Ariella Assouline,RCC
Clinical Counselling and Art Therapy
Welcome
Thank you for stopping by. The internet is not always a welcoming space, and looking for a counsellor can be stressful. The work you are doing right now, is big, even if it seems invisible.
My name is Ariella Assouline (She, her). I am an art therapist and a clinical counsellor. I would be honoured to work with you. Maybe, together, we can make space for some of the invisible things in your life.
approach
My counselling style weaves lots of different threads. But the fabric of my work is a commitment to
trauma-informed practice....
What does this mean?
- I hold a deep awareness of how trauma impacts the whole system
- My approach is gentle, collaborative, and strives to deconstruct dynamics of power
- My stance is de-pathologizing: we work at re-framing negative ideas about what is "wrong" with you, shifting the focus to what you are experiencing
- We work to deepen your strengths and resources, finding ways to stay regulated, in the therapy, and in your life.
Counselling Style
Arts Based
- Art therapy is about process, not product
- This means that you don't need to have any art experience or training
- The process is playful, mindful, and intuitive
- It invites our curiosity; allows us to delight in surprising and unexpected sensory experiences
- Using art materials in our sessions is completely optional
Somatic (Sensorimotor)
- Rooted in learnings about neurobiology
- Rather than beginning with thoughts and words, we can work our way up the ladder of our experience through the senses, emotions, movement, and images...
- ...Stitching in thoughts and words. This honours many ways of knowing
Parts Work (TIST)
- Trauma and survival are interconnected
- Humans are wonderfully complex, our capacity to move forward through difficult situations is astounding
- in the moving forward, our regular-life-self sometimes leaves our younger parts behind
- Parts work can help us to listen to our whole selves and find relief from overwhelm
About ME
- I am an uninvited settler on these beautiful Coast Salish lands
- My family arrived in this place as immigrants and refugees from North Africa and the "Pale of Settlement"
- My body carries the unearned privilege of conditional whiteness, alongside bicultural identities, and recent histories of cultural persecution
- I am slowly, and intentionally working toward decolonizing my practice and untangling the roots of colonialism, racism, ableism, homophobia, transphobia, capitalism and other interlocking systems of oppression
- I have been working with people since always: in my previous life as an art teacher, and for over a decade as a therapist, in hospitals and community settings
- I am also a parent, a cat person, and a baker of bread
- I belong to a wonderfully neurodivergent family, and am grateful for all of the unlearning we get to do together
Credentials and Trainings
- I hold an MA in Creative Arts Therapies from Concordia University (2009)
- I am a registered clinical counsellor with the BC Association of Clinical counsellors (RCC # 13719)
- I am certified in Trauma Informed Stabilization Treatment (Janina Fisher's TIST)
- I am trained in Sensorimotor Psychotherapy for the Treatment of Trauma (SP)
- I have additional training in Somatics and Systemic Trauma (Staci Haines)
- I have completed Indigenous Cultural Safety trainings through the Indigenous Perspectives Society (IPS) and San'yas (FNHA)
My practice Areas
I would welcome the opportunity to work with you, wherever you are in your life right now. I offer support to folks experiencing depression, anxiety, and stressful life transitions as well as folks who are curious about exploring their identities, and expanding their possibilities for growth. I have experience accompanying people through a range of challenges, and what you need right now might not be on these lists. If you'd like to find out more, I offer free 20 minute consultations, where we can spend some chatting and you can get a feel for how working together might be a "fit."
Particular Focus
- Trauma-complex trauma, historical childhood abuse, cPTSD
- Parenting and perinatal (pregnancy/postpartum) support
- Chronic illness and disability
- Neurodivergence -relational (non-behavioural) support for autistic folks, PDA aware
- Dissociation and fragmentation
**Note- I am currently only seeing individual, adult clients
All sessions are held virtually through a secure video platform
Antioppressive Practice
What does that even mean?
Many people are using these words, and sometimes the meaning gets lost along the way.
This is an ongoing commitment, a daily practice, an invitation to name the systems that invoke power over; to acknowledge harm. It begins with an awareness that the Western practice of psychotherapy has historically caused violence to many marginalized groups, and this harm continues in different forms. Colonial ideals of individualism and binarism underpin practices that seek to change people, to shape them to fit within ideologies of normalcy. Also, ideas that have become central to counselling theories; about the importance of attachment, connection, community, somatics, and mindfulness, come from very old practices around the world. The deliberate stripping of indigenous ways of knowing, has caused unimaginable harms; this is violence. Unlearning is a slow and incremental process and I look forward to re-weaving the threads that we will uncover together.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are your Rates?
- 50 minutes $150
- 80 minutes $240
Is the cost covered by insurance?
- Many extended medical packages cover some costs for Clinical Counselling
- You will have to check with your insurer, if they cover RCCs, you can apply for reimbursement. Unfortunately, I cannot bill directly to insurance
Where is the office?
- All sessions are held virtually, through secure video
- I offer two PIPEDA Compliant, encrypted platforms: Doxy.me and Janeapp
- Currently, I am only able to offer sessions to BC residents
Do you work with kids?
- Unfortunately, at this time, I only have space for adult clients
Art therapy? I can't draw!
- You don't need to have any experience with art or any art training to benefit from art therapy
- We may use art materials in to connect to sensory experiences and to explore different ways of being present. It is about the process, not about the way the final product looks
- Using art materials in sessions is 100% optional
- If you choose to try it out, we can work with what you have at home. A couple of mark-making tools (pens, pencils) and paper are all that you need to get started. Other supplies that can be fun to work with include: markers, wax crayons, basic oil pastels, watercolour paints, and pencil crayons
What languages are services available in?
- English and French
Connect
...My door is open
Book Online
- Contact me to schedule a free 20 minute consultation
Land Acknowledgement
With gratitude, I acknowledge that this practice sits on Coast Salish Land, This place that is now called Vancouver, is unceded territory. The xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam) sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish) and səl̓ílwətaʔ/selilwitulh (Tsleil-Waututh) nations, have cared for the land, the trees, the water, and the air for many, many generations. May we tread gently, with respect for our interconnectedness. As a counsellor, I recognize the relationship between trespass and trauma and am committed to working toward reparation, reconciliation, and healing.
Invisible Threads is an affirming practice.
I work from a position of anti-racism, cultural humility, and disability justice.
All bodies, all brains, and all genders are welcome here.
A designation of BC Association
of Clinical Counsellors
© Ariella Assouline 2023