About Me
Debbie Ernest
B.A., B.S.W., M.S.W., R.S.W
I am a Registered Social Worker, Psychotherapist, and Consultant with extensive training and more than 20 years of clinical experience working in mental health and addictions hospital-based care, the post-secondary education sector, and in private practice specializing in mental health and substance use issues - spanning individual, family, and group treatments.
I received my Master of Social Work degree from the University of Toronto, a Bachelor of Social Work from Toronto Metropolitan University (formerly Ryerson University), and a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Western Ontario.
My Approach
I am a highly-skilled, experienced, compassionate, committed and ethical therapist who provides evidence-based treatment interventions and high-quality care to my clients. I take a client-centered, trauma-informed approach to identify a client’s unique needs and collaborate on a plan of care to help them reach their therapeutic goals. I believe the foundation of good and effective therapy is a strong therapeutic alliance and the facilitation of safety and trust in the therapeutic work. I am known to have a warm and empathic interpersonal style and I tend to bring my sense of humour to the work that I do.
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In my practice, I work with adults, so this means I provide psychotherapy services to those over the age of eighteen. The issues that I work with most commonly in my practice are:
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anxiety and worry
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work-related stress - imposter syndrome, burnout, motivation and performance concerns, perfectionism, high stakes helping professions, toxic work environments, politics
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depression
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relationship and communication issues
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emotion regulation difficulties
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complex mental illness
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psychosis
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trauma-related issues
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substance use
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managing life transitions
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women's health
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parenting challenges
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low self-esteem
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suicidal thoughts
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grief and loss
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mental illness in the family
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facilitating post-event team debriefings
I have additional expertise and specialization working with:
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physicians and health care providers
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law students and legal professionals
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adult children, parents, adult siblings, and other caregivers of those living with mental health issues
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mental health care system navigation
My Background
In addition to my work in private practice, I have an established career history working in the mental health and addictions and postsecondary education sectors as a therapist, clinical supervisor, and educator. I worked for 18 years at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) as a Social Worker and individual and group therapist servicing clients with mental health and substance use issues in a variety of in- and out-patient settings. I provided therapy to youth experiencing a first episode of psychosis and provided support and therapy to their families; opioid-dependent individuals and clients seeking addiction medicine services; women with addictions; clients impacted by trauma; clients with anxiety and depression; those with emotion regulation difficulties; clients in crisis and dealing with suicidal thoughts; and clients with complex mental illness – specializing in clients with psychosis and schizophrenia and their families. I also have experience working with clients with concurrent mental health and substance use issues. As a member of the Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT) Service of the Complex Mental Illness Program, I provided individual and group-based CBT for psychosis services to clients with complex mental illnesses.
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During the final decade of my career at CAMH, I worked as an Advanced Practice Clinical Leader – during which time I provided therapy to clients and families, offered local, regional, and international training on a variety of mental health and addictions topics, and provided clinical supervision and professional practice leadership and consultation to interprofessional staff, teams, and students at the hospital.
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After leaving the health care sector, I worked in post-secondary education in a leadership position within the Counselling and Accessibility department of a large post-secondary college setting where I provided counselling and crisis intervention services to youth and adult college students and supervised a team of personal counsellors who provide short-term counselling to students with a range of mental health and other personal issues. I also have experience working as a Counsellor in a Toronto law school providing therapy and mental health and wellness counselling to law students within a competitive and high-pressure academic environment.
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The evidence-based therapeutic Modalities that I am trained in and draw upon in my practice are:
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CBT (Cognitive Behaviour Therapy)
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CBT for Psychosis
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DBT (Dialectical Behaviour Therapy )
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ACT (Acceptance and Commitment Therapy)
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Trauma-Informed Care
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Motivational Interviewing
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Solution Focused Therapy
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Compassion Focused Therapy
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Harm Reduction
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Psychoeducation
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Mindfulness
