Counselling, EMDR & OEI with Andrea

A Compassionate & Non-Pathologizing Space

Counselling with Andrea Slamaj

Registered Clinical Counsellor
Clinic Manager
EMDR & OEI Practitioner
MCP, Adler University
(she/her)

“The truest direction comes from inside.”

— Audre Lorde

Andrea offers in person and online Registered Clinical Counselling, OEI and EMDR

Book a free 15 minute consultation with Andrea

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We live in a loud, demanding world, and somewhere along the way, you may have learned how to carry far more than your share of it.

Many of us had to take on a role just to get through, without even realizing that’s what we were doing. Perhaps you became the fixer, the peacekeeper, or the strong one. You’re the person who anticipates what’s needed, shows up, and keeps everything moving because you’ve always been the one who could handle it. From the outside, you might look entirely put-together. But on the inside? You’re running on fumes.

The heaviest part isn’t just the exhaustion. It’s also that, after a while, untangling where the performance ends and you begin becomes much harder to do. Whether you're constantly reading the room to make sure it stays steady or keeping pieces of yourself out of sight because you had to, the weight of it all can leave you feeling invisible in your own life.

Even when you try to say you’re not okay, you may still be left feeling like others don’t quite understand just how much you’re struggling. They may be so used to you holding it all together that they don’t know what to do when you can’t. You may have spent so long figuring out what was needed from you that you’ve never really stopped to wonder what you need.

When you’ve lived this way for years, wanting something different can feel unfamiliar. You don’t have to have it all figured out or know exactly what comes next. Together, we can start making room for more of what’s yours.

Common counselling concerns, focuses & clients I love supporting:

  • Anxiety, overwhelm, & stress

  • Self-worth, self-trust, & identity

  • People-pleasing, perfectionism, & boundaries

  • Complex, childhood, & relational trauma, including PTSD

  • Coercive control & abuse recovery

  • Attachment & relational patterns

  • Chronic illness & medical trauma

  • Body image

  • Religious trauma

  • Burnout, grief, & life transitions

Populations I enjoy working with:

  • Thoughtful, emotionally perceptive adults who are used to holding everything together

  • People ready to reconnect with themselves after years of adapting, overfunctioning, or putting others first

  • Women exploring agency, boundaries, self-trust, & a life that feels like their own

  • Queer, neurodivergent, & “black sheep” folks navigating authenticity, identity, & belonging

  • Andrea offers in person and online sessions:
    Wednesdays 3pm - 9pm
    Thursdays 9am - 1:30pm
    Saturdays 10am - 6pm

    Please note that exact hours may shift slightly week to week depending on client bookings and availability

    • Validating & Collaborative: Compassionate, warm, authentic, and deeply human.

    • Paced & Patient: Flexible, unhurried, responsive, and welcomes humour.

    • Experiential: Focuses on the mind-body connection and emotional processing.

    • Insight & Pattern Shifting: Uses a depth-oriented approach to explore and shift old patterns.

    • Grounded & Anchored: Offers practical tools, gentle challenge, and clear direction when needed.

Me As A Counsellor

I work with thoughtful, emotionally perceptive people who’ve become very good at adapting to what’s expected of them. Many of my clients are capable and self-aware, yet exhausted by overthinking, over-functioning, and organizing their lives around everyone else. I’m drawn to working with those who’ve quietly felt like the “black sheep,” including women and queer or neurodivergent adults who’ve questioned where they fit or whether they can safely be themselves.

My own experiences, both as a client in therapy and as a person in the world, deeply inform how I work. I know what it’s like to get so used to holding everything together that other people don’t see what it costs you. I also know the relief of finally arriving in a room where you can just exist, without having to earn or justify your place in it.

Therapy can sometimes become yet another space where we feel pressure to “fix” ourselves or become a different version of who we are. My goal is not to help you get better at being someone you’ve had to be. Often, the work is less about learning to cope better with a life shaped around other people and more about asking whether that life still fits or even belongs to you.

In our relationship, I won’t look to you to manage my comfort. There’s no expectation for you to have the right words or make yourself easier to be with. You’re allowed to be tired, and you’re allowed to be messy. Trusting that someone won’t flinch, look away, or make you pay a price when you let more of yourself show takes time, and it makes sense if you aren't there yet. I’m right here with you. You don't have to carry all of it alone anymore.

My Approach

I combine traditional talk therapy with approaches that engage the nervous system. Trauma and painful experiences aren’t always something we can think or talk our way through. Our process usually begins by noticing what’s active in your body and emotions, and letting that guide where we go next. We’ll build a roadmap along the way, and adjust it as we learn more.

Depending on what you need, our sessions may include things like:

●      Slowing down to notice emotions, thoughts, behaviours, and sensations in your body.

●      Exploring the protective responses that helped you survive difficult environments.

●      Making connections between where you’ve been and what’s happening in your life right now.

●      Considering the broader systems, surroundings, and relationships that shape how you move through the world.

●      Staying with emotions that are hard to put into words, without rushing to move past them.

●      Using EMDR or OEI when the past continues to feel stuck or overwhelming.

I also pay attention to what happens between us, because our relationship is a place where we can notice familiar patterns and try something different. I may share practical tools or information when they seem helpful.

Over time, my hope is that you feel more at home in yourself: more able to hear what you feel, need, and want, and to trust what you know enough to live from it. So you can spend less time performing who you’re expected to be, and more time being yourself and letting yourself be known.

The Person Behind The Counsellor

Music has always been part of my life, whether I’m singing along to a favourite song, tinkering on an instrument, or getting lost in an album with a cup of coffee in hand. I’ve also been dancing again lately, which makes my inner theatre kid very happy.

I’m completely obsessed with dogs, and my terrier mix, Goose, is rarely far from my side. I love reading, writing and journalling, listening to podcasts, exploring arts and culture, and noticing the magic in everyday moments. I’m a lifelong learner by nature, and there’s usually more than one rabbit hole I’m happily disappearing down.

I hold a Master of Counselling Psychology from Adler University and I’m a Registered Clinical Counsellor (RCC) with the BC Association of Clinical Counsellors. I also have specialized trauma processing training in EMDR and OEI (Level 1).

I welcome diverse clients of all cultures, genders, sexual orientations, abilities, and relationship styles.

COUNSELLING APPROACH

My integrative and client-specific approach to counselling includes the following education and approaches:

COUNSELLING FEES

25 min individual session: $85
50 min individual session: $170
80 min individual counselling: $270
- suggested for EMDR or OEI -

We typically accept payment via e-transfer; in efforts to keep our overall rates lower, we also offer the option to pay by credit card with a 2.4% processing fee

Connect with Andrea for Counselling

To learn more about Andrea’s approach to counselling, ask questions about how she might be able to support you, and schedule your first session, please book a 15 minute virtual consultation below.

Book a free 15 minute consultation with Andrea

If you do not see a time available that works for you, or have any further questions, please contact Andrea via the form below, and share what you’re looking for support with!