Our Team | Bloom Psychotherapy | Ontario Counselling

Heather Ratych has specialized training and certification in Reproductive and Perinatal Mental Health, and extensive training and experience in supporting those navigating infertility, pregnancy loss, stillbirth, birth trauma, postpartum anxiety and depression, and parenting challenges. It was her experiences with difficulty conceiving, intense postpartum anxiety, and medical trauma that led her to specialize in supporting individuals in their adjustment to parenthood. She is a mom of three, a Registered Social Worker, and the Owner and Clinical Director of Bloom Psychotherapy, a virtual reproductive, perinatal, and maternal mental health clinic that sees clients across Canada.

Heather has been providing assessment services, psychotherapy, and consultation for two decades. She holds an Undergraduate Degree in Family and Social Relations, a Master’s degree in Social Work, and Post-Graduate Certificate in Infant Mental Health. She is Perinatal Mental Health certified and hold a certificate in Maternal Mental Health from Postpartum Support International.

She offers continuing education, training, consultation, and supervision, with a unique specialized focus on reproductive and perinatal mental health, and is passionate about supporting healthcare practitioners and clinicians to hone their knowledge and skills in reproductive and perinatal mental health so that they can help their patients/clients to thrive during these phases of life.

After immersing herself in learning, practicing, and teaching all about Perinatal Mood and Anxiety Disorders, She has compiled exactly what you need to know as a healthcare practitioner, birth worker, or clinician.

Renata Christen has an Honours Bachelor's degree in Psychology from the University of Waterloo and a Masters degree in Social Work from York University. She is a Registered Social Worker with the Ontario College of Social Workers and Social Service Workers (OCSWSSW). She has also completed specific training in Maternal Mental Health from Postpartum Support International. Renata became passionate about specializing in maternal mental health after becoming a mother herself. To overcome her overwhelm with the pressure of perfection and the overshadowing influx of doubt and worry in early motherhood. Renata realized the key to her journey was finding her own balance, her own way, and her own joy, by connecting to herself first and foremost. She is passionate about walking alongside other women as they too find more balance and joy in their motherhood journeys.

Renata has worked in the mental health field for over 8 years and with an eclectic style of different counseling modalities, including Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, (CBT), Dialectic Behavioural Therapy (DBT), Solution Focused Therapy (SFT), and Mindfulness. She offers a variety of strategies that help other women and mothers find their own path. She is here to listen, explore, and collaborate with compassion and non-judgment, to ensure their stories are heard and continued with intent. By connecting with ourselves, our values, and our loved ones, she believes that we can find an authentic and grounded path with many joyful moments to embrace during the unpredictable, demanding, and emotional journey of motherhood.

Carrie-Lynn is a registered Social Worker and Psychotherapist, who strives to create a supportive and empathic space, where clients can be open and authentic in sharing their struggles along the journey of parenthood. She works with you to deepen your self-awareness and understanding and helps you to formulate strategies in order to increase confidence, establish balance and help to feel empowered in all areas of your life.

Carrie-Lynn supports women, men, and their partners, who are experiencing fertility challenges, pregnancy or infant loss, as well as perinatal anxiety and depression. Carrie-Lynn is also deeply passionate about supporting couples/parents in reconnecting, rebuilding the foundation of their relationship, and navigating conflict in new and meaningful ways.

While Carrie-Lynn draws from a variety of therapeutic modalities, including Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT), Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT), Interpersonal therapy (IPT), and the Gottman Method for couples, she works from an intuitive, client-centered approach for each of her clients and their specific needs.

Carrie-Lynn works from an attachment, trauma-informed, and LGBTTQIA+ affirming perspective. Carrie-Lynn graduated with a Master’s in Social Work with a concentration in Mental Health and Health from the University of Toronto, along with completing an undergraduate degree in Women’s Studies. She has been a practicing therapist for 10 years and over the past 15 years has supported children, adolescents, and parents with their mental wellbeing. She is registered with the Ontario College of Social Workers and Social Service Workers and is a certified Perinatal Mental Health Specialist.

Through her own experience with perinatal loss and postpartum anxiety, Carrie-Lynn understands how difficult it can be to share your experience and process the complex feelings that arise along this journey. Now that you are here, Carrie-Lynn would love to work with you to process your emotions and make meaning of your unique experiences, so that you can integrate them into your lives and begin to heal.

Jessica is a Registered Social Worker with the Ontario College of Social Workers and Social Service Workers and has a Master’s degree in Social Work from Carleton University. She has been working in the field of mental health and crisis intervention for more than 10 years. She uses a mixed modality of solution-focused, motivational interviewing, and cognitive behavioural techniques, always meeting clients with warmth, compassion, and empathy. Her own journey of motherhood has inspired her passion to support others along their path.

Many times, we expect our story to unfold in a certain way and so often this contrasts with the reality of our experience. Together we can create a safe space to navigate your experience. With a gentle and supportive approach, we can begin to understand your story and work together to address your personal goals for therapy.

Some things we may explore include negative or scary thoughts, self-esteem, challenges arising in motherhood, such as loss of identity, social isolation, not enjoying your days, working with difficult emotions, and overwhelming thoughts. Using self-care, mindfulness, and coping strategies, we will build confidence in your parenting role, resiliency, and empowerment to overcome the contrast between reality and experience, working towards a holistic view of self, sense of peace, and personal well-being.

Kim is a clinical social worker and is passionate about supporting individuals and couples who have experienced grief, loss, infertility, birth trauma, miscarriages, and stillbirth. Kim has a deep understanding of the impact that these challenges, struggles, changes, and transitions can have on a couple and an individual’s mental health, sense of self, relationships, and well-being. Kim works to empower her clients with the skills to generate internal strength, calm, and confidence and reduce stress, anxiety, fear, and depression.

Kim is here to listen with compassion and without judgment and will help you gain insight, achieve growth, and experience peace and happiness. Her goal is for you to feel supported and heard and she is deeply committed to helping you to develop the tools you need to address your difficulties, understand yourself more fully, and live a more fulfilling life.

Kim’s personal experiences with multiple miscarriages and birth trauma ignited a passion and drive to support women and their partners as they navigate their own personal challenges and struggles. Kim has been practicing as a social worker for over 20 years and has worked with individuals and families in various clinical settings spanning all stages and ages of life. Kim holds specialized training in Infertility Counselling, Birth Trauma, and Pediatric Grief & Bereavement. She sees youth (13+), adults, and couples

Natasha is passionate about seeing people flourish in their lives. She holds the belief that people are resilient and hardwired for connection in this world. As your therapist, Natasha’s goal is that you would feel safe and comfortable in her presence, and leave empowered with skills to thrive.

Natasha loves working with women in the perinatal period - from trying to conceive to pregnancy and postpartum. She understands that motherhood is a unique, beautiful, and challenging time of transition for many individuals. Natasha has a particular interest in supporting mothers who have experienced infertility, loss, and birth trauma and helping them to heal from these experiences. She also enjoys supporting couples and helping to foster deeper connections and intimacy at any point in their relationship.

Natasha uses a variety of models in her practice, including Emotion-Focused Therapy (EFT), Narrative Therapy, Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), Mindfulness, and Attachment-based therapy. She is also equipped to integrate faith in sessions for those who are interested. Natasha is a Registered Psychotherapist with the College of Registered Psychotherapists of Ontario (CRPO).

Beyond the office, Natasha enjoys time spent with her family, good coffee, and getting lost in greenhouses.

As a registered Social Worker/Psychotherapist, Sarah has practiced in the field of adult mental health for nearly a decade. Much of her career has been dedicated to psychiatric wellness and rehabilitation, supporting individuals to manage and overcome a vast array of challenges, experiences of psychological distress, and major life transitions. She maintains a particular passion for perinatal wellness and for the parenting journey itself. As a mother, Sarah knows first-hand the challenges of extreme fatigue, pressures from society to “do it right”, balancing relationships as a new mom, combating mood fluctuations, and at times, feeling unable to effectively cope with the day-to-day.

She firmly believes that the therapeutic relationship built during your time together is imperative to clinical success and positive outcomes. Having an individual share their personal story is incredibly meaningful to Sarah, and she considers it to be a true honour.

Her approach is integrative, collaborative, and about true connection. She wants her clients to feel seen, heard, validated, and understood in whatever they are feeling and experiencing. It is her belief that we are all the experts of our own lives and she aims to help women recognize unique inner resources, allowing them to reach their full potential. Sarah is passionate about supporting you with challenges relating to major life transitions, role changes and identity exploration, lifestyle adjustments, anxiety and depression, stress, birth trauma, interpersonal and relationship challenges, maladaptive coping strategies or addiction, and/or riding the waves of being a new mom. She knows that no single approach is appropriate for everyone, which is why she applies a variety of modalities to her work with individuals to explore thoughts, emotions, and behaviours, with a foundation in a client-centered, attachment-based, and holistic framework. She believes that every person has the capacity for growth and development, and together, you can work to form goals to meet your full potential.

Sarah comes to the table with compassion, empathy, and earnestness. She believes in the power of mindfulness, grounding, and self-actualization as tools for positive mental health and wellness.

Life continually offers us challenges and oftentimes we need a little support navigating difficulties through major life transitions, like becoming a parent for the first time. If you are a new parent and are feeling overwhelmed, or if your mood/emotions are getting in the way of being able to function effectively, please know that you are not alone and there are resources available to support you.

Melanie is a Psychotherapist and Registered Social Worker with 20 years of clinical experience. She graduated from the University of California, Los Angeles with a Master’s Degree in Social Work and has acquired extensive training in Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, Family Therapy, and Attachment Therapy.

After a lengthy career working with adolescents and their families, Melanie returned to university at Toronto Metropolitan University and completed her Bachelor of Health Sciences – Midwifery degree and has worked as a Registered Midwife. While she is presently on Inactive status with the College of Midwives of Ontario, she remains very connected to the midwifery community and is passionate about supporting fair and equitable access to reproductive health care

Melanie’s work as a social worker, psychotherapist, and midwife has provided her with rich experiences that have informed her passion for providing perinatal mental health care. In particular, Melanie has developed expertise in the areas of prenatal and postpartum anxiety and depression, pregnancy loss, and birth trauma. In addition, she has a special interest in supporting midwives and other birth workers who have experienced and suffered from vicarious birth trauma.

Gabrielle is a Registered Psychotherapist (Qualifying) with the College of Registered Psychotherapists of Ontario (CRPO) and a recent graduate of the Master of Arts in Counselling Psychology (MACP) program at Yorkville University. She has completed additional training in Maternal Mental Health through Postpartum Support International (PSI) and participated in the Perinatal Mental Health Certificate Program through Canadian Perinatal Mental Health Training. Gabrielle continues to engage in continuing education opportunities including the areas of postnatal depression, infertility, pregnancy and infant loss, and self-compassion therapy for the prevention and treatment of perinatal mental health issues.

Throughout her studies, Gabrielle engaged in research to deepen her understanding of perinatal and postpartum issues facing birthing persons and their families including cultural considerations for counselling. She appreciates and values an eclectic approach to providing counselling services and integrates modalities such as Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), Mindfulness, and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). Gabrielle has a particular interest in supporting persons navigating their fertility journey, including infertility diagnosis, use of third-party donors, loss, and birth trauma as well as single-parent-by-choice and single-parent-by-circumstance narratives.

Gabrielle is a local PSI Support Coordinator Volunteer where she advocates for perinatal mental health and provides social support and assistance in the search and provision of resources to families in need of support during the perinatal and postpartum period. She is also a Birth Companion Volunteer with Mothercraft, providing support services that focus on marginalized and at-risk families to build confidence and self-efficacy in their parenting role.

Gabrielle’s interest in perinatal mental health is a product of her own reproductive narrative, specifically pregnancy losses, postpartum depression, a secondary infertility diagnosis, and subsequent IUI and IVF treatments. Her personal experiences left an impression on her regarding the value and need for inclusive, affordable, and accessible services. Gabrielle looks forward to collaborating with you on your journey to health and well-being.

Alison is a Registered Social Worker and Psychotherapist currently practicing in Nova Scotia and Ontario. Alison has a collaborative, client centered approach to therapy and aims to provide a welcoming space where clients truly feel heard. She believes in drawing on each person’s unique strengths, offering practical skills to manage life’s challenges and turn down the volume on painful thoughts and feelings.

Alison’s own journey to motherhood at the beginning of a global pandemic and personal experience with postpartum depression has influenced her passion towards maternal mental health and the perinatal period. She has specific training and experience in the area of perinatal and maternal mental health, and offers support for concerns such as birth and reproductive trauma, attachment trauma, depression, anxiety, stress, life transitions, relationship and parenting challenges. The journey to and through parenthood can be filled with so many transitions and challenges to navigate at once, while also learning how to care for yourself through this process. Alison aims to help you embrace the range of emotions that can present during this time, build support and connection in a way that matters to you, and increase confidence to be true to yourself.

Alison graduated with a Master of Social Work degree from the University of Calgary with a specialization in Clinical Social Work Practice. She practices from a trauma informed and attachment lens, using modalities such as EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) and ACT (Acceptance and Commitment Therapy), also drawing on other approaches such as EFT (Emotionally Focused Therapy) and CBT (Cognitive Behavioural Therapy).

Courtney is a Registered Social Worker, wife and mother of 2 little boys. After her own experience with infertility, she developed a passion for supporting woman who are at all stages of their journey through motherhood. She is deeply invested in providing a safe space to support those who are navigating infertility, and she welcomes the opportunity to walk alongside women who are struggling with the transition to motherhood whether that is during pregnancy or after your child is born. Courtney also has a special interest in supporting those who learn that their unborn child has a medical condition.

Sessions with Courtney will feel collaborative and empowering and the hope is that you will leave feeling as though you can comfortably move forward knowing what you need to do next. Courtney truly believes that she is meant to walk alongside her families through their struggle with infertility and motherhood and will be there to hold space during the hard times and also to celebrate with you when things are feeling good. Courtney uses an integrative approach in her work and draws from her knowledge of Interpersonal Psychotherapy (IPT), Narrative Therapy, CBT, she is trauma informed and views the world through a feminist lens which intimately informs her practice.

Courtney is passionate about her work and is currently working on Certification with Postpartum Support International. She has completed training in Maternal Mental Health, Infertility, Pregnancy Loss and Reproductive Trauma and she completed her Masters Degree in Social Work in 2013. When Courtney is not working you can find her hiking with her family, playing tractors with her boys, or helping out on the family farm!

Jessica is a Registered Social Worker and has been a member of the OCSWSSW since 2006. Jessica graduated from Lakehead University with an Honours Bachelor of Social Work and the University of Toronto with her Masters of Social Work. Jessica has been practicing for 17 years mostly in the hospital setting and private practice. Her work in a variety of hospital settings has allowed her to walk beside individuals and families facing some of their most challenging moments, losses, and transitions. Much of her career has also gone to supporting individuals and couples navigate relationships, parenting, grief, mental health issues, and life transitions. Jessica has a passion for working with couples as they journey from individuals to a partnership while learning to manage all of life’s stressful complexities. Jessica knows how difficult it can be to create your own healthy family and break free from generational patterns that do not serve you and how challenging that can be for a spouse to provide the appropriate support when their experiences are not the same.

Jessica is a strong believer in taking what you can from a negative interaction, owning what needs to be owned, and reflecting on it to come out stronger with a more comprehensive sense of self! Working with couples learning about each other and understanding not only themselves and the other person but so importantly the space between that blends them. Jessica uses a variety of tools and strategies to assist clients to grow and learn about themselves and their partnerships. Jessica is trained in the Gottman Methods level 1 and 2 as well as in Teaching the Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work. Jessica also utilizes Cognitive Behavioural and solution-focused approaches along with Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction, self-acceptance, and best practices for goal setting.

Jessica is striving to reduce the power that shame can have over us that keeps us small, and quiet and from achieving a true sense of ourselves and the connection we all need and deserve to thrive. Our life creates issues for us in biopsychosocial ways, we owe it to ourselves to recognize our strengths and use them to manage our moods and our relationships that allow us to be our healthiest selves!

Jessica accommodates some evenings and Saturday mornings!

Isabelle is a Registered Social Worker. Originally from East Africa and identifies as a Black African-Canadian woman. She is blessed with three amazing children and lives in Saskatchewan with her spouse.

Isabelle’s passion for providing therapy to families experiencing perinatal mental health issues stems from her own lived experiences during pregnancy and immediately after the birth of her last child. She suffered alone for multiple years. Isabelle could not share with anyone, especially in her community, where stigma around mental health continues to exist. It wasn't until she coincidentally attended a conference on perinatal mental health in 2018 that she met many women who shared struggles with mental health. It was then that she realized, oh, it’s a ‘thing’ actually to have mental health during pregnancy and postpartum. Isabelle felt validated that she was not alone and there was help. This led to her journey of healing for herself and another journey to help other childbearing families.

Isabelle graduated with a Master of Social Work from Southern Illinois University in Edwardsville, Illinois, and has over a decade of experience. Isabelle's work is guided by using a lens of trauma-informed, cultural humility, and anti-oppressive.

Her treatment modalities include attachment, Circle of Security Parenting, Solution-Focused Therapy, and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. Isabelle has completed the Perinatal Mood and Anxiety Certificate Course through Postpartum Support International and is working towards getting the Perinatal Mental Health Certification. Isabelle strives for lifelong learning to keep up to date with training in mental health.

Isabelle considers it a privilege and an honour to journey along with individuals struggling with mental health. She strives to create a culturally safe space as she understands how difficult it can be to be vulnerable in sharing mental health issues.

When she is not working, she values, protects, and prioritizes self-care by creating opportunities for family time, prayer, meditation, movies, gardening, mentoring, reading, cooking, and travelling for “ocean therapy” for “Vitamin Sea” whenever possible.

Isabelle accommodates evening and Saturday schedules.

Kerri is a Registered Social Worker with the Ontario College of Social Workers and Social

Service Workers and a Candian Certified Perinatal Mental Health Clinician. Kerri has worked as a Social Worker supporting families in various stages of their lives for the last 8 years and has two children of her own.

Kerri’s own journey to motherhood began during the global pandemic, which amplified her passion for supporting individual’s through the perinatal period, as she experienced how challenging it can be to move through this time without the right supports in place.

Kerri believes in a collaborative approach to counseling and acknowledges the importance ofholding space for all to feel supported, heard, understood, and validated. Kerri is a client centered therapist and truly believes the most important piece of your work together is the relationship you forge. Kerri tailors her approach to meet each individual’s needs & therapeutic goals pulling from various modalities such as Solution-Focused, Strength-Based, Narrative,Family Systems, Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), and Mindfulness.

Kerri has specialized training in perinatal mental health & supporting individuals through fertility treatments & trying to conceive, pregnancy, postpartum, pregnancy & infant loss, and the highs and lows of parenthood. Whether it is difficult emotions, managing relationships, dealing with stress & overwhelm, life changes & transitions, struggling with identity & role strain, or grief & loss - Kerri is here to walk alongside you, no matter where you are on your journey. Kerri wants to provide you and your family with the support, information, and tools to feel more like “you,” whatever that looks like."

Kayla Deverson is a social worker with the OCSWSSW and has been registered since 2010. Kayla earned her Masters of Social Work degree at the University of Toronto and a Bachelor of Social Work / Bachelor of Arts degree at McMaster University. These studies advanced a longstanding interest in providing compassionate care. Clinically, Kayla has fourteen years of experience working in a variety of settings, primarily in healthcare. She started her career working in a fast-paced hospital emergency department and has continued to build her career working with individuals and families during moments of crisis, trauma, and change in a variety of different contexts within the healthcare realm.

Kayla discovered her passion for women’s health issues in 2015 when she began counselling families during pregnancy and postpartum and when she gained firsthand experience welcoming her daughter in 2022. Her personal journey with pregnancy, birth, postpartum, and sleep deprivation has deepened her love of perinatal work and she is passionate about providing an empathic, judgment-free space for women and couples as they transition into parenthood. She sees each stage of reproduction as a life transition that is as unique as each individual. She believes that this is a profound and challenging time for every parent and is honoured to hold space for her clients as their family evolves. Kayla believes it is essential to meet people on their own terms and to provide a safe and supportive space for their growth. Kayla’s approach is client-centred, supportive, empathetic, and focused on creating a safe space to promote client growth and well-being.

She has worked closely with individuals and couples in all reproductive life stages. She has a wealth of experience with issues surrounding infertility, pregnancy, medically complex pregnancies, birth trauma, pregnancy loss, adoption and surrogacy, and postpartum mood disorders. She offers weekend and evening hours to accommodate busy schedules.

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