​My name is Mark Brooks and I am delighted to come on board at Brunswick Creek Psychology services as Academic Strategist.  I’m really excited to start working at Brunswick Creek because I love teaching and watching the delight in a student’s eyes when the ‘aha’ moment comes. 
 
When I’m not working, I spend my time expressing my creative side.  I love to garden – dahlias, hyacinths, and hollyhocks are my specialty.  I’m also musical.  I direct a choir, Noteworthy Chorus (Two Flats But Not Too Flat), for which I arrange and write a good deal of the repertoire.  I’m also a language geek.  I found out my gift/love for languages when I enrolled in French immersion in the second semester of grade ten, and graduated with my certificate of bilingualism in French. I love to travel and can speak phrases from all the countries I’ve visited.  I’m also conversationally fluent in Spanish, and Korean.  An extension of my love for languages and my creative side, both, is creative writing.  I’m currently in the middle of bringing a strong colourful character, Talulah Fairweather, to life.
 
There are likely only two things that exceed my love for languages. The first is animals, and in particular, dogs, or the doogs as they are affectionally called at our home.  My friends call me the dog whisperer.  You’ll also find other furry four-footers and several aquariums chez nous.
 
Oh, I said there were two things, didn’t I?  The Coca Cola Company will never go out of business so long as I am around.  Spend any time with me and inevitably you’ll see me with a can of Coke in my hand.

Mark Brooks, B. Sc. 
​Academic Strategist 

​I grew up on a farm in the Swift Current area, and, although I’ve travelled and moved a lot since high school, this town will always be home. It is a place of comfort, safety, and happiness for a lot of people – but challenges and troubles, pain and disappointment, happen here, too. Life doesn’t always make sense; personally, I’ve known my share of confusion, of feeling lost among the familiar.

At the end of the day, “community” takes work. It takes real effort to try to connect when you feel disconnected, or to reach out when you feel alone. I do this job, as a counsellor, because I want to honour those efforts. I want to be on the other side: the person willing to listen to your story, to witness your struggle and your triumphs.

I completed my training at Briercrest Seminary in 2017 but didn’t realize that my degree would only be the beginning of my education. Turns out, I learn the most from my clients, rather than from textbooks. You teach me what you need, who you are; theories on human development don’t quite cover it. But even though I’ll always be “client-led” as a counsellor, I’ve also learned to seek out tools that allow me to give something back, to be of real help – if help is indeed what you want. (At the moment, I’m learning TEAM-CBT; come and ask me about it and we can see if it works…!)

I believe anyone can change if they want to, but sometimes it takes another person holding your hand to summon that desire and put that first foot forward. I’ve needed a lot of help in my own life; I’ve drawn strength from others, sometimes family and friends, sometimes professionals. Together, we help make sense of each other and our lives.

Outside of work, I’m a mother of two. I love to read novels, to climb trees, to bake cakes, to shop at thrift stores, and to go on road trips. I thrive equally on soulful talks and crazy adventures. I believe hope is a good thing (even if it was in Pandora’s box).

“The world is indeed full of peril, and in it there are many dark places; but still there is much that is fair, and though in all lands love is now mingled with grief, it grows perhaps the greater.” - J. R. R. Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring
           
Jordi Wieler, M.A., Canadian Certified Counsellor 

Brunswick Creek Psychology Services has moved to our new space in downtown Swift Current!  We are now located in the Professional Building at 12 Cheadle Street West. Mark has been busy setting up the artwork, furniture, and yes, the aquarium, and I must say, it's starting to look pretty spiffy.  I have been busy orienting three new clinicians to the space. Watch for these clinician profiles as they get posted. 

This Friday afternoon, I'm thinking about how this practice has grown and changed. It started dinner at Original Joe's where I said to a friend, "you know - I'd really like to do some counselling out of North Side Medical Clinic." I met with Dr. Savoy, and spent four years working with her physicians and staff, sharing an office with Dr. Val and her love of cat decor. It's why we still have a phrenology cat! Then we moved to the condo, changing from a clinical setting into more of a home setting. Then COVID hit, and we moved from the home setting into a virtual setting, something none of us planned for. Now, we are transitioning again to a full service psychology practice, providing counselling, assessment, treatment, academic tutoring, and supervision. 

Brunswick Creek will be expanding it's service delivery based in Swift Current, but offering services across Saskatchewan and the country. Our services will include: 

• Individual counselling for adults & youth
• Child & Family Counselling
• Accelerated Resolution Therapy (ART)
• Psychoeducational Assessment
• Diagnostic Clinical Assessment
• Autism Spectrum Assessment
• Employee and Family Assistance Plan (EFAP/EAP) Services
• Professional Development opportunities for teachers, psychologists, and mental health clinician

We will be adding additional content to our social media and blog posts in the coming days. Stay tuned, and keep in touch, we are here to help! For more information or to book an appointment, send us an email at [email protected] or call us at 306 700 3141. 

Yours in mental wellness, 

Dr. Conor Barker, Ph.D., R. D. Psych. 
Clinical Director, Brunswick Creek Psychology Services