About Wendy
Wendy Shami,
LCSW, RSW, SEP, CSL
For more than 25 years, my work has centred on trauma resolution, relationships and the experiences we carry in our bodies.
Over time, the questions of aging became more personal. I began noticing what was changing in my own life and body and I saw similar questions emerging among friends, colleagues and clients.
Who am I when the roles that defined me begin to shift?
What happens when retirement, an empty nest, loss or a changing body alters the way I understand myself?
How do I face the reality of aging without becoming consumed by fear or resigned to decline?
What struck me was how little support we are given for this part of life. Sure there is plenty of information about taking care of an aging body – we are told how to eat, exercise, sleep, manage our hormones and protect our skin.
But they do not tell us what to do with the grief of becoming less visible, the uncertainty of what comes next or the quiet realization that the life we built may no longer fit who we are becoming.
I wanted a place where those conversations could happen honestly.
I kept noticing a gap.
You might see a therapist for the emotional work, a somatic practitioner for the body, a coach for a life transition or a spiritual teacher for questions of meaning and mortality.
But aging does not separate itself that neatly.
Retirement can bring freedom and also leave you wondering who you are without the role that organized your days. A shift in your marriage or friendships can surface questions you have avoided for years. A health scare can crack open old fears about mortality and also clarify what actually matters. Watching your own parents age, or becoming a grandparent, can rearrange your sense of where you stand in your own life.
I wanted to bring those parts together in one grounded space. That is why my work combines psychological depth, body wisdom and conscious connection.
Psychological depth
Aging can bring old experiences, unresolved feelings and deeply held beliefs back to the surface. My clinical background allows me to hold what emerges without rushing you toward an answer or trying to make the difficult parts sound positive.
There is room for grief, fear, anger, shame and regret. There is also room to become more curious about who you are now and what you still want from your life.
Body wisdom
We do not experience aging only through our thoughts, we experience it through the body. Somatic practice helps us slow down and notice what may be happening beneath the words. A tightening in the chest. The urge to pull away. A sense of numbness. A longing you cannot yet explain.
The goal is not to force yourself to love every physical change – it is to develop a more respectful relationship with the body carrying you through this part of your life.
Conscious connection
Many of the fears and questions that come with aging are carried quietly. Honest conversation can soften that isolation. It can help us see that we are not the only ones struggling with a changing body, a shifting identity or uncertainty about what lies ahead.
Connection also gives us the opportunity to listen, be challenged and consider perspectives beyond our own. You do not need to arrive with answers, curiosity is enough.
The experience behind the work
I have spent more than 25 years helping people navigate trauma, relationships, identity and change. My professional training includes:
A Master of Social Work from Columbia University
Postgraduate training at the Ackerman Institute for Families and Children
Internal Family Systems - Levels 1 and Level 2
Somatic Experiencing - Somatic Experiencing Practitioner
Sage-ing International - Certified Sage-ing Leader
Each of these approaches has shaped how I understand trauma, the body, relationships and the experience of growing older. Together, they allow me to work with the emotional, physical and existential parts of aging without reducing the experience to one issue or one solution.
My work is clinically grounded, body-aware and open to the spiritual questions that can arise as we become more conscious of time, meaning and mortality.
Aging deserves more from us.
My reason for doing this work is to shift the experience of aging from decline and disappearance to a time rich with possibility.
Possibility does not mean denying loss, limitation or mortality. It means becoming more at home in yourself as you change, recognizing the value of what you have lived and learned, making peace with what has been and staying engaged with what is still here.
There may still be relationships to deepen, truths to face, things to create and ways to contribute. There may also be parts of yourself you have not fully met yet.
What you can expect from me
I will not tell you how you should feel about aging. I will listen without judgment and make room for what is actually true.
I may ask a question that helps you see something differently. I may invite you to notice what is happening in your body or gently challenge an assumption you have carried for years.
I respect the courage it takes to look at yourself honestly. I also believe this work can hold warmth, humour, curiosity and connection alongside the difficult parts.
My training matters, but I do not stand outside this work. I am asking many of these questions too. I am noticing my own resistance, meeting my own inner ageist and continuing to learn what it means to live consciously in a changing body and a changing life.
I bring my experience to the room without pretending I have aging completely figured out.
You do not have to open every door at once.
You may be curious, uncertain or wondering whether you are too young to begin thinking about aging. You may worry about opening Pandora’s box.
You can begin with one question, one conversation and a willingness to notice what is asking for your attention.