Christy Arsenault, MA, RCC-ACS Registered Clinical Counsellor Approved Clinical Supervisor

Christy Arsenault is a seasoned therapist with extensive experience in a variety of settings. She excels in working with teens, young adults and adults with each group requiring unique approaches for their differing stages of life.  She believes in the ability for individuals to learn new strategies for coping and brings to each session a sense of optimism and positivity.  She is trained to facilitate Adlerian parenting groups and is passionate about working with family systems providing support and education based on the principles of Adlerian psychology.  The topics she most often sees in her practice are trauma, grief, anxiety, depression, sexual abuse, parent-teen conflict, LGBTQ2+, ADHD, teen/adolescence issues and clinical supervision.  

Christy began her counselling career in 2008 at a Burnaby child and family non-profit agency where she worked with a wide-range of issues and diverse populations until 2021 when she moved to Port Alberni.  Due to the serious nature of this community work, Christy has specialized training in evidence-based modalities such as EMDR, CBT and DBT.  With this experience and training, she began to provide clinical supervision for Master’s level practicum students in her agency and was the clinic coordinator in the agency’s New Westminster office.  Christy is currently an Approved Clinical Supervisor with the BC Association of Clinical Counsellors and provides this service to colleagues and local non-profit and Indigenous agencies in addition to her regular private practice.

Christy has worked extensively with marginalized clients and brings an anti-colonial, feminist lens to her therapy.  She has engaged with translators for new immigrant and refugee families and the deaf community and obtained extra training to ensure she is up to date with unique issues these individuals face.  Christy remains concerned about the impact of colonialism on her clients and engages in continued diversity training and participating in community events that align with inclusion, equality and cultural sensitivity.