Hi, I’m Ania. I’m a Canadian Certified Counsellor and professional artist specializing in expressive arts, trauma-informed counselling, and neurodiversity-affirming care. I offer counselling for children, youth, adults, and families in the North Saanich and the Victoria, BC area and online across Canada. .

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I support clients navigating anxiety, emotional regulation, trauma, life transitions, relationship challenges, grief, and stress. My approach integrates relational and attachment-informed therapy, somatic awareness, mindfulness, and creative expression, shaped around each person's needs, strengths, and goals.

I gratefully acknowledge that my work takes place on the traditional territories of the lək̓ʷəŋən (Songhees and Esquimalt) Peoples and the W̱SÁNEĆ Peoples of southern Vancouver Island. I am grateful to live, work, and offer counselling services within these lands and honour the ongoing relationships Indigenous Peoples have with these territories.​

 

I hold a Master of Counselling from City University of Seattle, a Graduate Certificate in Spiritually Focused Expressive Arts from St. Stephen’s College, and a Bachelor of Arts in Communications from Concordia University in Montreal.​
 

My additional training includes:

• Expressive Arts and Sensory Processing as Neurodiversity Affirming Practices

• The Do’s & Don’ts of Therapy with Neurodivergent Clients: A Trauma Informed Somatic Approach

• Suicide Prevention, Risk Assessment and Management (SPRAM)

• Trauma-Informed Yoga Teacher Training

• Equusoma® Level 1 Student Practitioner
   

My therapeutic approach is grounded in the belief that healing happens through relationship, safety, and meaningful connection. I support clients in developing emotional awareness, nervous system regulation, resilience, self-compassion, and a stronger sense of identity. I work with children and youth using developmentally appropriate approaches that may include creativity, play, mindfulness, expressive arts, and experiential therapies.​

 

With over 20 years of experience in arts-based learning, facilitation, and creative practice, I bring a deep understanding of how creativity can support expression, connection, and psychological well-being. I integrate expressive arts into counselling to help clients explore emotions, process complex experiences, and discover ways of communicating that extend beyond words. My graduate research examined moral injury in veteran populations and the potential of artistic interventions to support trauma recovery, meaning-making, and psychological empowerment.

I have presented and taught on the intersection of art, trauma, and mental health, including guest lecturing counselling students at Concordia University of Edmonton on trauma, PTSD, moral injury, and experiential expressive arts interventions. I have also presented at the Association of Bahá’í Studies Conference. My work reflects a longstanding commitment to bridging creative practice, psychological research, and therapeutic care, making the arts accessible as a meaningful resource for healing and personal growth. No artistic experience is necessary to benefit from creative approaches in counselling.

​​I am an Equusoma® Level 1 Student Practitioner, currently completing Level 1 training in Equusoma® Equine-Facilitated Therapy. This attachment- and somatic-based approach integrates equine-assisted experiential work with relational psychotherapy. Equine-assisted counselling supports emotional regulation, body awareness, confidence, self-awareness, and relational healing through grounded interaction with horses. No riding experience is required.​

 

I have lived, worked, and travelled across Europe and Asia, experiences that have deepened my appreciation for culture, creativity, and different ways of understanding healing. Outside of my counselling practice, I enjoy yoga, a cozy cup of tea, creating art, and spending time in nature. I love water and horses and paint on my hands makes me feel alive!