Alicia Spidel, Registered Psychologist

Dr. Alicia Spidel

She/Her/Hers
PHD

Associate, Registered Psychologist

Registered Psychologist

Special Interests

Anxiety, Complex clinical presentations, Emotion regulation, Personality disorders, Psychosis, Social justice & anti-oppressive practice, Substance use & addictions, Systemic trauma, Trauma & PTSD, Violence & risk

 

Therapeutic Approaches

Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT), Acceptance & Commitment Therapy (ACT), Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT), Mindfulness-Based Approaches, Trauma-Informed Therapy, Systems Approaches

 

Education

  • PhD., Psychology, University of Montreal
  • Master of Arts (MA), Forensic Psychology, University of British Columbia

 

Professional Registrations & Certifications

  • Registered Psychologist

 

About Alicia

I have worked in the mental health field for over 20 years as a psychologist, clinical supervisor, mental health coordinator, trainer, and educator. My experience spans corrections, community-based counselling agencies, addictions services, mental health programs, and private practice. Much of my clinical work has involved supporting people with complex and intersecting concerns, including trauma and PTSD, personality disorders, substance use, emotion dysregulation, violence and risk, and other significant mental health challenges.
 
My approach to therapy is compassionate, collaborative, and grounded in evidence-based practice. I draw particularly from Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT), mindfulness-based interventions, and systemic approaches. Rather than seeing people as a collection of symptoms or diagnoses, I try to understand difficulties within the context of the whole person—their relationships, experiences, strengths, environment, culture, and the larger systems that have shaped their lives.
 
I have a particular interest in working with people who have experienced individual and systemic forms of trauma. My clinical work is grounded in principles of social justice, anti-oppressive practice, and compassion. I believe that effective therapy requires us to understand not only what has happened within a person’s life, but also the social and systemic conditions that can contribute to distress, marginalization, and barriers to care.
 
Alongside my clinical work, teaching and supervision have been significant parts of my career. I have taught counselling psychology, criminology, and psychology at SFU, Douglas College, Kwantlen Polytechnic University, UBC, UFV, City University, VIU, Okanagan College, Vancouver Island College, and JIBC. I am passionate about clinical supervision and supporting developing counsellors as they build confidence, competence, and their own professional identities.
 
My research interests closely parallel my clinical work and include trauma, PTSD, violence, personality, substance use, mental health treatment, and the ways these areas intersect with social justice. I have published more than 50 journal articles and book chapters and have delivered over 200 presentations nationally and internationally. I also provide professional training and workshops in mindfulness, working effectively with complex clients, and third-wave behavioural therapies, particularly DBT and ACT.
 
 

What is it like to work with Alicia?

My style is warm, practical, collaborative, and non-judgmental. I am comfortable working with complexity and recognize that people rarely arrive in therapy with concerns that fit neatly into a single category. I work with clients to understand both what is contributing to their current difficulties and what will meaningfully help them move forward.
 

Therapy may involve developing concrete skills for managing emotions and relationships, understanding longstanding patterns, processing difficult experiences, increasing psychological flexibility, strengthening self-compassion, or reconnecting with values and meaningful areas of life. Treatment is tailored to the individual rather than expecting the individual to fit a particular therapeutic model.

 

What guides Alicia’s clinical work?

Compassion, curiosity, evidence, and context. I believe that behaviours and coping strategies usually make more sense when we understand what a person has experienced and the environment in which those strategies developed.
 
At the same time, understanding why something developed does not mean that it has to remain unchanged. Therapy can provide a space to understand these patterns while developing new ways of responding that are more effective and consistent with the life a person wants to build.
 
 

What does Alicia value about teaching and supervision?

I enjoy helping students and clinicians bridge the gap between knowing a theory and actually sitting with a person in the therapy room. Clinical work involves uncertainty, judgment, humility, and ongoing learning. I particularly value helping developing clinicians become more confident working with complexity while also recognizing the limits of their competence and the importance of consultation and supervision.

 

What does Alicia consider important in therapy?

I believe people need to feel understood before meaningful change can occur. At the same time, compassion and acceptance do not mean that therapy cannot be active or change-focused. Some clients need space to process and make sense of their experiences; others benefit from practical strategies and skills; most need some combination of both.
 
Ultimately, I see therapy as helping people better understand themselves and their experiences while developing greater choice in how they respond to their thoughts, emotions, relationships, and circumstances.
 
 

What does Alicia enjoy outside of work?

When I’m not teaching, supervising, seeing clients, or convincing myself that I really do need to answer just one more email, I love to travel and explore new places. Photography usually comes along for the ride, which means everyone else occasionally has to wait while I take “just one more picture.”

I also love spending time with family and friends and getting outside for long hikes and walks with my dog. The dog is generally enthusiastic about the walking part, less interested in the photography part, and completely unconcerned with my professional accomplishments.
 
Travel, good company, being outdoors, and seeing a bit more of the world are some of my favourite ways to recharge—and provide a useful reminder that there is, in fact, life beyond my inbox.

 

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