Clinical Supervision

As therapists, we are continuously integrating theory with intuition; science with self. If we put the theoretical models first, we risk coming across as too technical. If we just rely on connection and support, we might not be able to adequately help clients overcome the struggles from which they are seeking (and paying for) relief.

It is essential to have a skilled mentor to help us dig into and shape our work with clients. With supervision, we come to see how our own relational patterns, insecurities, and core fears show up in our clinical work. First and foremost, clinical supervision helps you to understand your clients better, so that you can target interventions in a more nuanced and meaningful way. But equally as important, a good clinical supervisor will help you move beyond your own internal blocks so that you are meeting clients from a clear, connected and fully engaged self.

As a therapist, meeting with a clinical supervisor regularly has been the single most valuable thing I’ve done to improve my work with clients.

Am I the right supervisor for you?

The foundation of my practice is attachment-based, relational, and emotion-focused. Thus, I tend to pay attention to the clients’ reactions in the room that give clues as to their internal states and self-protective layers. I also will help you to become aware of your own dynamic with your clients, and how that impacts your work. I can also demonstrate how to facilitate respectful processing of core emotions.

I have extensive training and clinical supervision in Emotionally Focused Therapy (for individuals and couples), ISTDP (Intensive Short-Term Dynamic Psychotherapy), AEDP (Accelerated Experiential Dynamic Psychotherapy), and Cognitive Behavioural Therapy. These are all models that have an abundance of research that demonstrates them to be evidence-based in treatment of depression, anxiety, trauma, and interpersonal/relational struggles.

I also have been trained in clinical supervision, and am qualified to provide clinical supervision to therapists in BC.

In clinical supervision, I focus on:

• Helping you become clearer about your clients’ presenting problems as well as the underlying layers of their struggles
• Helping you look beyond the content of a client’s story and into the relational and defensive stances that they have adapted to cope with adversity and relational trauma
• Helping you to notice and use your observations of here-and-now processes in the therapy session and dynamics between therapist and client
• Targeting effective interventions that will help your clients improve

In clinical supervision, we examine how to utilise interventions with clients more effectively and meaningfully, as well as observing and understanding your own reflexive responses to clients, and how this impacts your work.

Connect with me if you are interested in exploring how I can support your clinical work with clients, and your further development as a therapist.

Business Consulting

You’re a skilled and motivated therapist. Will that be enough to build a thriving private practice?

Your skills, compassion, and emotional intelligence are the foundation of your practice, there’s no doubt about that. But talent and skill alone won't necessarily fill your practice with the clients you love to work with.

My own practice chugged forward slowly at the beginning. My clinical work was fulfilling and my clients were seeing results, but I actually had no idea how to build a practice. My business savviness needed fine tuning! Determined to make a good living doing what I love to do, I took it upon myself to learn the essentials on how to build a successful private practice.

I built my own successful private practice...and  I can help you create yours

I immersed myself in podcasts, blogs, and online seminars that focused on building a thriving practice. They were helpful...to a degree. But my practice really turned a corner when I recognised that my love of communicating through writing could play a valuable role in reaching out to the types of clients I love working with. I revised all of the content and copy on my website, Psychology Today profile, and marketing materials so that my skills, clinical focus, and overall ‘vibe’ were captured as well as possible, while speaking directly to the clients I wanted to be seeing. People responded. Within a few months, my practice went from limping forward to thriving. In a city that is saturated with therapists, I now have a full practice in which I see the types of clients and issues I love to work with.

My goal is also to help you figure out how to leverage your skills, talents, and personality to attract the clients that you want to see.

"Elana is the instructor you wish you had at university who taught you how to set up a private practice. She embodies the qualities of a compassionate therapist and a savvy businesswoman. Her creative strategies for increasing visibility, digital know-how, writing and editing skills, and her genuine enthusiasm for your success are apparent from the moment you meet her." ~ Ellen

I specialise in helping you to create a relationship with your clients from the moment they click on your website. I hear from therapists all the time "I hate marketing! It feels so phony!" This is a commonly held point of view amongst helping professionals: that marketing is incompatible with authenticity. That's not how I see it. In fact, the entire point of marketing your practice well is that people will want to meet you in person!

Whether you are just starting out in private practice and keen to build your clientele, or have been in private practice for a while and want to take your practice to the next level, I can help transform your practice by:

• Revising your website copy so that it reads better and helps you stand out (I have an allergy to clichéd and generic language)
• Collaborating with you on writing your Psychology Today profile page (having a solid Psychology Today profile is one of the simplest ways to immediately increase referrals)
• Clarifying your clinical niches and how to reach the clients you want to be seeing
• How to effectively connect with the referral sources that can send clients to you
• Advise on which marketing strategies are worth adopting, and which will waste your time and money (so that you don’t repeat my mistakes)

Connect with me to hear more about how I can help you build a practice that you love to wake up to every morning (and that pays for that roof over your head).