Trauma Focused Therapists in Vancouver, BC

Alexandra Kozikova

Alexandra Kozikova

Registered Therapeutic Counsellor RTC

Virtual

I am a client-centered, trauma-informed counsellor who uses evidence-based approaches such as CBT, alongside mindfulness and relaxation techniques. With a compassionate and practical style shaped by both my professional and life experience, I support clients in understanding challenges, building skills, and creating lasting, meaningful change.

Karina Ramdath (she/her)

Karina Ramdath (she/her)

Registered Social Worker, Psychotherapist

Virtual

Karina will honour your skills, values, and experiences to help you improve your personal mental health, overcome trauma, and/or improve relationships. Karina provides effective therapy to help you achieve your wellness goals.

Carol D.B. Whaley

Carol D.B. Whaley

Psychotherapist

In-Person

I am a Vancouver based Psychotherapist in a diverse and inclusive Private Practice offering both in person and virtual sessions. I have over 22 years of extensive clinical experience working with individuals, couples, families and groups. I work with all ages on any issues that are getting in the way of the client experiencing life to its fullest in the very personal way they want to live.

Maya Awad

Maya Awad

Registered Psychotherapist (Qualifying), ADHD-SP, HBSc (she, her)

Virtual

Accepting NEW clients - Are you feeling overwhelmed or like you’re carrying a lot on your own? Feel like you're doing everything you’re “supposed to do,” but something still doesn’t feel right? Have a desire to better understand your thoughts, emotions, or patterns, work on building confidence or self-esteem, or find support for your relationship?

Li Li

Li Li

Registered Psychotherapist

Virtual

Li offers relational psychoanalytic and trauma-informed somatic/EMDR/IFS/EFT therapy, to support individual, couples and families 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 express freely and rediscover their authentic self.

Jason Ryant

Jason Ryant

Clinical Counsellor (MPCC-Provisional)

Virtual

I work with people and help to untangle what feels overwhelming and bring clarity and relief in all areas of life, including with anger, shame, relationships & disconnection, parenting, stress & anxiety, burnout, grief & loss, life transitions, social media & doom-scrolling, new diagnoses, and climate-related emotions.

Deanna Smith

Deanna Smith

Registered Therapeutic Counsellor

Virtual

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.

Alicia Buck

Alicia Buck

Master Practitioner in Clinical Counselling- Provisional (MPCC-p), LPC

Virtual

I believe that clients are the true experts of their own lives. My role is not to tell my clients who to be or how to heal, but to walk alongside them as they rediscover their own strength and resilience. I provide a warm, person-centered environment where everyone can feel safe, heard, and truly seen. I support all cultures, ethnic backgrounds, and members of the LGBTQI+ community.

Eric Proulx

Eric Proulx

Registered Clinical Counsellor (RCC)

Virtual In-Person

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.

Eleni Anagnosti

Eleni Anagnosti

Pre-Licensed Professional, MS, HBA, BA

Virtual

My approach is compassionate, culturally attuned, and collaborative. I draw from CBT, strengths-based, solution-focused, and trauma-informed approaches to support ADHD, anxiety, depression, burnout, grief, life transitions, and relationship patterns. Together, we focus on building practical tools, emotional balance, and a stronger sense of self-trust.

Michael Peddle

Michael Peddle

Registered Psychotherapist (RP), Canadian Certified Counsellor (CCC), Certified IFS Therapist

Virtual

Since 2011, I’ve supported clients through trauma and attachment wounds using IFS as my core approach. I integrate EMDR, SFBT, and evidence-based techniques to help people heal burdens, strengthen inner safety, and reconnect with their most grounded, empowered selves.

Mandeep Lalli

Mandeep Lalli

Registered Psychotherapist (Qualifying)

Virtual

Are you feeling anxious, overwhelmed or stuck? Maybe something feels wrong? I help people navigate anxiety, depression, ADHD, trauma, and relationship struggles, with culturally sensitive care that honours your full background, including pressures others may miss. As a South Asian therapist who spent 15 years in the corporate world, I bring lived experience and real-world context to therapy.

Cayla Townes

Cayla Townes

Registered Psychotherapist

Virtual Waitlist for new clients

After years of working in a variety of settings with clients struggling with different life challenges, there's not much I haven't seen. My goal is for clients to walk away from therapy with me feeling validated, supported, and confident using the skills and knowledge they've learned in sessions. I look forward to learning more about how I can support you. Schedule a free consult today!

Tina Pirvali

Tina Pirvali

Registered Psychotherapist (Qualifying)

Virtual

Accepting new clients. I provide virtual therapy across Canada for adults and couples navigating trauma, relationship challenges, communication difficulties, infidelity, codependency, attachment patterns, and life transitions. Using a warm, trauma-informed approach, I help clients strengthen their relationships, reconnect with themselves, and create lasting, meaningful change.

Erin Ibrahim

Erin Ibrahim

Registered Psychotherapist (Qualifying), BA

Virtual

Whether you’re dealing with anxiety, relationship stress, self-esteem struggles, or just feeling stuck, we can work through it together. Pulling from a variety of frameworks to instead suit your unique needs instead of making it feel one-size-fits-all, I have interest in anxiety, depression, relationships, attachment, neurodiversity, and self-esteem. I look forward to connecting!

Shadan Mosavat

Shadan Mosavat

Clinical Counsellor, M.A, CCC.

Virtual

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.

Emma Laughlan

Emma Laughlan

Registered Psychotherapist (Qualifying)

Virtual

I work with children (10+), teens, and adults who feel anxious, overwhelmed, or exhausted by the pressure to get everything “right.” You may be stuck in overthinking, people‑pleasing, panic symptoms, health anxiety, or relationship patterns that leave you doubting yourself. On the outside, you might appear high‑achieving and capable. Inside, you feel tense, self‑critical, or never quite enough.

Grant McMahon

Grant McMahon

Registered Clinical Counsellor (RCC 11135)

Virtual In-Person

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.

Sandra Daoust

Sandra Daoust

Registered Therapeutic Counsellor (RTC) and Master Practitioner in Clinical Counselling (MPCC-P)

Virtual

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.

DeRoux Jones

DeRoux Jones

Registered Psychotherapist

Virtual

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.

How do therapists in Vancouver, BC compare?

Number of therapists listed

47

Average years in practice

7.3 Years

Currently accepting new clients

96 %

Therapists in Vancouver, BC who prioritize treating:

85% Anxiety
60% Trauma and PTSD
53% Relationship Issues
51% Depression
36% ADHD
34% Emotional Dysregulation
28% Self Esteem
28% Grief

How therapists see their clients

9% In Person & Online
89% Online Only
2% In Person Only

Top therapy approaches used in Vancouver, BC:

100% Trauma Focused
68% Attachment-based
68% Cognitive Behavioural (CBT)
57% Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT)
55% Strength-Based
55% Person-Centered
47% Mindfulness-Based (MBCT)
47% Internal Family Systems (IFS)

Frequently Asked Questions About Trauma Focused

What is trauma-focused therapy?

Trauma-focused therapy refers to a family of therapeutic approaches specifically designed to address the psychological impact of traumatic experiences. Rather than only managing symptoms, these approaches help clients directly process traumatic memories, reduce their emotional intensity, and integrate them into a broader understanding of their lives. Trauma-focused therapy is indicated for PTSD, complex trauma, childhood abuse, sexual violence, accidents, grief, and many other trauma-related presentations.

How is trauma-focused therapy different from general therapy?

General therapy often addresses current functioning, coping, and emotions without directly engaging with traumatic memories. Trauma-focused therapy explicitly targets the memories, beliefs, and physiological responses connected to past trauma. It typically follows a phased approach: establishing safety and stabilization, processing traumatic material, and then integration and reconnection with life. This structure is important because jumping to trauma processing before a client has sufficient stability can be destabilizing rather than helpful.

What trauma-focused approaches are most evidence-based?

EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing), Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT), and Prolonged Exposure (PE) therapy have the strongest research evidence for PTSD. Trauma-Focused CBT (TF-CBT) is the leading approach for children and adolescents. Somatic therapies such as Somatic Experiencing and Sensorimotor Psychotherapy, and phase-based models like EMDR-based FLASH and IFS, are also widely used for complex and developmental trauma where standard single-modality approaches may be insufficient.

How do I know if I need trauma-focused therapy rather than general therapy?

Signs that trauma-focused therapy may be particularly beneficial include: intrusive memories or flashbacks, nightmares, emotional numbness or avoidance of trauma-related reminders, hypervigilance, difficulty trusting others, significant shame, or the sense that you have tried general therapy without full resolution of symptoms. An assessment with a trauma-trained therapist can determine whether and what kind of trauma-focused work is appropriate for your presentation.

Is trauma-focused therapy safe?

When conducted by a trained therapist using an established protocol, trauma-focused therapy is safe and effective. Reputable approaches are designed to keep arousal within a manageable "window of tolerance" — avoiding both re-traumatization and emotional shutdown. Stabilization work done before processing ensures that clients have sufficient coping resources. If you feel unsafe at any point in trauma therapy, you can and should communicate this to your therapist, who will adjust the pace and approach.