SHALYN ISAACS, M.Ed
COUPLES
PSYCHOTHERAPY
A psychodynamic, anti-oppressive approach to couples therapy that supports partners
in exploring how gender roles,
cultural values, and systems of power
shape relationship conflict and healing.
In-person couples therapy in Hamilton and virtually across Ontario, Canada
A DEPTH-APPROACH TO RELATIONSHIP HEALING.
Healing within your relationship can create ripple effects that extend
into your home, your family, and the future generations that follow.
Within every relationship exists multiple understandings of love, shaped by each partner's
childhood experiences, relational traumas, cultural values, religious and political beliefs, and gendered expectations. Many of these forces remain unconscious and can continue to shape relationship conflict patterns. When the same struggles continue to repeat, it often suggests that unresolved experiences from the past are quietly shaping the relationship in the present.
My approach to couples therapy is primarily psychodynamic, anti-oppressive, and liberation-centered, while integrating perspectives from Emotionally Focused Couples Therapy (EFT), sex therapy, and intergenerational trauma-informed practice.
Together, we explore how unconscious relational patterns, emotional needs, psychological defenses and behaviors & beliefs - alongside broader social inequities, may be influencing your relationship.
By bringing these forces into awareness, couples can begin to relate with greater compassion, accountability, emotional balance, and freedom to create new ways of being together.
Couples I See Are Often Experiencing:
Push-Withdraw dynamics
“When things feel emotionally intense, one of us needs closeness while the other needs space.”
Life transitions
“We’re trying to adjust to new roles, responsibilities, and expectations.”
Imbalances in emotional labor
“I’m exhausted from always having to notice, plan, remember, and hold things together.”
Career and financial pressures
“Stress about money or work is affecting how we relate to each other.”
cultural or religious differences
“Family expectations, culture, or religion sometimes create tension in our relationship.”
sexual intimacy & connection
“We miss feeling emotionally and physically connected.”
"We have different sexual desires, fantasies, or expectations"
gender roles and expectations
“The roles we learned growing up are affecting our relationship in ways we didn’t realize.”
repetitive conflict cycles
“We keep having the same argument over and over.”
"Even small disagreements quickly turn into the same painful cycle.”
About Me & My Approach
to Couples Therapy
Shalyn Isaacs, M.Ed
Masters (M.Ed) in Counselling Psychology,
University of Toronto
Registered Psychotherapist - Qualifying,
College of Registered Psychotherapists of Ontario
Member, Canadian Association of Psychodynamic Therapy
What drew me to couples psychotherapy work is a fascination with the ways that both trauma and healing happen within relationships. I'm passionate about exploring how unconscious psychological patterns influence patterns of emotional distance or closeness within a couple, and how the very things that cause emotional pain can be transformed into mutual understanding, compassion, and relationship renewal.
I am a member of the Canadian Association of Psychodynamic Therapy. I use psychodynamic, culturally-sensitive and trauma-informed frameworks to listen to what is underneath the surface of many couples' conflicts and communication patterns to support emotional connection and healing.
EDUCATION & TRAINING
I hold a Masters in Counselling Psychology from the University of Toronto and bring a decade of experience in the mental health field. I hold 500+ clinical hours of trauma-focused psychotherapy, alongside experience with crisis response, facilitating women’s mental health groups, holding trauma-informed mindfulness classes , research, and educational consulting.
My advanced training and study includes emotionally focused couples therapy (EFCT), integrative sex and couples therapy, somatic trauma approaches, and psychodynamic and psychoanalytic approaches to couples therapy.
My Office Space: Hamilton, ON
My office is located inside the Hamilton Therapy Collective building located at
185 Young Street.
My Hours:
Saturday & Sunday: 8:00am - 1:00pm
Monday - Wednesday: 5:30pm - 8:00pm
Workshops & Trainings
I offer workshops and trainings for communities and organizations to learn about ways that trauma psychoeducation and artistic-creative practices can support healing for individuals, couples and communities.
I also collaborate with teachers from diverse professional backgrounds to host an array of educational and experiential workshops and trainings in my practice.
