karina czyzeski (they/them)

About karina

karina czyzewski is a registered clinical social worker with an additional graduate degree in medical anthropology of French and Slavic descent. They are originally from Ottawa on unceded Algonquin territories, and have been an uninvited guest on the stolen territories of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), and səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations for the last 12 years.

They have worked in the field of mental health and substance for over a decade in Vancouver as well as Toronto, and has years of direct service & harm reduction outreach experience in downtown, the DTES & Metro Vancouver. karina has had the privilege of coordinating participatory research projects alongside community researchers in Victoria & Vancouver, and across Nunavut.

Professional Background

karina has formal training in Somatic Experiencing, Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy (ATMA), Narrative Therapy and Feminist Narrative Therapy, Motivational Interviewing, Brief Solutions-Focused Therapy. They have self-taught knowledge and skills in Art Therapy, Play Therapy, Dialectical Behavioral Therapy, and Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy. karina has over a decade of experience in substance use counselling and concurrent disorders. They have years of experience working & living with their fellow queer, trans and gender-diverse folks in downtown Edmonton, Toronto, Ottawa, & Vancouver. karina brings a critical analysis & social justice-orientation to their counselling practice.

karina is committed to equity-oriented care that is culturally safe, trauma- and violence-informed, and harm reductive. They are passionate about excellent ethical practices, clear consent, and transparent communication with everyone. Their personal ethics are framed by the anti-racist, abolitionist, queer, disabled, sex positive brilliant humans that have come before them & that inform their day-to-day.

In their personal life, karina enjoys cycling, baking vegan treats, organizing with community members, their family & partner, and their many plant babies. karina reads voraciously, enjoys burlesque occasionally, and will seriously not know many TV pop culture references.