aligns with how I practice.
I work with families locally throughout Nelson, Castlegar, Trail, Rossland, Salmo, Slocan, and the surrounding area, and I'm grateful to be part of this community's fabric. I also work virtually with families and adults throughout British Columbia, across Canada, and internationally, bringing this approach to anyone who needs it, wherever they are.
The Work Continues
I'm currently pursuing my Master of Social Work, focusing on how social, relational, and systemic factors influence ADHD expression. My research explores community-based participatory approaches—work that honors the expertise of lived experience alongside clinical knowledge.
This isn't just academic curiosity. It's about deepening my understanding of how we can support ADHD in ways that are truly transformative, not just managing symptoms but creating conditions for genuine flourishing.
An Invitation
If you're a parent who senses there's a deeper path through your family's ADHD challenges...
If you're an adult ready to heal, to come home to your body, to build the regulation capacity you've always needed...
If you're an educator exhausted by approaches that don't work and ready for something that actually does...
I'd be honoured to walk alongside you.
This work isn't about perfection. It's about creating the conditions where adults and children feel safe enough to grow, to heal, to thrive. It's about nervous system regulation, secure attachment, and the transformative power of being truly seen.
Let's Connect
Email: [email protected]
Location: Nelson, BC | Serving the Kootenays and beyond
Sessions: In-person in Nelson and virtual throughout BC and internationally
About Securely Thriving
Securely Thriving, is founded out of both lived experience and professional conviction: that meaningful support for ADHD must go deeper than behavior—and begin with connection, safety, and relationship. As a parent, educator, and somatic therapist, I’ve seen how nervous system regulation, attachment, and practical tools can transform not just a moment, but a whole family or classroom culture. This isn’t about perfection—it’s about creating the conditions where adults and children can feel safe enough to grow. Securely Thriving exists to walk alongside families, educators, and communities doing this brave, beautiful, often overwhelming work—with clarity, care, and compassion.
Find Your Ground
Compassionate Support for Families and Schools Cultivating Clear-Loving Boundaries, Thriving Relationships, and ADHD Empowerment.
Build Clarity, Connection, and Calm - one step at a time.
Securely Thriving
Nelson, BC V1L 4H6
Email: [email protected]
