Lisa Marie Passarelli, MA, RCC

Registered Clinical Counsellor | Nanaimo & Virtual

I see CBT as an empowering approach that helps people understand the patterns keeping them stuck and develop practical tools for creating meaningful, lasting change.

About Lisa

Hi, I’m Lisa Marie Passarelli. I am a Registered Clinical Counsellor who works with individuals aged 16 and older and with couples. My practice is strongly grounded in Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT), with particular interests in anxiety, phobias, Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD), Body-Focused Repetitive Behaviours (BFRBs), grief, and relationship concerns.

My approach to CBT is active, collaborative, goal-oriented, and structured. Together, we identify the difficulties that are having the greatest effect on your life, explore the thoughts, beliefs, emotions, and behaviours contributing to those difficulties, and develop a clear plan for change. Treatment may involve learning new coping skills, gradually approaching feared situations, reducing compulsive or avoidant behaviours, challenging unhelpful beliefs, increasing meaningful activity, or practising strategies between sessions.

I view CBT as a practical and empowering form of therapy. My goal is not simply to help you feel better during our sessions, but to help you develop knowledge and skills that you can carry into your everyday life. We will regularly reflect on what is changing, what remains difficult, and whether our treatment plan continues to meet your needs.

Although evidence-based treatment protocols provide an important roadmap, I do not believe therapy should take a one-size-fits-all approach. I tailor treatment to each client’s needs, abilities, strengths, circumstances, and preferred ways of learning. My work is person-centred, strength-based, and neurodiversity affirming, and I welcome clients of different abilities and neurotypes.

OCD, Anxiety, and BFRBs

I support clients experiencing OCD, phobias, anxiety, and Body-Focused Repetitive Behaviours. Depending on your concerns and treatment goals, our work may draw from Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP), exposure therapy, Inference-Based CBT (I-CBT), cognitive restructuring, behavioural interventions, and mindfulness-based strategies.

Exposure-based treatment is always approached collaboratively. We work together to understand the cycle, maintaining the anxiety or compulsive behaviour, and develop manageable opportunities to practise responding differently. The aim is not to force you through distress, but to help you gradually build greater freedom, flexibility, and confidence.

Grief and Bereavement

I have a particular interest in supporting people experiencing acute, complex, or prolonged grief. Grief does not follow a predictable timeline, and meaningful treatment must make room for the individual relationship, loss, and circumstances involved.

When grief has become persistent and is significantly affecting daily life, CBT-informed treatment can help clients understand patterns of avoidance, guilt, self-blame, disconnection, or difficulty adapting to life after a loss. I combine this structured support with warmth, compassion, and respect for the significance of the person, relationship, or companion animal who has been lost.

CBT-Informed Couples Work

I also specialize in couples counselling and have completed Levels 1, 2, and 3 of Gottman Method Couples Therapy training. My couples work combines the Gottman Method with cognitive and behavioural principles to help partners better understand recurring patterns, communicate more effectively, rebuild trust, and respond differently during conflict.

I have additional Gottman training in treating affairs and trauma, couples and addiction recovery, and partner aggression. I am especially interested in continuing to develop thoughtful, evidence-based applications of CBT within couples therapy.

Areas of CBT Focus

Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder
Anxiety and excessive worry
Specific phobias
Exposure-based treatment
Body-Focused Repetitive Behaviours
Depression and behavioural activation
Acute, complex, and prolonged grief
Pet loss and bereavement
Stress management
Neurodivergent-affirming support
Relationship distress and recurring conflict
Rebuilding trust following relationship injuries
CBT-informed couples counselling

CBT and Evidence-Based Approaches

Cognitive Behaviour Therapy
Exposure and Response Prevention
Exposure therapy
Inference-Based CBT
Behavioural activation
Cognitive restructuring
Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioural Therapy
Structured treatment planning
Collaborative between-session practice
Subjective Units of Distress monitoring
Gottman Method Couples Therapy
Mindfulness-based interventions
Solution-Focused Brief Therapy
Strength-based and person-centred adaptations

Education and Professional Credentials

Master of Arts in Counselling Psychology, Yorkville University
Postgraduate Diploma in General Psychology, University of Roehampton
Registered Clinical Counsellor, BCACC #21291
Gottman Method Couples Therapy, Levels 1, 2, and 3
Gottman Treating Affairs and Trauma
Gottman Couples and Addiction Recovery
Prolonged Grief Disorder training through Columbia University
Training in ERP, exposure therapy, I-CBT, behavioural activation, and BFRB treatment

Age ranges: Individuals aged 16+, adults, and seniors
Session types: Individual and couples counselling
Locations: North Nanaimo, Downtown Nanaimo, and virtual counselling throughout BC
Fees: $150–$165 per session