About Andrea
Thank you for taking the time to read more about who I am. My name is Andrea, and I'm passionate about supporting people whose minds get hooked in cycles of worry, rumination, or obsessive and intrusive thoughts, and ultimately supporting people to remember their true nature. I feel especially drawn to helping people build kinder, more compassionate relationships with themselves and their communities.
I am of Greek, English, Irish and German ancestry, and I am a daughter, sister, partner and friend.
I work with people of all backgrounds, including people who are: Indigenous/people of colour, with disabilities, LGBTQ+, in non-conventional relationships, of all sizes, incomes and education levels.
Relationship is at the heart of my therapeutic work.
Why anxiety and OCD?
My focus on anxiety and OCD is personal as well as professional. I’ve experienced anxiety and obsessive thoughts myself, along with parts of me that lean toward perfectionism, overthinking, and trying to create a sense of control and certainty. As well, a close loved one in my life lives with OCD and being part of their journey as a support person has given me an inside perspective of how it is to live with OCD. Because of this, I have a genuine curiosity about how anxiety may be impacting your life, relationships, and ability to live in the ways that matter to you.
I’m especially interested in how gradually approaching what we fear, alongside mindfulness and compassion can help us relate differently to fear, uncertainty, and the parts of us that seek control. Rather than fighting against these fears and uncertainties, we can begin to meet them with curiosity, compassion, and understanding, while gently opening ourselves to what we fear and making room for a fuller, more values based life.
My special focus in anxiety and OCD is informed by training in Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP), alongside my ongoing training in Internal Family Systems (IFS).
My path here
I feel incredibly privileged to have found Social Work as a pathway that helped me align my values with the principles of social justice, compassionate action, and the dignity and worth of every person.
With 18 years in mental health and social work — including six years of one-to-one therapy practice — my background spans community outreach, youth and adult mental health, and education. For many years I worked within health authorities, non-profit organizations, as well as within schools offering outreach and counselling to individuals living with severe and persistent mental health challenges. That work deepened my commitment to trauma-informed, person-centred approaches and my understanding of how social determinants of health, colonialism, and racism intersect with mental health supports.
I consider myself a guide rather than an expert, and I like to frame our sessions by asking questions that invite you to reconsider how you're making sense of your experience. As a feminist counsellor, I create opportunities to examine how power shapes different areas of your life. Together, we can discover creative ways to resist the status quo and move toward living with greater authenticity, belonging, and aliveness.
In my personal life, I am a dedicated practitioner of Insight Meditation (Vipassana) and attend multi-day silent retreats each year. I love to travel, love to be in nature, and enjoy quality time with my loved ones — including my kitty, Tito!
Education & Training
Degrees & Designations
✧Registered Social Worker — Member in Good Standing (RSW #14073), BC College of Social Workers
✧Master of Social Work (MSW) — University of Calgary, 2026
✧Bachelor of Social Work (BSW) — University of Victoria, 2011
✧Diploma in Social Work — Mount Royal University, 2008
✧Qualified Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) Teacher, - UCSD Centre for Mindfulness, 2024
Specialized Training
✧Cognitive Behavioural Therapy for OCD — International OCD Foundation Training Institute (IOCDF), 2024
✧ERP School — Exposure and Response Prevention for OCD — CBT School, Kimberly Quinlan, 2023
✧Mindfulness for OCD — CBT School, Kimberly Quinlan, 2023
✧Advanced OCD training through the Behavior Therapy Training Institute (BTTI), December 10–14, 2026
✧Internal Family Systems (IFS) Level 1 training, completing December 6, 2026
✧Trauma-Informed Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) — Russ Harris, 2024
✧MBSR Teacher Training Intensive — UCSD Mindfulness-Based Professional Training Institute, 2019
✧Supporting Dignity Through Grief: Sacred Grief — Shauna Janz, 2026
✧Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT) for PTSD — 2020
Ready to begin?
If you are curious about how we might work together, I offer a free 20-minute consultation.