About Amanda Buckingham

Amanda grew up in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada and spent 20 years working as a tap dancer and musical theatre performer. After moving to Toronto in 2012, she slowly began to realize that the artist’s life was not for her. As she reflected on her options for a career transition, she identified that it was her passion for stories, vulnerability, and a deep understanding of emotions that had led her to pursue a career in theatre and dance. After recognizing that these same passions could be channeled into a fulfilling career in the mental health field (a field that had always appealed to Amanda, given her lived experience of challenges with respect to her own mental health), she put her tap shoes up on a shelf and shuffled off to university.

Amanda began her journey towards becoming a Registered Social Worker at Ryerson University, where she earned her Bachelor’s of Social Work. From there, she went to the University of Toronto, where she earned her Master’s of Social Work. To date, her career highlights have included working on the National Eating Disorder Information Centre (NEDIC) helpline, where she provided supportive crisis counselling over the phone to people struggling with eating disorders. Additionally, as part of NEDIC’s outreach team, she delivered workshops to schools, family health teams, and fitness studios concerning body image, self-esteem, media literacy, and eating disorders. From there she went on to complete her training in Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health and worked on a comprehensive DBT team at Ontario Shores Centre for Mental Health Sciences. Eventually, she began her own private practice where she offered individual DBT services and DBT skills classes. When Amanda discovered RO DBT, she was overcome with the excitement at how this new therapy could potentially help those who struggle with maladaptive overcontrol. She ran a RO DBT skills class at Sheena’s Place and - inspired by the experience - told herself that she would definitely come back to this modality when the time was right!