Charlotte Shipley [she/they]
MSW. RSW.
Charlotte is:
A Registered Social Worker
Our PSC Practice Owner & Clinical Director
Registered to work with clients who live in Ontario
I’m a queer woman living with physical disability and chronic pain I’ve had since birth. I ground my work in lived experience and deep collaboration. I believe that every story carries its own wisdom, even the tender ones and that therapy can be a space of both healing and humour.
My role is to walk beside you as you learn to listen for the medicine in your own stories, reclaiming power, purpose, and possibility along the way.
Learn about my work, vibes and the types of therapy I practice.
Quick Facts About Charlotte
Charlotte’s Work & Fees
I work with folks of all ages and identities. From my experience, virtual therapy is effective for folks ages 12+
Individual Therapy - $150 per session
Relationship Therapy - $200 per session
“My approach is down-to-earth and warm. I don’t want therapy to feel clinical; I want it to feel like connection, like two humans meeting in the middle, and like you have someone in your corner.” - Charlotte
Charlotte’s Vibes
Emotional safety and trust are at the forefront of every session together. I encourage you to use self-compassion, curiosity and your own intuition to live a meaningful and intentional life.
Chill
Warm
Passionate
Authentic
Transparent
Relational
Funny
Experienced
Queer Auntie
Direct
Nurturing
Creative
Supportive
Affirming
Types of Therapy
I practice through a lens of lived experience and use a very collaborative, eclectic and relational approach with clients.
Some modalities I am trained in and often use:
Acceptance and Commitment (ACT)
Coaching
Cognitive Behavioural (CBT)
Compassion Focused
Dialectical Behaviour (DBT)
Eclectic
Emotionally Focused
Existential
Expressive Arts
Feminist
Internal Family Systems
Narrative
Person-Centred
Relational
Solution Focused Brief (SFBT)
Strength-Based
Trauma Informed
I might be a good fit for you if…
You’ve tried therapy before, but didn’t feel a real connection with your therapist.
You are coming out to yourself as a part of the LGBTQ+ community and want a therapist with lived experience.
You are neurodivergent and are interested in developing a deeper understanding of how you relate to the world.
You live with chronic pain and want to live a more meaningful life that feels full and intentional.
You are a part of the kink, poly or ENM community and want a therapist who is affirming and informed.
Living a life in a body that society stigmatizes, and you want to lean into fat liberation or radical acceptance.
You want to explore your gender with someone who has lived experience around navigating the medical model as a trans or gender diverse individual.
Discussing harmful ways ablism, white supremacy, patriarchy and capitalism impact our self-concept and mental health.
You identify as a witch, a psychic, intuitive or a medium and are looking for a therapist who has experience within this context and the mental health world.
You want to dismantle and stop the cycle of intergenerational trauma within your family and your familial relationships.
You want to find your voice and learn how to set boundaries within your personal and professional life.
Charlotte's Life, Family and Office
When I’m not in therapist mode you can find me spending time with my chosen family and my spouse, hanging out with Ruby (my cat bff), playing cozy video games, hyper-focusing on one of my current special interests, listening to Lady Gaga, cooking, and deepening my spiritual practices.
More about my journey…
I founded Positive Space Consulting in 2018 out of a deep love for community care, social justice, and queer wellbeing. After more than a decade in the social work field, I wanted to create a practice where mental health, spiritual connectedness, and 2SLGBTQIA+ joy could all coexist, a space where people feel both grounded and expanded.
As someone living with C-PTSD, ADHD, and a physical disability, I ground my work in lived experience and radical compassion. I know healing isn’t linear, it’s layered, often messy, and deeply human. In my work, I blend modern and post-modern therapeutic approaches with intuitive, relational, and client-led methods. I’m especially passionate about Internal Family Systems and expressive arts therapy, often weaving creativity, metaphor, and imagination into the healing process.
Emotional safety and trust are always at the forefront of my sessions. I invite clients to use self-compassion, curiosity, and their own intuition to build a meaningful and intentional life. I’m steadfast in helping clients gently dismantle systems of oppression, both the ones we’ve internalized and the ones we move through every day.
Beyond the therapy room, I’ve been honoured to consult with mental health professionals, educators, non-profits, health-care providers, and community organizations seeking to make their work more inclusive and trauma-informed.
I’m endlessly grateful that my life’s purpose and greatest passion have converged in this work. I live in Barrie, Ontario, with my fiancée and our two beloved cats, and I’m deeply honoured to walk beside clients as they navigate their own paths toward healing and wholeness.