Oshawa Location
Mind Matters Psychotherapy & Creative Education
633 King Street East
Suite 207
Oshawa, ON L1H 1G3
Christine Johansen
Founder | Clinical Director | Clinical Supervisor
Registered Psychotherapist, MACP, PsyD Candidate
Christine has been working in the field of mental health for over 10 years and is passionate about treating children, youth, and families. She has experience working in a variety of different therapeutic settings such as group homes, youth detention centers, community programs, not-for profit agencies, and private practice. Christine is passionate about meeting her clients where they are at and designing a treatment plan that is best tailored to the clients unique strengths and challenges. Christine practices through a psychoanalytical lens, while incorporating an expressive arts approach to therapy. She is also passionate about incorporates elements of play therapy while working with children and youth. Additionally, having 3 small boys of her own, Christine loves any opportunity to work with parents who might be seeking parental supports or support with family dynamics.
She is passionate about working with clients to get to the root of their emotions and working through challenges by utilizing a trauma informed- client-centered approach. Christine works to incorporate mindfulness strategies, relaxation techniques, and develop coping skills with clients where appropriate.
Christine is passionate about supporting the LGBTQ+ community and has experience working with transgendered children/teens, and supporting parents through the transition. Christine is also passionate about working with teens who are struggling with self-harm and suicide ideations. She is also certified in Crisis Intervention Response and works with Durham Regional Police to support survivors of crime.
Christine has an (hons) BA in Criminology, an (hons) BA in Psychology, Diploma in Youth Corrections & Interventions, Masters Degree in Psychotherapy, and is currently working on her Doctorate in Clinical Psychology. While having a passion for learning, Christine also has a passion for teaching, and has been teaching Forensic Psychology and Developmental Psychology at Durham College for 7 years.
Donna Sherman
Registered Nurse Psychotherapist, Clinical Supervisor | Lead Therapist
Donna is registered nurse and therapist with nearly 20 years’ experience in the healthcare sector. She is passionate about people and their overall wellbeing and firmly believes one’s mental health directly impacts every facet of one’s life. Donna works with young adults who are transitioning from one phase in life to another (i.e. high-school to college/university) and who are finding the change overwhelming and sometimes difficult to manage. She also work with individuals, families, and couples who are facing some of life’s tough realties such as the breakdown of a relationship, divorce, loss, grief, and bereavement. In addition, Donna also supports people with a wide range of other mental health challenges like depression, anxiety, suicidal ideation, addictions, emotional regulation, and trauma.
Donna holds a Bachelor of Science (Honours) and Masters of Science Degree both in Nursing, from York University in Toronto. . Donna has extensive training in cognitive behavioral therapy (diagnostic specific) from the University of Toronto and the Centre for Addictions and Mental Health (CAMH) as part of one of the therapist in the Mindability Program through Ontario Shores Centre for Mental Health Sciences. Other treatment approaches employed in practice include talk therapy, motivational interviewing, emotion-focused family therapy (EFFT), emotion-focused couples therapy (EFT-C), mindfulness, trauma informed therapy, and bereavement counselling. Donna works from a client-centered and collaborative approach, where the client’s voice is at the very centre of her work and is necessary in providing holistic and truly client-centered therapy.
Aside from Donna’s career accomplishments and passion as a therapist, she is a mother, a wife, a sister, and a daughter who absolutely loves to travel and seek out exciting new adventures. Donna is a music fan without apology, where music festivals are sought out as entertainment in her household. If she is not providing therapy to others, her two Cavalier King Charles Spaniels provide her with her own form of self-care.
Hailey Rutherford
Registered Psychotherapist (Qualifying)
Hailey graduated from Trent University with a joint-major in Child & Youth Studies and Psychology. She then attended Niagara University, graduating with a Master of Science in Clinical Mental Health Counselling.
Part of Hailey’s passion is working with individuals and couples experiencing distress, create self-awareness and achieve their highest potential.
Hailey Aims to form a strong therapeutic alliance with each client by creating a strength-baed, non-judgemental and empathetic therapeutic environment. She is dedicated to meeting clients where they are at and prioritizing collaboration to help achieve their therapeutic goals.
She utilizes a psychodynamic, person-centred and emotion-focused approach. This means she believes that getting to the root of one’s emotions and issue will make meaningful and long-lasting changes in her clients’ life.
Hailey trusts the power if therapy to promote personal growth and transform relationships. She recognizes that seeking therapy is extremely courageous and one of the biggest forms of self-care and self-love.
As a new mental health professional, Hailey is excited to support children, teens, adults, and couples.
Sarah Ologun
Mental Health Counsellor, OAMHP
Sarah holds a Master’s degree in Psychology from the University of Lagos, Nigeria, and has also completed her Master’s in Christian Counseling at the Canada Christian College, Whitby, ON.
Sarah currently volunteers as a crisis responder at the Distress Center Durham, where she provides emotional and listening support to callers in crises or distress. She had previously worked at the Lagos state Domestic violence and sexual assault referral center, providing psychosocial support to survivors of domestic and sexual violence.
Sarah believes there is a way out of every complex and challenging situation, and she is passionate about assisting people (young and old) in finding the way.
Sarah believes in nurturing hope and is passionate about guiding clients to find the answers to their challenges using eclectic, client-centered, and cognitive behavioral therapeutic interventions.
She has experience in trauma, individual, couple, and group family, and marriage counseling. Sarah is a calm, patient listener who loves dancing and helping people.
Marcie Menzies
Registered Psychotherapist (Qualifying), MACP
Marcie has completed her M.A. in Counselling Psychology at Yorkville University. She
holds a B.A. (Hons) in Psychology from Trent University. She is an advocate for mental health
and has long-standing ambition to become a counsellor. She is passionate about working with
children, youth and families and aspires to continue working with this population once
completing her degree.
Marcie’s passion for supporting children and youth stems from her extensive experience working
with adolescence within the nonprofit sector at both the Boys and Girls Club, and the YMCA.
She has seen the important role mindfulness and relaxation techniques can have on children and
youth and strives to incorporate this into her work when applicable.
Marcie works from a biopsychosocial, trauma-informed framework and believes that there is no
standard approach to therapy. She instead alters her approach to meet each individual client’s
experiences, goals, and needs. In addition, she believes attachment styles often play a role on
current struggles and, in understanding them, we can better identify root causes, or contributors,
of negative emotional experiences. Marcie wants to walk alongside her clients and support them
through hearing and understanding their stories and implementing coping mechanisms that will
best support them.
Hannah Snider
Registered Psychotherapist (Qualifying), MACP
Hannah’s goal is to provide all her clients with a safe, supportive, and empowering environment to promote healing. She knows that each client’s journey is different and reaching out to begin healing can be a difficult task. For this reason, she believes that establishing a safe, and trusting therapeutic relationship is the first step. She utilizes a client-centered, empathy-based approach, built around the client’s collaboration.
Hannah has completed her M.A in Counselling Psychology at Yorkville University. She holds an undergraduate degree in Psychology and Health Studies (Honours) from Queen’s University, where she also completed a Global Health and Disability exchange program in the UK. As a new mental health professional, Hannah is looking forward to supporting children, youth couples, adults, and families on their healing journeys. Marcie works from a biopsychosocial, trauma-informed framework and believes that there is no
standard approach to therapy. She instead alters her approach to meet each individual client’s
experiences, goals, and needs. In addition, she believes attachment styles often play a role on
current struggles and, in understanding them, we can better identify root causes, or contributors,
of negative emotional experiences. Marcie wants to walk alongside her clients and support them
through hearing and understanding their stories and implementing coping mechanisms that will
best support them
Rachel Daley
Art Therapist | Mental Health Counsellor
Rachel received her Art Therapy Diploma from The Toronto Art Therapy Institute in 2005. She is delighted to be a new team member at Mind Matters Psychotherapy and Education!
Rachel’s thesis was entitled Art Therapy As A Medium To Express Insecurity In Latency-Aged Children.
After completing her coursework at TATI, she was hired to join the Birth-to-Six Specialized Therapy Unit at The Hincks-Dellcrest Centre, which is now The Garry Hurvitz Centre for Community Mental Health at SickKids Hospital in Toronto. Rachel worked with individual children, families and with parent-child dyads.
In addition to her training and credentials in art therapy Rachel has 16 years of experience teaching predominantly children and adolescents from 18 months old to 16 years, at the Avenue Road Arts School in Toronto.
Rachel’s teaching culminated in her position as the Associate Director of the School.
She has facilitated art workshops with seniors and found the experience truly gratifying. In her career, Rachel has incorporated bringing art to underserved and low-income children and youth of all ages in the GTA, including with Arts For Children & Youth Of Ontario, now VIBE Arts.
Engaging clients in the art-making process as a therapeutic modality is a natural and intuitive way to bring forth a fundamental awareness of their inner worlds.
Rachel is passionate about art as a reflection of inner psychology and a source of perspective and self-compassion. Her evaluation of creative instincts propels her to be a life-long student and a voracious reader of various psychological literature snd modalities including mindfulness, trauma response, vagal nerve toning to activate the parasympathetic nervous system, mind-body connection, and the psychology of chronic pain.
Rachel collaborates with her clients to understand their experience with complex emotions such as shame, anxiety, grief and trauma and to help disentangle the body’s natural defence systems and find healthier coping methods.
Rachel looks to the past, as much as current research to bring appropriate techniques into her art therapy room for her clients.
At Mind Matters, Rachel offers Art Therapy and Counselling to individuals of all ages experiencing anxiety, depression, stress, relational and behavioural issues, attachment challenges, emotional regulation, issues regarding self-esteem and identity, and issues related to coping with and processing trauma and PTSD. Rachel has extensive knowledgable of art & play therapies and techniques and she is a member of CATA, OATA and OAMHP.
Charlotte MacLean
Registered Psychotherapist
Charlotte has been working in the field of mental health for over 7 years and works with children, youth, couples, and families. She has experience working in a variety of different therapeutic settings ranging from not-for-profit to private practices. Charlotte draws from a collaborative approach recognizing each individual as their own unique set of tools and topics they would like to work on.
Charlotte strives to create a welcoming, safe, non-judgemental space where everyone feels welcome and comfortable to start their therapeutic journey. She is compassionate and is ready to meet clients wherever they are in the therapeutic journey. She uses a variety of resources such as creative art, fidget toys, mindfulness, and trauma-informed to allow individuals to feel safe to talk about hard or uncomfortable topics.
Charlotte has a (Hons) BA in Forensic Psychology, Post Graduate Diploma in Addictions and Mental Health, Masters’s Degree in Counselling Pyschology.
Jacalyn Caswell
Registered Psychotherapist (Qualifying)
I work with adults and youth who experience depression, anxiety, work-related stress, self-esteem concerns, physical stress, injury-related stress, relationship conflict, loss, and pain. Knowing how challenging life can be, it is important that we have a safe community and people to assist us when sometimes we cannot manage our experiences alone. Thus together within therapy, we will work as a team to explore present patterns and behaviours that result in feelings we wish to change and build a strong and compassionate belief of self, exploring new strategies and techniques along the way.
I approach every client individually with an empathetic and trauma-informed approach. I understand the importance of the mind-to-body connection when we experience stress. My goal is to treat this stress and improve overall wellness through Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, Emotion-Focused Therapy, Solution Focused Brief Therapy and Narrative Therapy.
Currently, as a qualifying psychotherapist, I welcome you to counselling and the ability to share your story. It’s amazing what we can do when given a little knowledge and some help. I look forward to meeting you soon.
Maya Oakes
Intern, Registered Psychotherapist (Qualifying), MACP Candidate
Maya recognizes the courage and strength needed to reach out for support. She strives to provide a non-judgmental, collaborative and empowering space to foster well-being, self-discovery and confidence.
Maya is currently completing her M.A. in Counselling Psychology at Yorkville University and holds her B.Sc. (Hons) in Psychology and Health Studies from the University of Toronto. Her passion for supporting others was confirmed during her time volunteering as a crisis responder. Through this experience, she recognized the impact of providing support to those experiencing challenges navigating the complexities of life. In this role, Maya values encouraging others to discover their strengths and resources.
As a new psychotherapist, Maya is excited to support a diverse population including children, adolescents, adults and families. She works from a biopsychosocial, trauma-informed and strengths-based framework. Maya recognizes that there is no one-size-fits-all to therapy and as such, believes in working together to create an individualized treatment plan based on the unique needs, experiences and goals of each client. She draws upon various approaches, including Client-Centred Therapy, Narrative Therapy, and Cognitive Behavioural Therapy.
When Maya is not working with clients, she enjoys reading, golfing, painting and spending time with her family and friends.
Leigh Vanderland
Client Care Specialist
