Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT) Therapists in Nanaimo, BC
Grant McMahon
Registered Clinical Counsellor (RCC 11135)
I offer virtual counselling to adults navigating anxiety, depression, trauma-related concerns, relationship difficulties, grief, and major life transitions. For over 12 years, I've helped people understand the patterns that keep them stuck and build steadiness, clarity, and practical change in their lives.
Aida Retta
Registered Psychotherapist
You’ve always been the one others count on—the thoughtful one, the steady one. But under the surface, you might feel anxious, resentful, or quietly overwhelmed. You say yes when you want to say no. You shrink your needs to keep the peace. You care deeply, but sometimes feel like you’re disappearing in the process. These patterns often begin in relationships where love felt conditional, conflict w…
DeRoux Jones
Registered Psychotherapist
I’m DeRoux Jones, a Registered Psychotherapist in Ontario with a Master of Counselling Psychology specializing in Marriage & Family Therapy. I serve individuals, couples, and families, helping with anxiety, depression, grief, relationships, and Christian counselling. My approach is collaborative, evidence-based, and client-centered, creating a safe space for growth and healing.
Li Li
Registered Psychotherapist
Li offers relational psychoanalytic and trauma-focused somatic/EMDR/IFS therapy, to support clients in communities such as immigrants, LGBTQ+, neurodivergent (ADHD), and professionals, whose experiences resonate with her own life journey the most. She holds a compassionate, culturally attuned space where clients can explore how early wounds, cultural expectations, and identity intersect.
Michelle Keough
Master of Clinical Social Work, Registered Social Worker
Feeling disconnected from your partner has got you feeling discouraged and frustrated in your relationship. You're tired of having the same arguments continue to happen in your relationship with no understanding. Being stuck in conflict has lead to you feeling disconnected from your partner and is holding you back from creating a secure loving bond. You no longer need to feel alone in your rela...
Alexa Gelles
Registered Clinical Counsellor
Alexa Gelles is a Registered Clinical Counsellor and the founder of Aligned Relationship Counselling. For over a decade, she has helped individuals and couples navigate relationship challenges, improve communication, and create stronger, healthier connections. Alexa is known for her warm, practical approach and her ability to help clients create meaningful, lasting change.
Colombe Mazerolle
Licensed Counselling Therapist - C
Are you struggling with intense emotions that feel overwhelming, ongoing conflict or disconnection in relationships or feeling stuck in survival mode or repeating self-sabotaging patterns? I'm Colombe, therapist at Ember Counselling Therapy, and I help individuals and couples build emotional balance, heal from past pain, and create healthier relationships.
Deanna Smith
Registered Therapeutic Counsellor
I help people who feel anxious, overwhelmed, or lost in their own life. Maybe you’re tired of holding it all together, reacting in ways you don’t like, or putting everyone else first and losing yourself in the process. I also support couples stuck in the same fight, feeling more like roommates, or scared to be honest.
Tyler Fong
Canadian Certified Counsellor
I hope to help facilitate your next steps of understanding and growth; we will work to reduce negative symptoms, process difficult experiences, and move toward your goals. I offer short-term and longer-term counselling through a variety of evidence-based approaches. We will collaborate on the style that best suites you. I offer Individual and couples counselling for adults or youth aged 12+.
Debra (Debbie) Airth
Registered Therapeutic Counsellor
Come as you are. Let's begin from there. I support individuals and couples navigating grief, chronic illness, trauma, identity exploration, LGBTQ+ experiences, polyamory/ENM, and life transitions. My approach is warm, trauma-informed, and rooted in genuine human connection, helping you reconnect with your strengths and move forward with greater clarity and self-compassion.
Annie Szalkai
Registered Psychotherapist
I work with adults from diverse backgrounds, supporting those navigating anxiety, stress, and self-esteem challenges. My approach is client-centred and integrative, drawing from CBT, ACT, EFIT, Solution-Focused Therapy, and more to meet each person’s unique needs.
Eric Proulx
Registered Clinical Counsellor (RCC)
Are you feeling stuck in the same unhelpful patterns? Is it becoming more and more difficult to live through anxiety, depression or emotional overwhelm? Reaching out can be hard, but it's the first step towards living a more intentional, fulfilling and joyful life.
Sarah Perone
Registered Psychotherapist (Qualifying)
I help individuals and couples break painful relationship cycles so they can feel more connected, secure, and confident. I support concerns like recurrent conflict, relationship anxiety (and ROCD), limerence, and resentment. Using an attachment- and evidence-based approach, I offer warm, non-judgmental virtual therapy across Ontario. Book a free 15-minute consultation to get started.
Sandra Daoust
Registered Therapeutic Counsellor (RTC) and Master Practitioner in Clinical Counselling (MPCC-P)
You're not broken, and you don’t need fixing. At your core, you're whole. But life, trauma, loss, stress, and relationships can make you feel fragmented/out of alignment. My work is about helping you remember who you are beneath the layers: sovereign and capable of living an authentic life. My approach is collaborative to your unique lived experience. Healing is not linear, but it is possible.
Chantelle Vaz
Registered Psychotherapist
I offer a warm and collaborative space where you can explore your experiences with curiosity and care. My approach is rooted in empathy and authenticity, supporting you in understanding your story, building self-compassion, and creating meaningful change. I draw from narrative, attachment, and emotion-focused therapies to meet your unique needs.
Sadaf Khan
Registered Psychotherapist (Qualifying)
At Horizon Healing Psychotherapy, we believe that every journey toward growth and healing begins with a safe space and a compassionate guide. Under the thoughtful care of Sadaf, our clinic offers a sanctuary where your story matters, your voice is heard, your experience and your path to well-being are honoured. Welcome to Horizon Healing Psychotherapy, a new horizon of hope and healing awaits you.
Emma Laughlan
Registered Psychotherapist (Qualifying)
I am a Registered Psychotherapist (Qualifying) working with youth and young adults navigating anxiety, perfectionism, self‑worth concerns, relationship challenges, and life transitions. My approach integrates Internal Family Systems (IFS), somatic practices, and CBT-informed strategies to support emotional regulation and identity development.
Shadan Mosavat
Clinical Counsellor, M.A, CCC.
I work with adults struggling with anxiety, depression, and ADHD to help them understand and embrace the parts of themselves that are often hidden beneath these labels. I also support parents in discovering their most authentic and confident parenting style, free from the pressure of societal myths and expectations.
Amelia Traer
Pre-Licensed Professional, BA, PsiChi
My work is shaped by CBT, ACT, DBT, ERP, and trauma-informed, mindfulness-based approaches. I support clients with anxiety, burnout, OCD and phobias, ADHD, grief, life transitions, women's health, and chronic health concerns. Our therapy space adapts, with a focus on connection, emotional regulation, and practical strategies that fit your life.
Denise Mansell, MACP, RSW, RCC, CCC
Registered, Clinical Counsellor, Registered Social Worker, Psychotherapist
Feeling stuck, numb or overwhelmed by the world right now? Are you facing issues like anxiety, depression, and relationship problems? I offer professional, in-person Clinical Counselling, Grief Therapy & Registered Social Work services. Contact me to arrange a brief, complimentary consultation. If you are ready to get started, I have both in-person and remote session openings available.
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Frequently Asked Questions About Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT)
What is Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT)?
Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT) was developed by Dr. Sue Johnson and is grounded in attachment theory — the understanding that human beings have a fundamental need for close emotional bonds. EFT helps clients identify and change the negative emotional and interactional patterns that block secure connection, replacing them with more open, vulnerable, and responsive ways of relating. It is used for couples, individuals, and families, each with a specific EFT model.
What does EFT treat?
EFT for couples (EFT-C) is one of the best-researched couple interventions, with studies showing 70–75% of couples moving from distress to recovery. Emotionally Focused Individual Therapy (EFIT) addresses depression, anxiety, trauma, grief, and attachment-related concerns in individual clients. EFT with families helps address conflict and disconnection between parents and children. All applications focus on deepening emotional experience and reshaping attachment patterns.
What does an EFT session feel like?
EFT sessions are emotionally focused and relational — the therapist pays close attention to emotional signals and helps you slow down and go deeper into feelings that are often glossed over. You may be guided to notice and articulate a deeper, more vulnerable layer of feeling beneath reactive emotions like anger or withdrawal. The pace is gentle but deep, and sessions often feel different from more cognitive or skill-based therapy — more about feeling than thinking.
Is EFT only for couples?
EFT is well-known primarily as a couples therapy, but the model has been extended to individuals (EFIT) and families (EFFT). EFIT is increasingly used for individuals dealing with trauma, depression, anxiety, and relational wounds. EFFT addresses parent-child attachment and is used when adolescents and their parents are struggling with disconnection. An EFT-trained therapist can apply the approach in individual, couple, or family formats depending on your needs.
How long does EFT therapy take?
EFT for couples typically involves 8–20 sessions, depending on the severity of distress and the complexity of the issues. Individual EFT may be shorter or longer depending on the presenting concerns. EFT is generally considered a moderately long-term approach — it goes deeper than symptom-focused work and prioritizes lasting change in attachment patterns rather than quick skill acquisition. The depth of the work is what produces its strong and durable outcomes.