Özlem Mavis, Registered Therapeutic Counsellor

Özlem Mavis, RTC (she/her)

AREAS OF FOCUS:

• Heartbreak and Relational Wounds

• Anxiety 

• Trauma and C-PTSD

• 2SLGBTQIA+

• Life Transitions

• Immigration and Cross-Cultural Issues

THERAPY MODALITIES:

• AEDP (Accelerated Experiential Dynamic Psychotherapy)

• Body-centered and Somatic Approaches

• Emotion Focused Therapy

• Expressive Arts Therapy

• Focusing-Oriented Dreamwork

• Spiritually-Integrated Psychotherapy

WHAT YOU CAN EXPECT WHEN WORKING WITH ÖZlem

I am here to hold your pain, your longing, and your courage with deep respect and tenderness. I view therapy as an opportunity to cultivate genuine connection in a supportive and empowering environment. As a trauma-informed counsellor, I recognize the importance of going at your pace and taking time to build trust between us. 

I use body-centered and somatic approaches in addition to relational and emotion-focused work. Safely reconnecting with our body may help us access our authentic feelings and inner knowing, beyond the level of thinking and analyzing. 

I understand that painful experiences and feelings can be difficult to put into words. As an expressive arts therapist, I can also offer you opportunities to process your emotions creatively–without the need for any background in the arts. Engaging with creative expression can soothe our nervous system and give rise to unexpected insights.

Together, we collaborate to discover your innate strengths, wisdom, and truth. I draw from my experience and training to support you, but I see myself primarily as a caring and open-minded companion, honoured to be with you on your journey for as long as you need.

Özlem’s EXPERIENCE & TRAINING

I started pursuing my passion for creative expression, psychology, and spirituality on an academic level during my BA at McGill University. Discovering the somatic practice of Focusing in 2017 allowed me to connect more deeply with my embodied inner knowing and inspired me to bring together my interests in service of supporting others.

After completing extensive training in Focusing & Focusing-Oriented Dreamwork, I obtained a Graduate Certificate in Spiritually-Informed Psychotherapy. My desire to integrate the healing power of creativity with counselling finally led me to my current Master’s program in Expressive Arts Therapy and Psychology.

I completed my year-long practicum at Bodymind Counselling where I began training in AEDP (Accelerated Experiential Dynamic Psychotherapy). Outside of Bodymind, I offer individual counselling and expressive art therapy sessions to students at an alternative elementary school. In my previous career, I was a community support worker supporting individuals with diverse abilities for six years.

ON A PERSONAL NOTE

Fourteen years ago, I made a life changing decision to immigrate alone from Turkey to Canada. During some of my hardest times, I intuitively turned to painting and creative writing without any formal training, and experienced the healing power of the arts first hand. Meanwhile, my journey with therapy helped me explore my queerness, cultural identity, neurodivergence, past trauma, and anxiety. Knowing from personal experience that we are complex beings, I highly value honouring our authenticity and removing shame from the process of self-exploration.

In my free time, I find solace in taking long walks by the ocean, cozying up with a good book and tea, sharing quality time with my loved ones, meditating, journaling, painting and watching films that inspire me.

FEES

Sessions with Özlem are $105 per 50 minute session for individuals, plus GST. ($110.25)
Özlem is a Registered Therapeutic Counsellor (RTC) and many extended benefits plans will cover her services.

HOURS

Özlem is available Tuesdays and Wednesdays, 2:30-8, and Thursdays 8:30 - 2:00.

Trainings:

• AEDP Immersion - 2025 - with Diana Fosha

• Advanced Dreamwork Supervision – with Dr. Leslie Ellis

• Trauma-Informed Grief Support - 2024 - with Shauna Janz

• Kink-Aware Psychotherapy - 2024 - with Sexual Health Alliance

• Intro to AEDP - with Diana Fosha

• Transform Trauma Through Fierce Love - AEDP Institute - with SueAnn Piliero

• Making Good Use of Suffering - AEDP Institute - with Jerry Lamagna

• Getting Started or Restarted with AEDP - AEDP Institute - with Ben Lipton

• Graduate Diploma in Expressive Arts Therapy – Vancouver Art Therapy Institute

• Graduate Certificate in Spiritually Informed Psychotherapy - St. Stephen's College

• Focusing Level 4 - with The International Focusing Institute

• Embodied Experiential Dreamwork Certification - with Dr. Leslie Ellis

• Nature-based Expressive Arts Therapy Certification - with World Arts Organization

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All of the counsellors at Bodymind Counselling gratefully live and practice on the lands of Lekwungen peoples, the Songhees and Esquimalt, and W̱SÁNEĆ peoples.

Richard Turner, Student Counsellor

Richard Turner, Student Counsellor (he/him)

AREAS OF FOCUS:

• Neurodivergence

• Anxiety & Depression

• Existential Issues

• Life transitions

THERAPY MODALITIES:

• Body-Centered and Somatic approaches

• Mindfulness based approaches

• Emotion focused therapy

• Nature based approaches

• AEDP

WHAT YOU CAN EXPECT WHEN WORKING WITH Richard

My goal is to help you navigate life’s challenges with compassion and understanding. Starting a healing journey is brave, and I’m here to meet you wherever you are along the way.

I offer a warm, nonjudgmental space, sometimes lightened with a touch of humor, where you can safely explore your feelings and experiences. My approach is trauma-informed and somatic, focusing on the mind-body connection. I specialize in supporting neurodiverse individuals, those facing major life changes like immigration, and people working through trauma. I’m especially passionate about helping those who find it hard to express or share their struggles, creating a supportive environment where you can build healthier relationships with yourself and others.

I believe in the healing power of mindfulness, movement, connecting with nature, and building meaningful relationships. By drawing on these tools, I aim to help you heal, grow, and thrive in a way that feels authentic to you.

Richard’s EXPERIENCE & TRAINING

I earned a B.A. in History from the University of Hull, where I explored the complexities of human societies and cultures. For nearly a decade, I worked with youth in outdoor settings, leading multi-day kayaking and hiking expeditions that helped young people develop leadership skills and confidence. Over the past three years, I’ve worked in the arts and culture community in Victoria, while continuing to deepen my own mindfulness practice, including completing a 10-day Vipassana meditation retreat.

I’m currently working on my Master’s in Counselling Psychology at Yorkville University, which includes a year long practicum under the supervision of Sarah Pullman.

ON A PERSONAL NOTE

As a young adult, I made the life-changing decision to move alone from the United Kingdom to Canada. This experience helped me understand the challenges of adapting to a new culture, building a support network from scratch, and navigating feelings of loneliness and identity. This process shaped my resilience and gave me an experience of what it means to face major life transitions—insights I bring to my work with clients.

Along the way, I discovered that I’m on the autism spectrum and highly sensitive, which has enriched my understanding of neurodiversity and fueled my passion for supporting neurodivergent individuals.

FEES

Sessions with Richard are $65 per 50 minute session, plus GST ($68.25). First sessions with student counsellors at Bodymind Counselling are $30 plus GST.

HOURS

Richard is available Mondays 2:30 - 8pm, and Saturdays 10 - 3:30pm, beginning January 2025.

Trainings:

• Coming soon

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All of the counsellors at Bodymind Counselling gratefully live and practice on the lands of Lekwungen peoples, the Songhees and Esquimalt, and W̱SÁNEĆ peoples.

August Waite, Student Counsellor

August Waite, Student Counsellor (they/them)

AREAS OF FOCUS:

• Anxiety and social anxiety

• Shame and self esteem

• Complex trauma and attachment wounds

• Body image and gender dysphoria

• Couples therapy (including non-monogamy)

• Sexuality, coming out, and transition/post-transition experience 

THERAPY MODALITIES:

• AEDP (Accelerated Experiential Dynamic Psychotherapy)

• Body-Centered and Somatic Approaches

• Emotionally Focused Therapy for Couples

• Developmental Model for Couples Therapy

WHAT YOU CAN EXPECT WHEN WORKING WITH August

Whatever we are carrying becomes lighter when we’re connected to, and witnessed by, caring others.

I believe in experiential work, and in the power of something new happening in each session. In our work together, I strive always to create an environment that is safe enough to honour and hold your struggle, your courage, and your joy. My approach incorporates techniques to help us show up compassionately to all our parts and all aspects of our emotional experience, including the ones we may struggle to be with. I also work to create opportunities to return to the body, while honouring the reasons we may have had to leave it. As a trauma-informed counsellor, sessions with me always explicitly invite collaboration and choice, and I work with an eye turned toward the collective wounds we each carry from the trauma of social injustice.

In my work with couples and relationships, I am passionate about understanding the culture that your relationship exists within, and the culture which has been created between you. I work to see and mirror the patterns you elicit in one another, and experientially work with moments of connection and disconnection in the here-and-now.

I believe that when we ground into emotional safety and connection with one another, we can unlock our inherent capacity to grow and to heal.

August’s EXPERIENCE & TRAINING

My curiosity about the ways in which we are impacted by culture, communities, and social structures led me from initial study in Gender Studies to a B. A. in Psychology. I then began my Masters degree in Counselling Psychology at City University.

I have worked for years as a community volunteer counsellor at Citizens’ Counselling Centre, where I’ve experienced working with a diverse array of individuals and couples. Prior to this, I worked as a crisis line volunteer with trans, non-binary, and gender non-conforming folks across North America. I also provide training to novice counsellors in gender and sexuality affirmative counselling. I am passionate about working with trauma, shame, grief, anxiety and social anxiety, body image and self esteem, gender/body dysphoria and euphoria, transition and post-transition experience, and relationship challenges (including non-monogamous/polyamorous relationships).

Beyond my Masters of Counselling Psychology coursework, I have also completed professional training in Accelerated Experiential Dynamic Psychotherapy (AEDP), Emotion Focussed Therapy for Couples, the Developmental Model for Couples Therapy, and will be completing training in Lifespan Integration Therapy this year.

ON A PERSONAL NOTE

I’ve lived and worked as an uninvited settler on unceded Lekwungen territories for the past 10 years, and grew up in Nogojiwanong (so-called Peterborough), Ontario. I’m always striving to live in closer alignment with the teachings and decolonizing calls-to-action which the indigenous stewards of these territories so generously extend to us.

My counselling work is inspired by my lived experiences and desire to bring my whole self to the work. My experience as a queer, trans, and non-binary person has informed my interest in community, relationship, and our experiences of the self and the body. I’m an enthusiastic collector of art practices, and my time-tested art loves include poetry and music making. In times of challenge and times of celebration, I am grateful to be accompanied by my weird and wonderful chosen family and by my relationship with the land and water.

FEES

Sessions with August are $65 per 50 minute session for individuals, plus GST ($68.25). Couples are $80 per 50 minutes, plus GST ($84).

HOURS

August is available Mondays 2:30 - 8pm and Tuesdays 8am - 12pm.

Trainings:

• Accelerated Experiential Dynamic Therapy Immersion - AEDP Institute 2024 - with Diana Fosha

• AEDP Portrayals: The Dyadic Experiential Processing of Trauma to a Corrective Emotional Experience - 2024 - with Diana Fosha

• AEDP for Trauma and Attachment Wounds - PESI 2024 - with Diana Fosha

• Introduction to AEDP - AEDP Institute 2024 - with Diana Fosha

• Intensive Course in Emotionally Focused Therapy: Attachment-Based Interventions for Couples in Crisis - PESI - with Sue Johnson

• The Developmental Model for Couples Therapy Intensive - Adaptive Counselling Seattle 2023  

• Creating Well-Functioning Polyamory - Queering Mental Health Conference 2022 - with Martha Kappi

• Introduction to Couples Counselling Training - Citizen’s Counselling Centre 2022

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All of the counsellors at Bodymind Counselling gratefully live and practice on the lands of Lekwungen peoples, the Songhees and Esquimalt, and W̱SÁNEĆ peoples.