Get to Know Sadie
I'm Sadie Smith (they/them), the human behind Crescendo Counselling.
I believe that everyone is inherently worthy of dignity, care and respect, simply because we are human.
My guiding therapeutic principles are self-empowerment, autonomy, creativity, connecting to joy, and dismantling social constructs that may prevent us from living our full authenticity. Healing looks different for everyone. Whatever you're carrying, you don't have to carry it alone.
Why I am a Psychological Counsellor and Music & Imagery Therapist
I have always believed in the healing power of music. Music is innate to being human: it is a way of communicating when words fail, music communicates across cultures, music fosters a sense of belonging, comfort, and attachment.
I also believe to my core that things can change and a more equitable world is possible! That our existence is resistance, that love is a choice, and when we choose to nurture our souls and the souls of others and the earth, change happens.
Counselling and therapy are ways we can show up for ourselves, it is an act of love to nurture our souls, especially when they hold wounds. Psychological Counselling and Music & Imagery therapy are wonderful tools to learn to co-create the world we want to live in. It fills me with joy to see how this helps me and my clients to walk their path with more ease and joy.
What is my approach to Psychological Counselling and Music & Imagery Therapy
Psychological Counselling and Music & Imagery therapy means change. Together we look at what you would like to see change, or what it takes to even allow yourself to imagine change in the first place. Together we create a roadmap using different methods that empower you to deal both with what you have experienced and with current challenges in a self-directed way with attuned support. You will gain confidence in the tools and in yourself, enabling you to use them in your daily life outside of the counselling sessions. The further our therapeutic alliance progresses, the less you will need me.
Folks I have worked with describe the use of music as a way of slowly peeling off the layers of an onion, one thin layer at a time.
Social Justice and Human Rights are the core of my Psychological Counselling and Music & Imagery
Unjust experiences shape us! How we feel in our bodies, how we see ourselves, and what we believe is possible. That impact is real, and it deserves to be cared for. Zooming out to understand these experiences in the context of culture and society can be very helpful for us to not feel alone; that these are not our problems, but an illness within our societies.
Psychological Counselling and Music & Imagery offers a space to face what you've been through without being consumed by it. Together we can honour unjust experiences, work towards externalising them, and move towards a life where they no longer get to set the limits.
Why Crescendo Counselling
In music, a crescendo is a gradual building of sound — gently at first, then fuller, richer, until it reaches its peak. Then the music may gradually or suddenly decrease.
It is like this in Psychological Counselling; we work with our inner worlds gradually until we meet a point of change or epiphany, and then the intensity may change and decrease. Then, as music does, a crescendo often begins to grow again, until we are ready for another transformation. The process of crescendos leads to growth, empowerment, and integration.
“I had never met them in person before our first session together. I immediately felt extremely comfortable with them. They're calm and open, they're present, available, they radiate empathy”
My Qualifications and CV
Registered Counsellor with the Verband Freier Psychotherapeuten, Heilpraktiker für Psychotherapie und Psychologischer Berater e.V. in Berlin, Germany,
Registered Social Worker in the Province of Ontario, Canada with the Ontario College of Social Work and Social Service Workers
Association of Music and Imagery | May 2025
Conference Presenter: From Harm to Healing: Confronting Oppression in Guided Imagery and Music Practice.
- Written in the context of intersectional queer feminist theory, Universal Declaration of Human Rights, AMI Code of Ethics, World Federation of Music Therapy Code of Ethics, and formal literature review.
European Association of Music and Imagery | September 2024
Conference Presenter: Beyond the Binary: Exploring Guided Imagery and Music’s Relationship with Gender and Queer Realities
- Written in the context of intersectional queer feminist theory, Universal Declaration of Human Rights, EAMI Code of Ethics, World Federation of Music Therapy Code of Ethics, and formal literature review.
Music and Imagery Therapy Supervisor | November 2024-Present
Supervisor and on going training: Erin Montgomery
Professional Practice Supervisor | January 2021 -Present
Supervisor: Dr. Candace Adams
Level 1 and 2 Guided Imagery and Music Therapy | 2022-2024
Sounding Circles, Denmark.
An approved program by the European Association for Music and Imagery.
Master of Arts Social Work as a Human Rights Profession | 2016-2018
Alice Salomon Hochschule, Berlin Germany
- Master’s Thesis: Alternative Family Life in Canada; the Lived Experiences of Polyamorous Families in the Fringes of Legality.
- Written in the context of intersectional queer feminist theory, international human rights law, and Canadian law.
Bachelor of Social Work and minor in Music Therapy | 2008-2012
University of Windsor, Ontario Canada
I Believe that Team work Makes The Dream's Work
I have always believe that team work makes the dream work. This is why I am a member of to Berlin based collectives working to make the world a better place for Queer community.
