Our Facilitators

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Nicole Loreto holds a Doctorate in Health Psychology, a Master of Science in Communications and Management and a Bachelor of Social Work. She has lived experience with bulimia and has spent more than two decades working with you and women to develop confidence, self-love and resiliency. Nicole created the Is It Just Me? an evidenced-based mental health literacy program helping to reduce stigma, and encouraging students to seek help when they need it. The program has been attended by more than 35,000 high schools and college students. Nicole and her team designed two apps, Healthy Minds and Game Ready, which foster mental wellness and coping skills. Nicole is Senior Strategic Advisor to the President and CEO of The Royal Ottawa Mental Health Centre and responsible for Stakeholder Engagement.

Anchor Psychological Services is a professional practice offering psychological services to children, youth, adults, and families. Individuals seeking our services will be given tools and strategies to develop mastery over their emotions and difficulties. Family work within our practice is aimed at strengthening families to help children and adolescents overcome their mental health issues and/or life challenges.

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Jamie Lee is a registered dietitian practising and licenced in Quebec, Canada and select areas of the United States. She completed her Bachelors in Dietetics and accreditation at McGill University and has worked in both hospital settings and private practice. She now practises at Sööma, a clinic specializing in eating disorders, and offers supervision to healthcare professionals. As a part of the BIPOC and AAPI (Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders) community, Jamie greatly understands how culture and traditions intertwine with eating behaviours, and how cultural messages can impact narratives with food. Jamie has facilitated several support groups for individuals in eating disorder recovery, using principles from therapy modalities to support and guide participants towards a relationship with food that aligns with their values.

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Sarah is passionate and dedicated to supporting individuals on their journey towards recovery from eating disorders. With four years of experience in offering mental health support, Sarah has previously collaborated with Hopewell in their Bridging the Gap Mentorship Program and conducted a workshop for the Mood Disorder Association of Manitoba where she shared her expertise and insights on mental health and wellness. Currently working towards a Master of Arts Degree in Counselling Psychology and as a Registered Psychotherapist (Qualifying), Sarah combines academic knowledge and personal experience to offer comprehensive support and assistance to all individuals participating in the peer support group. Through a person-centered approach, she creates a safe and inclusive space where participants can share their experiences, challenges, and victories in a supportive and non-judgmental environment. Sarah believes in the power of peer support and the importance of community healing. Join her and the supportive community at Hopewell Eating Disorder Support Centre to embark on a path of healing, growth, and empowerment.

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Sophia is a therapist, dietitian, and most importantly, a fellow human navigating the complexities of the human experience. She specializes in supporting clients through healing the impacts that trauma can have on their most important relationships: including their relationship with self, with others, with their body, and with food. When Sophia isn’t working, she enjoys watching true crime documentaries, reading the occasional cheesy novel, trying out new recipes, and spending time with family and friends.Sophia truly believes that we heal not in isolation, but in community. Sophia is excited to join Hopewell as a group facilitator for the BIPOC Support Group and to witness the healing that can occur through storytelling, connection, support, and vulnerability.

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Alex has a Master’s in experimental psychology from Carleton University and over 7 years of experience researching eating disorders and disordered eating through work and school. Born and raised in Ottawa and inspired to help others after their own struggles with an eating disorder in adolescence, Alex finds meaning and fulfillment in giving back to the community. They are passionate about social justice and equity, mental health and wellness, and political issues and engagement. They have a great wanderlust and love to travel and experience different cultures. Dance is their primary source of joyful movement – be it Bachata, Salsa, dancehall, reggaeton, pole, heels, Zouk, or jazz funk. In their downtime, they unwind by watching shows or movies, listening to music, reading books or articles, playing games, colouring, concocting something in the kitchen, and connecting with friends – old and new. Alex is a neurodivergent queer, non-binary femme living with invisible illnesses, practicing self-compassion, and examining life through an intersectional and anti-racist lens. They seek to uplift and empower individuals from all walks of life and are honoured and excited to be leading the 2SLGBTQIA+ support group at Hopewell.

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I am a white, anglophone, able-bodied, invisibly disabled, straight-sized, queer, cis-gender woman of settler background. As a Registered Social Worker and Certified Intuitive Eating Counsellor, I help people have more peaceful relationships with food and their bodies. In addition to supporting those with eating disorders, I am passionate about grief support and issues that affect queer and trans folks. I am the proprietor of Birch Stand Mental Health Services, a psychotherapy private practice based in Kjipuktuk (Halifax, NS) and support clients living in NS, NB, and ON. I’m excited to be coming on board with Hopewell as a support group facilitator— I love to see the invaluable power of peer support in action and look forward to sharing this space! When I’m not working I’m usually either spending time with my partner and kid, singing in choral ensembles, or playing Zelda.

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Deborah Lynn Reas, PhD is a clinical psychologist from the US who has worked within the field of eating disorders for over 20 years in a variety of research, teaching, and clinical positions at university and hospital settings. Dr. Reas received her BA in psychology with high honors from Indiana University and received her PhD in clinical psychology from Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, LA. She completed her residency at the University of Texas Medical School in Houston. As a postdoctoral fellow at the Department of Psychiatry at Yale University School of Medicine, she worked on a NIH-funded randomized controlled trial comparing different treatments for binge eating disorder. She has published over 50 peer-reviewed journal articles and book chapters. Currently, Dr. Reas works remotely as a senior research scientist at Oslo University Hospital, where she maintains a part-time position while living in Canada. She is thrilled to be part of the Hopewell family which has continued to provide invaluable support to the greater ED community in Eastern Ontario during the pandemic. She currently lives in Ottawa with her husband, daughter, and cat.

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Cindy is a Registered Dietitian and a soon-to-be Registered Psychotherapist. She is in the process of completing the practicum portion of her master's degree in counselling psychology with a focus on Eating Disorders. She also holds a bachelor's degree in Nutrition Sciences from the University of Ottawa. When offering nutrition counselling or psychotherapy, Cindy practices from a trauma, informed, weight-inclusive, and anti-oppressive lens. She is passionate about helping individuals find discover a more peaceful relationship with food and their bodies. She strives to help them connect to the root of how these challenges came to be, with the intent of working towards the process of rebuilding inner trust and alignment. Cindy has lived experience managing chronic illness and its overlap with nutrition, her relationship to food, and accepting changes in body size. Cindy balances her work with a separate passion for photography, food styling, and fine art. Cindy continually strives to embrace her multiple passions, her curiosity, and her creativity.

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Ruxi wears a few different hats: she’s a registered therapist, a PhD student at Carleton University, a dedicated volunteer, a community organizer, and an all-around fun gal. At least, she hopes to be, I mean she wrote this bio after all. Born and raised in Romania, Ruxi came to Canada in the late 90s as a first-generation immigrant. Ruxi completed her Master of Social Work (MSW) at Carleton University and prior to this, she completed a Master's degree in International Migration and Human Rights Law specializing in anti-human trafficking work. She is passionate about community organizing and has experience working with survivors of human trafficking, 2SLGBTQ+ youth, and children and adults with mental health challenges. When she isn’t working, she is watching horror movies, listening to music, reading, or playing video games. Ruxi is new to Hopewell and is excited to share this recovery space with you.

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Stephanie is settler-descendant Canadian completing graduate-level studies with the Toronto Art Therapy Institute. She completed her Bachelor of Arts, Honours, at Carleton University, in Psychology with a minor in Indigenous Studies. She is a lifelong artist with multi-media experience, including illustration, painting, fiber arts, clay, fine metal work and is currently completing thesis research on the use of found objects in relation to grief and loss.

Stephanie has facilitated numerous groups centering around grief, wellness and meaning-making for those experiencing bereavement; strength and resilience groups for adult survivors of childhood sexual violence; and a body-image and self-esteem group for adults. She utilizes play and artistic experimentation to give voice to the inner child and works from a client centered, culturally sensitive and trauma-informed approach that draws on mindfulness-based cognitive behavioral therapy, internal family systems, psychodynamics and narrative therapy.

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Robyn is a settler-Canadian of Scottish descent who is originally from Southwestern Ontario but has now been in Ottawa for almost two decades. She has almost completed her MSW program where she has a focus on narrative therapy, explorations of grief, harm reduction and groupwork. This will be Robyn’s second time facilitating with Hopewell and she is looking forward to working with the organization again. Outside of work and study, Robyn is very interested in Korean cultural production (particularly film and tv), creative writing and reading memoirs (however insufferable the authors may be!).

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Practicing for over 10 years, yoga has been a large part of Allison’s life and recovery. Recently completing her 200-hour yoga teacher training, she is excited to share the benefits of yoga for the mind and body while helping others along their journey. Off the mat, Allison finds joy in teaching as a certified snowboard instructor and flight instructor. In her free time, you can find her promoting body positivity on stage as a burlesque performer, travelling the world or looking for the next adventure in her own backyard.

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Amanda is a trauma-informed yoga instructor whose teaching style takes a mindful approach to intentional movement, and in each class, she works to establish a space where students feel empowered to connect to their bodies and still their minds using breath and movement. Classes explore a variety of themes, encouraging students to move with curiosity and awareness, helping them employ their physical practice as a tool to find ease on and off the mat.

Amanda believes that yoga should be accessible to everyone, no matter their circumstances. Exclusion and inequality are endemic to contemporary Yoga spaces and a lot must change to make them truly inclusive. Jivana Heyman explains that yoga, by its very nature, is accessible and the parts that are not accessible should be questioned. Amanda uses her privilege as a white, cis-gender, able-bodied female to support the development of a yoga community where everyone is and feels welcomed.

The sessions will focus on gentle, mindful movements using “Ahimsa”, the yogic concept of non-harm.

Ottawa Art Therapy offers services that utilize aspects of visual art, music, movement, and connecting to nature. We do so by incorporating these elements in Psychotherapy, BCBA Supervised ABA/IBI Sessions, Creative Workshops, Skill Development, and in many other individualized approaches our clients require.