Alisa Chirpicinic RCC

She/Her

Therapeutic Focus

Emotional dysregulation and unstable sense of identity
Hopelessness, desperation, and suicidality
Intense sensitivity to rejection
Attachment, separation, and abandonment issues
Confronting traumatic or triggering past experiences
Dealing with excessive inner criticism and guilt
Working with various forms of grief (unresolved grief) and loss
Feeling disconnected and isolated
Creating more flexible boundaries and improving self-esteem
Conflict resolution and anger management
Relationship issues (communication, arguments, infidelity, growing apart)
Having a cold, unloving parent
Processing troubling dreams, fantasies, and feelings
Developing self-reflective skills
Regulating stress, excessive worry, and fear
Sexual problems and self-destructive behaviours

Training & Certificates

Bringing in the body Somatic Attachment Therapy. 2 year Training with Lisa Mortimore.

Couples Training

Relational Life Therapy Level 1
Gottman’s Couples Therapy Method.

Availability

Monday – Tuesday 10am – 8 pm.
Thursday 10am-8pm

You may feel puzzled and confused about what happens in psychotherapy. “Do I deal with a specific ‘problem’ that is frequently at the forefront of my mind or is it about developing a better understanding of what makes me who I am?” I believe that all problems that seem to defy solutions are directly affected – even determined – by how you experience and relate to yourself and others. Exploring the psychological meaning and emotional sense you attach to your specific internal struggles, feelings, and experiences can bring new insights and creative changes to your life. I am deeply committed to facilitating a safe, trusting relationship that can help you heal, grow, and become more fully yourself. I work with a wide range of individuals and couples, focusing on helping people create healthy and fulfilling lives in their internal and external worlds. My experience includes working with people who may seek increased clarity in their everyday lives as well as with people who may feel that anxiety, depression, or past trauma is hindering them from achieving their goals.

As a result of my work with couples, I have developed sensitivity to a relationship’s areas of tension and the expertise to guide couples toward more mature ways of relating to each other. Regardless of the challenges my clients might face, I am very passionate about finding a way of guiding their growth and achievement in whatever they feel is important for them. I welcome clients with diverse backgrounds and needs.

I am a strong believer in viewing our challenges from a holistic lens, and the importance of attending to the body-mind connection. I retain compassion and curiosity for everyone that I meet and understand peoples’ struggles through significant life events and social-cultural narratives.

In terms of my counselling approach, I am largely guided by psychodynamic and Internal Family Systems (IFS) approaches. However, I understand that no one approach fits all, and I draw from a range of modalities to meet you where you’re at. These modalities include Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) as well as client-centered and somatic approaches. Above all, I value and encourage your input – while still guiding and structuring sessions as needed.

There are times when couples have difficulty sustaining intimate and emotional connections with each other. It may be hard for partners to feel seen, loved, understood, and cherished during such moments of disconnection. Loving and intimate relationships need to be carefully and skillfully nurtured by couples’ ongoing work and commitment.

When couples slow down and feel recognized and understood by one another, they create space for healing and transformation. As a couples therapist, I believe healing is a relational discovery process that illuminates the unsuccessful patterns and stances in which many couples find themselves stuck unconsciously.

I will help you identify your specific relationship issues and gain insight into patterns that cause relationship distress. You will learn various tools that will help you restore trust, enhance intimacy, improve communication skills, and strengthen mutual respect. I have experience and welcome the opportunity to work with couples in monogamous, non-monogamous, same, and opposite-sex relationships.

My background

I was born and raised in the Republic of Moldova and my first language is Russian. I moved to Vancouver in 2010 and now consider it home. I provide counselling services in English and Russian.

Parallel to my training, I started my own therapy, which helped me integrate some aspects of my experience in a more meaningful way. My training and personal therapy experience allows me to be deeply attuned to my clients’ world while remaining mindful of what is happening in the session.