Christina grew up in Ontario and moved to BC in 2020 to explore the beautiful west coast. As an outdoors enthusiast she spends as much as she can in nature enjoying what the Island has to offer.

As a graduate of Yorkville University in Counselling and Psychotherapy and a member of the BC Association of Clinical Counsellors Christina is confident in supporting people with a wide variety of challenges including addiction, anxiety, depression, trauma, physical injuries and chronic pain. She has experience providing therapies including CBT, DBT, person-centred interventions and Bowen family systems theory. She enjoys working with youth and adults.

Christina believes deeply in providing therapy in a comfortable and non-judgemental way and she strives to create a positive, affirming and safe space for her clients. She bases her practice on openness and a respect for all people.

A lifelong learner, Christina is excited to develop her practice in new areas and broaden her skill-set. She is thrilled to be part of the Tall Tree team where she can learn from the diverse experiences of her colleagues, and contribute to an amazing work environment for all.

Christina grew up in Ontario and moved to BC in 2020 to explore the beautiful west coast. As an ... Read More

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Bianca Bucarelli, R. Psych. (#2576) received her PhD in Clinical Psychology from The University of Waterloo and completed her pre-doctoral residency at the Calgary Clinical Psychology Consortium (Alberta Health Services). In the years since, Dr. Bucarelli has enjoyed a broad scope of practice, providing individual and group therapy, developing mental health programming within various organizations, and supervising psychology trainees and other healthcare professionals.

Dr. Bucarelli focuses on making the process of therapy feel approachable and useful for each client with whom she meets. Clients can expect her to be genuinely engaged, open-minded, active in exchanging perspectives, and fiercely compassionate. Dr. Bucarelli invests in ongoing professional development and strives to share with her clients the most up-to-date science and knowledge relevant to their treatment goals.

Dr. Bucarelli’s areas of focus and specialization include treatment of OCD, anxiety disorders, and mood disorders.

She is also invested in working with healthcare workers. Having held clinical and administrative roles in a number of interdisciplinary healthcare settings, Dr. Bucarelli is keenly aware of the unique challenges faced by healthcare workers and the importance of attending to their personal wellness.

More broadly, Dr. Bucarelli is enthusiastic about helping individuals navigating day-to-day stressors, individuals experiencing problems related to work/ school, and those noticing difficulties in interpersonal relationships, particularly within workplace settings.

Dr. Bucarelli is registered as a Clinical Psychologist in Good Standing with the College of Psychologists of BC.

Bianca Bucarelli, R. Psych. (#2576) received her PhD in Clinical Psychology from The University o... Read More

Arlie (she/her) has always been passionate about language. From developing secret languages with her brother to gaining fluency in Pig Latin at 8 years old, she has always been fascinated in how people communicate and interact with the world around them. It was, therefore, no surprise when she enrolled in a linguistics program at Simon Fraser University. Within the first week of university she set her sights on becoming a speech-language pathologist. Upon earning a Bachelor’s of Arts in Psychology from The University of Victoria, Arlie moved to Edmonton to continue pursuing her dreams. After two frigid winters at The University of Alberta, she graduated with a Master’s of Science in Speech-Language Pathology. With experience working in both acute care and community-based settings, Arlie continues to be inspired by the power of language. Her treatment style is family-centred with a focus on providing education and tangible strategies to support communication and participation.

Arlie (she/her) has always been passionate about language. From developing secret languages with ... Read More

Dr. Comfort is a registered psychologist (#1875) with over 20 years of experience supporting adults with a wide range of challenges. He recently relocated to beautiful Victoria from lovely Kelowna where he had the privilege of working as a clinical psychologist at Kelowna General Hospital and the Mental Health and Substance Use unit from 2005 to early 2022, providing assessment as well as individual and group treatment.

As a clinical instructor for the UBC Southern Medical Program and an adjunct professor in the clinical psychology program at UBC Okanagan, Dr. Comfort enjoyed teaching but also learning from medical students and graduate psychology students. In addition to his other roles, Dr. Comfort also provided psychological support for workers recovering from workplace injuries in the Occupation Rehabilitation Program at the hospital and has an abiding interest in helping people recover to workplace thriving.

Prior to completion of his PhD at University of Calgary, Colin also worked for 3 years as a school psychologist with teacher certification for the Regina Public School District, having completed his MA in school psychology at UBC.

Dr. Comfort has a passion for connecting with people, bringing compassion, genuineness, and science-based intervention to alleviate suffering, improve functioning, and enhance quality of life. Dr. Comfort draws mainly from the cognitive behavioral umbrella of evidence-based therapies to best meet the needs of each individual client. He is experienced in supporting a wide variety of issues including:

• Anxiety
• Depression
• Stress & worry
• Pain
• Workplace injury
• Trauma
• Physical health issues
• Chronic illness
• Addiction
• Grief and loss
• Life transitions

And in answer to an often-asked question: no, he didn’t change his name as a slick marketing strategy! Same name is on his birth certificate.

Dr. Comfort is a registered psychologist (#1875) with over 20 years of experience supporting adul... Read More

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Dr. Jo Epping-Jordan, R. Psych. (#2567) is committed to delivering top-quality mental health care, which means drawing from cutting-edge psychological science and adapting it to individuals’ unique goals, preferences and daily life realities. Her treatment approach is founded on the idea that mental health is fundamentally connected to physical health, and they mutually influence one another over time. She is thrilled to be part of Tall Tree’s health-care team, providing integrated and comprehensive services that are grounded by science and compassion.

Dr. Epping-Jordan obtained a doctorate in psychology from the University of Vermont, where she researched the psychological impact of cancer on patients and their families and worked directly with those affected by cancer. She then completed a clinical internship and post-doctoral fellowship at the University of California San Diego School of Medicine, where she received additional specialized training in health psychology, with a focus on the management of chronic pain. Afterwards, she worked for more than 10 years at the World Health Organization’s headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland as part of its mental health policy and service development team, then leading WHO’s global initiative on improving health care for chronic conditions, and finally as a WHO senior adviser for chronic diseases and health promotion. She played instrumental roles in several WHO projects to transform health care delivery systems towards comprehensive, patient-centered care, and raise the profile of mental disorders and chronic conditions in the global health agenda. She is the author of numerous WHO reports and scientific publications.

Dr. Epping-Jordan is delighted to be now living in Victoria and leading the Tall Tree mental health team. In her clinical practice, Dr. Epping-Jordan sees adults for the following issues:

Adjustment to illness/injury. This includes people directly affected by physical health issues, as well as their family members and/or other loved ones. In particular, Dr. Epping-Jordan has advanced training in working with cancer patients and their families. She helps people adjust to their diagnosis, cope with uncertainty, deal successfully with family and friends, and create meaning in their everyday lives. Where appropriate, she also works with people to address end-of-life and grief.

Professional stress and resilience. Professional stress has escalated progressively over the past few decades – and stress that’s left unchecked can contribute to many health problems, such as high blood pressure, heart disease, obesity, and diabetes. Dr. Epping-Jordan helps professionals create and maintain good mental health, improve their efficiency and productivity, and bring an enhanced sense of balance and meaning to their lives. Health behaviour change. Changing health habits can be difficult. Motivation and good intentions are necessary but almost always insufficient. Dr. Epping-Jordan uses behavioural science to develop detailed plans for successful change.

Anxiety disorders. Dr. Epping-Jordan treats phobias, social anxiety, generalized anxiety (worry), illness anxiety, and panic.

Dr. Jo Epping-Jordan, R. Psych. (#2567) is committed to delivering top-quality mental health care... Read More

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Sandra F. Large, M.Sc., R. Psych. (#2405). Sandy has worked as a psychologist for over 20 years, focusing first on the treatment of mental health concerns and later working as part of a rehabilitation team. Sandy draws from many different treatment approaches in her therapy, most of which fall under the rubric of cognitive-behavioural therapy.

For the last many years, her therapy has often focused significantly on the use of mindfulness and acceptance-based strategies combined with behavioural techniques. Given this breadth of therapeutic approaches and experience to draw from allows her to focus on helping the individuals she works with achieve their goals.

These are common themes in Sandy’s work: * Increasing happiness. * Enriching lives. * Learning the skill of acceptance and * Using behavioural techniques to improve lives.

Sandy works with adults of all ages, often focusing on the following issues: * Mental health concerns, especially anxiety and mood problems. * Individuals adjusting to life changes, often those related to changes in physical health. * Adjustment to changes brought about by brain injury. * Learning to better manage stress.

Sandra F. Large, M.Sc., R. Psych. (#2405). Sandy has worked as a psychologist for over 20 years, ... Read More

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Dr. Bruce Pinel (Ph.D., RCC) is a leader, educator, and innovator in his fields of practice. He is a Registered Clinical Counsellor (with the BC Association of Clinical Counsellors) and is a professional member of the Canadian Sport Psychology Association.

Bruce’s work as a Registered Clinical Counsellor focuses primarily on:

• health and injury management

• career and workplace concerns

• chronic injury

• self-esteem

• stress management

• return to function / work / performance

• sleep management

• dealing with transition and changes to daily living and active lifestyles due to health or injury issues

• mental performance enhancement for sport / recreation / active living / work

In relation to sport performance enhancement, Bruce has worked in high-performance sport with elite athletes and teams at all levels, including professional, Olympic & Paralympic, National, Provincial, and local. He has been a member of Team Canada at the Olympics, Paralympics, Pan American Games, Commonwealth Games, and other major international sporting events.

Dr. Pinel also works with executive business leaders and corporations towards planning and realizing performance, health, and wellness goals for individuals and organizations. In his spare time, Bruce spends a great deal of time developing his knowledge and professional skill set through reading new research and attending professional development courses. He is a sought-after presenter, keynote speaker, and consultant in the areas of performance, health, and wellness.

Dr. Bruce Pinel (Ph.D., RCC) is a leader, educator, and innovator in his fields of practice. He i... Read More

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Dr. Keara Rodd received her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from the University of Victoria and completed her pre-doctoral residency at Eastern Health in St. John’s, Newfoundland. Originally from Toronto, she now calls Vancouver Island home.

Dr. Rodd embraces a humanistic and collaborative approach to working with others. This means that she values your lived experiences, your own wisdom and expertise, and believes in the innate and unconditional worth of each person. She views the therapeutic relationship and the therapy room as a space to honour what is and what has been, without judgement. She integrates a variety of approaches into her humanistic foundation, such as EFT, narrative, mindfulness, DBT, CBT, and ACT.

Dr. Rodd brings compassion, warmth, curiosity, and creativity to her sessions. She believes treatment should be unique to each individual and should consider the context of each person’s life. She is sensitive to the ways an individual’s personal network and larger societal systems shape one’s experiences. She has expertise working with diverse clients, particularly the LGBTQ+ community.

Dr. Rodd has a particular interest in working with clients with trauma experiences and related symptoms, eating disorders, anxiety, interpersonal issues, and those experiencing difficulties related to life transitions. When she is not working, she can often be found in nature with her wife and their dog, reading and writing, and taking ocean swims.

Dr. Rodd has applied for registration with the College of Psychologists of British Columbia. At this time, she provides registered clinical counselling, and psychological services under the supervision of a registered psychologist at Tall Tree Health.

Dr. Keara Rodd received her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from the University of Victoria and comp... Read More

Dr. Silveira earned her PhD in Clinical Psychology (Neuropsychology specialization) from the University of Victoria. During her PhD, she researched and created a yoga-based therapy for survivors of childhood trauma, to improve their cognitive and emotional health. She trained in hospitals and clinics in Victoria BC, and completed her residency at Foothills hospital in Calgary AB. After her PhD, she held a post-doctoral fellowship position with the University of Calgary’s Cumming School of Medicine and the local cancer centre, where she had the privilege of supporting patients and families coping with cancer.

Through her professional and personal experiences, Dr. Silveira has developed a passion and hope for meaningful recovery from illness (including incurable illness) and trauma (including “complex trauma” from relationships or medical events). She values a holistic mind-brain-body-spirit recovery philosophy. As both a psychologist and an experienced yoga practitioner & teacher, she skillfully weaves elements of mindfulness into her psychology services.

In addition to mindfulness therapies, Dr. Silveira uses other evidence-based therapies (e.g., cognitive-behavioural, dialectical-behavioural, acceptance-and-commitment, emotion-focused, and existential therapies) and tailors services to each client’s unique experiences, identity, perspective, and goals. She actively collaborates with clients to meet their goals, with an approach that is gentle, open-minded, compassionate, and down-to-earth. She conducts and publishes research, and her work with clients is grounded in science.

At Tall Tree, Dr. Silveira works with clients from adolescence through older adulthood. She currently offers therapy to support clients with:

• living with physical or neurological health challenges

• post-traumatic stress

• grief & loss

• psychotic experiences (e.g., hallucinations, delusions) and disorders

• mood disorders (e.g., depression, bipolar disorder)

• anxiety

• stress

• sexual health & intimacy

• approaching death & dying

Outside of Tall Tree, Dr. Silveira supports young adults and families as a staff psychologist on the Early Psychosis Intervention team at Royal Jubilee Hospital. She enjoys a balanced lifestyle, connecting with nature and community, and playing with her hilarious husky.

Dr. Silveira is a Registered Psychologist with both the College of Psychologists of BC and the College of Alberta Psychologists.

Dr. Silveira earned her PhD in Clinical Psychology (Neuropsychology specialization) from the Univ... Read More

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