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Dr. Deanna Drahovzal, C.Psych.
Dr. Drahovzal provides psychotherapy and assessment services to children, adults, couples, and families at Gilmour Psychological Services® in Ottawa.
Dr. Drahovzal provides students and professionals with comprehensive psycho-educational assessments, as well as the treatment and follow-up for learning, memory and attention problems.
Her prevailing theoretical orientation integrates cognitive-behavioural, emotionally-focused, and systems theories. Dr. Drahovzal works to provide a nurturing, collaborative and accepting atmosphere that will promote her client’s personal motivation to change. She helps her clients in identifying possible emotional, psychological, relational, and environmental barriers that may be getting in their way. To support her clients getting what they want out of life, Dr. Drahovzal works with her clients to modify their interactions with themselves, others and their environment. In her practice, she is especially thoughtful of her client’s knowledge about themselves and their unique situation. For example, she strives to appreciate and advocate for those of different races, sexual orientations, social status, religions, body sizes, personalities, and abilities.
Dr. Drahovzal received her training from a variety of sites across Canada. She completed her B.Sc. in Biopsychology at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from Dalhousie University in Halifax, and her pre-doctoral internship at the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario in Ottawa. Her clinical psychology training experiences have included work at various university-affiliated community clinics and hospitals. Dr. Drahovzal has conducted a number of workshops for university students covering topics such as study skills, time management, exam anxiety and managing stress. She has also conducted professional-development workshops for medical doctors and personal trainers to help them enhance their client’s motivations for health behaviour.
In support of the profession, Dr. Drahovzal maintains memberships in each of the national, provincial, and local psychological associations. These associations encourage the scientific pursuit of greater understanding of human behaviour and the better provision of quality health care to the public. Dr. Drahovzal continues her professional development through regular supervision, lectures, workshops, conferences, and keeping current with the scientific and clinical literature.
Psychologist Expertise
Dr. Drahovzal focuses in the areas of:
Alcoholism is addiction, involving a dependency on a substance. Addictions, including alcoholism involve compulsive, self-defeating behaviour that continues in spite of negative consequences. Stopping the behaviour results in extreme physical and mental discomfort, which tends to contribute to people returning to their addiction. Many psychologists are experts in helping people recover from their addictions and live successful and more comfortable lives.
An addiction refers to having a dependency on a substance or a process. An example of a substance dependency is alcoholism. Examples of process addictions include having a gambling or an Internet addiction. Addictions involve compulsive, self-defeating behaviour that continues in spite of negative consequences. Stopping the behaviour results in extreme physical and mental discomfort, which tends to contribute to people returning to their addiction. Many psychologists are experts in helping people recover from their addictions and live successful and more comfortable lives.
While everyone gets angry from time to time, some people have rage reactions or explosive outbursts which emotionally or even physically hurt other people in their surroundings. Even the intense direct expression of anger can be problematic if people do not control where and when they express anger. These days, tolerance for intense, angry behaviour is low, even if expressed only in words. Angry outbursts can be considered abusive and can result in reprimands in the work place or fines and charges in public places.
Anxiety has been frequently described as feelings of fright, flight or freeze. This means that people experiencing anxiety have both the mental and the physical, visceral feelings of wanting to escape the situation, fight what is challenging or simply cannot move in any direction to deal with what is troubling them.
Psychological Assessments are used by psychologists to help determine a diagnosis and inform the course of treatment. There are many different components to these assessments such as different tests, interviews, school and medical records, medical information, and observation.
Children present with behavioural problems for a variety of reasons. In some cases, children’s behaviour problems are caused by the child’s temperament or by biologically based conditions such as Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder. In other cases, the child is reacting to stressors or changes in the environment. Some examples would be parental separation and divorce or loss of a parent. Psychologists can help parents to understand the causes of their child’s behaviour and can then advise how to best deal with their child’s problems. Psychologists may offer individual therapy for the child if appropriate or may consult with the parents regarding strategies they can employ to deal with their child’s behaviour more effectively.
Burnout is a condition in which the individual feels completely overwhelmed from an increasing inability to cope with a build-up of stressors considered within the normal range of human experiences. Many of the symptoms are common to depression, including diminished interest and enjoyment of work and personal life.
Childhood trauma refers to when a child experiences a traumatic event that results in negative and pervasive physical, psychological and cognitive effects.
Codependency is an emotional and behavioural condition that leads to imbalanced relationships. In codependent relationships, there is often one individual enabling another’s self-destructive behaviour, such as substance abuse, poor mental health and coping skills, immaturity, and under-achievement. Codependency can lead to individuals staying in unhealthy or abusive relationships because they feel as though they cannot live without the other person.
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) is a form of talk therapy that focuses on reframing harmful or painful thoughts and behaviours. This form of therapy is often used to treat anxiety and depression but can be helpful with many different mental and physical challenges.
Throughout life, in the various contexts such as home or work, it is very common to come across conflicts and differences of opinions. It is often possible to resolve these challenges alone, but sometimes these disagreements can cause intense negative emotions, which can escalate the situation. In those cases, it can be helpful to have a mediator to filter through the emotions and clarify the facts.
Crisis intervention is an urgent and temporary care given to an individual experiencing a crisis. The purpose of this intervention is to interrupt and prevent negative or harmful behaviours and reduce emotional distress, with the hope that the client (an individual, couple or family) will be able to return to their usual level of functioning and be able to cope with future crises with greater ease.
Cultural adaptation is the ability of individuals to overcome changes in their natural and social environments. It is common for individuals to experience certain challenges following relocating from regions or countries with cultures different from where they are from or used to.
Depression is a state of low mood in which people feel helpless, hopeless, worthless, lethargic and unable to enjoy the things that used to give them pleasure. People who are depressed are often irritable or pessimistic. Their low mood goes beyond having “the blues” or being sad. Even people who are grieving usually do not sink into depression. People diagnosed with a Major Depressive Disorder cannot just “pull up their socks” to get better. They require professional help. Psychologists use a variety of scientifically based psychotherapeutic approaches to help people recover from depression.
Eating disorders are common illnesses that are very serious and can be fatal. These disorders refer to changes in the eating and exercise behaviours of individuals as well as thoughts or emotions surrounding eating. Some possible signs of an eating disorder are preoccupations with body weight, body shape, and food.
Couples and families often go through experiences that can challenge the stability of the relationships, leading to feelings of anger, fear, betrayal, and lack of trust. In these instances, Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT) can be beneficial to provide guidance on how to improve the relationships. EFT can also be helpful for individuals who are experiencing depression or the effects of trauma, such as individuals who are struggling to cope with their own illness or the illness of their child.
Parents and their children may love each other but when they clash, it can be distressing. When disagreements occur often, if not at seemingly every turn, it can create a stressful home environment. Parents and their children may not always see eye-to-eye, especially in this ever-changing and complex world, and communication and problem-solving can be an ongoing challenge, however, these are skills that can be learned and can be improved upon. As well, professional help may be invaluable should things get out of hand and when emotions flare and conflict threatens to become the new norm.
Grief is the emotional response to the loss of someone, something or some place of emotional significance to the person. Grief is a normal emotion which has impact on people’s physical, mental, behavioural and social states. People who are grieving usually experience fatigue and find that everything takes more effort.
Chronic pain and mental health disorders often occur together. In fact, research suggests that chronic pain and mental health problems can contribute to and exacerbate each other.
Identity relates to an individual’s sense of self that is built through experiences, relationships, beliefs, values, and memories. This sense of self stays mostly consistent regardless of any aspects of the self that develop or strengthen as time progresses.
Certain factors or events might contribute to an overall sense of uncertainty regarding one or more areas of an individual’s identity, including career aspirations, sexual and gender orientation, social circles, values, and behaviour.
Incest describes sexual abuse that is committed against a child by a parent or close family member. Survivors of this form of abuse may have varying impacts into adulthood. These individuals are at an increased risk of experiencing poor self-esteem, shame, self-hatred, interpersonal difficulties, as well as a sense of helplessness and worthlessness.
Learning disabilities cause a child to experience difficulty achieving academically to the level that would be expected given the child’s general intellectual ability. There are different types of learning disabilities which affect achievement in different ways and which require different forms of intervention.Psychologists can assist parents in planning for their child’s education by providing a psychoeducational assessment. These assessments provide clarification as to the nature of the child’s disability and provide recommendations for interventions which can help the child to achieve their academic potential. Such assessments also help parents to be aware of the type of post-secondary educational programs in which their child is likely to achieve success in future.
Psychologists can provide a safe space to address issues related to gender and sexuality. Common themes include mental health symptoms (depression, anxiety, substance use, gender dysphoria), rejection/bullying, relationship difficulties, confusion, the coming out process, isolation, etc.
A life transition can be any change or adjustment that impacts your life in a significant way. We all experience transitions throughout our lives — big and small, planned and unplanned, easy and difficult.
If you and your partner have been having constant unresolved relationship difficulties, you may find couples’ therapy extremely rewarding, even if at times it is difficult, stressful and frightening.
Mindfulness is the ability to be aware of present thoughts, emotions, physical sensations and the surrounding environment and label them from an objective viewpoint, without judgment.
Many different factors can effect a person’s experience of pain. Pain therapy by a psychologist involves discovering and adjusting such factors. The issues that make the experience of pain more intense include environment stresses, difficult relationships and individual factors, such as anxious thinking, inaccurate beliefs, having few skills to handle stress, and negative health habits. Psychologists also help people understand how their pain impacts the various parts of their life, and helps them cope with their pain in useful ways to reduce how much the pain interferes with their quality of life.
Children are affected by parental separation and divorce in different ways. Research has indicated that children react in different ways at different ages and that other factors than parental separation alone influence the degree to which a child’s adjustment can be affected by parental separation and divorce.
Play therapy is often beneficial for helping children experiencing social or emotional deficits improve their communication skills, address challenging behaviours, and foster healthy ways of relating to others. Children who have experienced or witnessed stressful events such as abuse, serious illness, or domestic violence may benefit from play therapy.
Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is an anxiety disorder that can follow the experiencing or witnessing of a severe trauma involving the actual or threat of death or serious injury to the self or others. The traumatized person has typically reacted to the trauma with intense fear, helplessness or horror. Alternatively, an accumulation of less intensely damaging situations (‘small ‘t’ traumas’) can over time also lead to PTSD.
Self-esteem refers to the perception of oneself (values, abilities, self-worth, etc.). It impacts one’s relationships, mental health, and achievement. For instance, negative self-regard can lead to mood disturbances, anxiety, and loneliness; It can increase the likelihood of conflict in relationships and increase vulnerability to substance abuse. On the other hand, individuals with positive self-views are generally more likely to maintain positive relationships, maintain a positive outlook on life, and achieve success.
Sexual dysfunction is a common problem that affects individuals of all genders.This term covers a broad range of challenges relating to sexual activity and often has multiple causes that can be both physical and mental. Sex can be a significant part of life, and as such, sexual dysfunction can be experienced as distressing, causing feelings of isolation, shame, and depression, which in turn can also have a profound negative impact on existing relationships.
It is important to look at the effect or impact that stress and anxiety has on your work and home life. A professional therapist – psychologist, psychiatrist, social worker or counsellor can assist in the stress management process.
Sometimes we need to talk to someone about finding a job or what type of job might suit best, or when considering a change in career or when needing to figure out how to stop feeling stagnant and how to re-vitalize ourselves so that we feel good again about our work. Making a living, doing well at work, and feeling satisfied and fulfilled in what we do is important not just in wanting to move ahead and earn to our potential but also in developing and maintaining a positive self-image.
Contact
To reach Dr. Deanna Drahovzal directly, please phone 613-230-4709 ext. 146.
CONTACT
421 Gilmour St Ottawa,
Ontario Canada, K2P 0R5
Call: 613-230-4709
Fax: 613- 230-8274
NAVIGATION
Recognition of Territory
Gilmour Psychological Services® is built on un-ceded Algonquin Anishinabe territory. The peoples of the Algonquin Anishinabe Nation have lived on this territory for millennia. Their culture and presence have nurtured and continue to nurture this land. We honour the peoples and land of the Algonquin Anishinabe Nation
