Professional Background

Dr. Amber L. Hills sees the therapy room as a place where people discover that “home” is an internal state as well as a physical place. In today’s interpersonal climate, trust can be difficult, and it can feel like an immeasurable risk to explore (let alone invite someone else into) the most vulnerable of spaces: your innermost thoughts and feelings. Dr. Hills seeks to understand her clients’ experiences and see the world as they do. She believes people value the significance of feeling unconditionally known and understood, and that the experience of genuine connection is one of the most powerful healing forces that facilitates healthy and supportive self-discovery and emotional awareness. Given that not all clients are alike, Dr. Hills aims to tailor her approach to the needs and worldviews of each client. She describes her approach to therapy as integrative with a collaborative stance and an emphasis (where appropriate) on interpersonal and existential issues.

Dr. Hills has over 25 years of diverse clinical training and experience spanning a range of organizations including public hospitals, private practices, psychiatric facilities, community agencies, the Correctional Service of Canada, Youth Justice, the RCMP, the Department of National Defence, Alberta Health Services and university clinics. She has been trained in individual, couple/family and group treatment modalities across all age groups, using empirically-supported approaches to treatment, incorporating aspects of cognitive-behavioural, humanistic, existential, psychodynamic, family/systems and dialectical behaviour therapy. She has worked extensively with clients with mood and anxiety disorders, interpersonal issues, issues related to personality style, and those experiencing difficulty with life transitions. She has specialized over the past several years in the health psychology domain, with an increasing focus on chronic illness, psychosocial oncology and adjustment and rehabilitation following neurological/physical injury (e.g., stroke, TBI, mTBI/Post-concussion Syndrome [PCS], MVA).

Dr. Hills has been honoured with numerous national and provincial clinical, research and service awards throughout her training and career thus far. She has taught at the university level, been a reviewer for scholarly journals, and published peer-reviewed research in psychiatry, psychology and forensic journals in the areas of anxiety disorders, interpersonal relationships, suicide, criminal/impulsive behaviour, and mood disorders. Given her breadth of experience and interest, she works with adolescents, adults, couples and families across a diverse spectrum of presenting concerns in her private practice.

Originally from Vancouver, Dr. Hills received her doctorate in Clinical Psychology from the University of Manitoba and has trained and practiced in Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Alberta, and British Columbia. She is a member in good standing of the Canadian Psychological Association, the British Columbia Psychological Association, the Psychologists’ Association of Alberta, and she is registered as a Clinical Psychologist with the College of Alberta Psychologists, and the College of Psychologists of BC.