Meghan Maynard, PhD Candidate, M.A.
Founder of The Elara Institute | Registered Psychotherapist | Creator of the R.E.P.A.I.R.™ Framework
Meghan Maynard is a registered psychotherapist, educator, and trauma researcher with over 20 years of experience supporting children, parents, and professionals navigating the complex terrain of healing. As the founder of The Elara Institute, Meghan is at the forefront of reimagining how we support caregivers at the intersection of trauma, parenting, and legacy repair.
Meghan holds a Master’s degree in Counselling Psychology and is currently completing her PhD, studying the disruption of intergenerational trauma transmission. Her research, clinical work, and lived experience converge in the creation of the R.E.P.A.I.R.™ Framework — a trauma-informed, neurobiologically grounded, and values-based model for breaking harmful cycles in parenting. This framework integrates principles of attachment theory, polyvagal theory, narrative reauthoring, and somatic regulation to support caregivers in moving from reflection to relational transformation.
In addition to her clinical and academic credentials, Meghan is a respected speaker, curriculum developer, and group facilitator. Her work is deeply informed by both interpersonal neurobiology and the social realities caregivers face when navigating trauma, systemic oppression, and a lack of meaningful support.
At The Elara Institute, Meghan leads a growing team dedicated to offering self-paced courses, mentorship, group facilitation, and professional training — all designed to hold space for the profound work of cycle-breaking parenting.
The Story Behind the R.E.P.A.I.R. Framework
The R.E.P.A.I.R.™ Framework wasn’t born in a classroom — it was born in the tension between my professional expertise and my personal experience. As a registered psychotherapist working with children and families for over two decades, I understood the theories: attachment, regulation, behavioural intervention, relational repair. But when I became a parent myself — and especially as I walked alongside other parents carrying trauma — I began to see a deep, unspoken gap.
Parents who were actively trying to break cycles were being offered the same surface-level advice as everyone else. “Stay calm.” “Be consistent.” “Use positive reinforcement.”
What no one was talking about — at least not in ways that were practical and affirming — was how trauma makes it hard to parent the way we long to. That shame, dissociation, shutdown, and hypervigilance don’t just live in our nervous systems — they live in our parenting moments. They show up when our kids push back. When we’re tired. When we feel like we’re failing.
Professionally, I could see what was missing in most parenting programs: a lens that accounted for the trauma histories parents bring with them, and the nervous system realities they navigate every day.
Personally, I was living that reality — knowing what I should do, but feeling dysregulated, overwhelmed, or flooded in moments that triggered old wounds.
So I began to ask different questions.
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What if the problem isn’t that parents are unwilling — but that they’re unsupported?
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What if regulation, reflection, and connection aren’t just strategies for kids — but essential healing work for caregivers?
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What if we created a model that begins with the parent’s story, not just the child’s behaviour?
These questions became the foundation of my doctoral research on intergenerational trauma interruption — and ultimately, the development of the R.E.P.A.I.R.™ Framework.
R.E.P.A.I.R.™ is more than an acronym. It’s a process. A path. A compassionate map for parents doing the invisible, sacred, often exhausting work of healing while raising children.
Each phase — Reflect, Empower, Practice, Align, Integrate, and Reclaim — is built to support caregivers in making sustainable, embodied change. It’s trauma-informed. Neurobiologically grounded. Rooted in values, not perfection. And designed to hold the whole parent — not just the parts that show up well.
The Elara Institute was founded to bring this vision to life. Because this kind of support shouldn’t be niche. It should be foundational.
Parents who are healing deserve more than tools. They deserve to be seen, supported, and resourced in the work of rewriting legacy.
That’s what R.E.P.A.I.R.™ is for.
That’s what I’m here for.
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