Life Transitions

Life Transitions Therapy Ottawa

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.


Transitions may be centred around something exciting, such as starting a new job or moving into a new home. They can also be prompted by distressing situations, such as the loss of a loved one or pandemic isolation. Transitions can involve exciting changes, distressing ones, or even just milestones. For example, many people struggle with changes such as turning 40, retiring, or becoming a parent.


There is no particular treatment for adjusting to change, but our counsellors can provide several different tactics may be helpful. Talking about changes in life with a psychologist, such death, a marriage, the loss of a job, or the approach of middle age, can be helpful to some.

Gilmour Psychologists with Expertise in Adjustment to Life Transitions

Contact Gilmour Psychological Services® in Ottawa to schedule a consultation with a psychologist who has an expertise in adjustment to life changes therapy.

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March 6, 2026
Your relationship’s health influences your personal health and the quality of your life. That is why Dr. Lucas Walters focuses on couples therapy here at GPS. Dr. Walters completed his undergraduate studies at Memorial University of Newfoundland. He then moved to Ottawa to complete his Ph.D. and a residency in Kingston, Ontario. These programs are both accredited by the Canadian Psychological Association. Dr. Walters has trained across large mental health hospitals (i.e., The Royal Ottawa Mental Health Centre, Providence Care Hospital, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health), community centres, and private practices. He is now completing supervised practice here at GPS with Dr. Deanna Drahovzal . Dr. Walters focuses on two areas in his clinical work: couples therapy and neurodevelopmental differences. These skillsets help him work with a wide range of couples and tailor services to match how each member of the partnership learns or processes information What defines Dr. Walters’s clinical work? Well, he describes himself as a curious, open, and active clinician. His clinical approach often draws from Emotion Focused Therapy and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy. He uses evidence-based approaches with a sex-positive lens to make couples therapy less intimidating and more impactful for his clients. In addition to his clinical work, Dr. Walters is a published academic author and has received support for his work through academic awards, including the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada. His research covers topics such as sexual function, sexual health education, and theories around sexual attraction. Going forward, he is excited to be publishing more of his work with adults with neurodevelopmental disabilities. Ask him more about how his research informs his clinical practice!
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February 11, 2026
Brandin is a PhD candidate therapist (soon to be Supervised Practice) working under the supervision of Dr. Deanna Drahovzal . He completed his clinical internship at the University of Ottawa’s Centre for Psychological Services and Research (CPSR) . He has obtained a Master of Arts degree in clinical psychology and is currently in the process of obtaining his PhD through the University of Windsor . His research focuses on sexual violence prevention. Brandin’s clinical experience includes working in private practice and university clinic settings where he provided individual therapy as well as psychodiagnostic and psychoeducational assessments for adults. He has experience working with mood and anxiety disorders, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and trauma-related disorders. Brandin’s approach to therapy is integrative, drawing from evidence-based approaches including Emotion-Focused Therapy (EFT) , brief psychodynamic psychotherapy, and Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT) . Brandin prioritizes building a warm and trusting therapeutic relationship through which clients can begin to work toward their goals. We are very excited to have Brandin on our team here at GPS. Dr. Deanna Drahovzal is his primary supervisor and Dr. Emma Dargie is his secondary supervisor.
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September 17, 2022
Dr. Davies provides psychological services to individual adults, couples, children, and their families. She has had her own private practice since 1989, and for seven years prior to that worked as a supervised associate in private practice.
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September 9, 2022
Dr. Drahovzal provides psychotherapy and assessment services to children, adults, couples, and families at Gilmour Psychological Services® in Ottawa.
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September 5, 2022
Dr. Zahradnik provides psychodiagnostic assessment and psychotherapeutic services to both adolescents and adults.
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September 1, 2022
Dr. Henry’s prevailing theoretical orientation integrates cognitive-behavioural and schema-focused theories. Valuing each person’s individuality, she tailors her approach to her clients’ needs. Additionally, she works collaboratively with each person to assist them to develop awareness and strategies to make positive changes in their lives.
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August 30, 2022
Dr. Miller’s theoretical orientation integrates interpersonal, cognitive behavioural, schema-focused and mindfulness-based approaches in helping clients develop an increased awareness of the factors that cause and maintain their difficulties. She guides them towards achieving their goals and making positive changes in their lives.
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August 22, 2022
Dr. Dargie maintains a client-centered, evidence-based, sex-positive, LGBTQ-positive approach to psychotherapy. She provides individual and couple therapy to Anglophone adults experiencing a wide variety of challenges and circumstances
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August 20, 2022
Dr. Karima Lacène provides psychological services, including assessment and individual therapy, to children, adolescents and adults. She works with clients experiencing a wide range of challenges including anxiety, depression, trauma, relationship issues, grief, adjustment to life stressors, self esteem and stress management. She also provides psycho-educational assessments for children, adolescents and adults, including testing for Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder and Learning Disabilities.
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August 18, 2022
Dr. Amanda Timmers provides psychological services by video or phone to couples and individual adults in the province of Ontario. Her primary theoretical orientations are cognitive-behavioural therapy and emotion-focused therapy, though she integrates other evidence-based treatment modalities to meet clients’ specific needs. Dr. Timmers takes a collaborative, supportive approach to psychotherapy, to help clients better understand themselves and make positive changes in their lives.
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August 12, 2022
Dr. Murray provides assessment and treatment to adults and seniors. She uses a number of evidence-based treatments to address client’s needs and the challenges that they are facing. Dr. Murray works collaboratively with clients to identify their goals and guide them towards making positive and lasting changes in their life. Her main goal is to help clients identify their individual strengths and overcome barriers that may be preventing them from feeling content and fulfilled.
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August 10, 2022
As a Clinical and Health Psychologist, Dr. Davies believes in promoting wellness and resilience, both mentally and physically. She works with adults and adolescents. Her primary approach to therapy is Cognitive-Behavioural Therapy (CBT), a type of treatment that has been extensively supported by research showing it to be highly effective for treating a wide variety of mental health concerns. This approach is complemented with other evidence-based tools and techniques such as mindfulness, self-compassion, acceptance and resilience building to better tailor her approach to an individual’s needs.
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August 6, 2021
Dr. Scarapicchia provides assessment and treatment services to adolescents, adults, and seniors, including psychotherapy, neuropsychological assessments, and psychodiagnostic assessments.
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July 31, 2021
Dr. Arthur Braaten provides psychodiagnostic assessment and individual therapy to adults for a range of psychological concerns. He believes that psychotherapy is a collaborative process that is tailored to each individual and their unique background. His approach to therapy is integrative and is informed by several evidenced-based approaches.
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July 28, 2021
Dr. Jacques considers it an honour to journey alongside individuals in their desire to experience emotional health, create life change, and rediscover a hope-filled vision for their lives. Dr. Jacques’ primary therapeutic approach integrates cognitive, behavioral, emotion-focused, and psychodynamic theories. Dr. Jacques works to provide a collaborative, safe, and warm therapeutic relationship, keeping the client’s goals at the forefront of the treatment plan.