Rachel Ness, MA, RCC Registered Clinical Counsellor She/Her
Rachel Ness is a somatic counsellor at Allies Integrated Health. She supports people navigating eating disorders, disordered eating, body image concerns, anxiety, burnout, perfectionism, and self-criticism.
Her approach explores the relationship between physical sensations, emotions, and experiences. Through compassionate, collaborative counselling, Rachel helps clients develop awareness of their patterns and strengthen their connection with themselves. She brings creativity and warmth to therapy, with space to explore experiences that can be difficult to put into words.
Rachel also offers hormone and surgical readiness assessments for people seeking gender-affirming care.
Tools you may explore in a session
Rachel draws on somatic psychotherapy, Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT), Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), expressive arts, and solution-focused brief therapy. Depending on your needs, sessions may involve conversation, movement, drawing, music, or sound.
Rachel’s Professional Interests
Eating disorder recovery, relationships with food and body image, anxiety, burnout, perfectionism, self-esteem, and supporting trans and gender-diverse people.
Education History
• Master of Arts in Clinical Mental Health Counseling: Somatic Psychotherapy — Naropa University, 2022
• Bachelor of Arts in Cultural Studies — The Evergreen State College, 2016
Continuing Education — 2023
• Antisocial, Borderline, Narcissistic and Histrionic: Effective Treatment for Cluster B Personality Disorders
• Solution Focused Brief Therapy: An Evidence-Based Approach to Create Rapid, Sustainable Change with Any Client
Continuing Education — 2024
• Eating Disorders & Postpartum Mental Health: Staying Connected to Self and Recovery
Continuing Education — 2025
• “Body as Billboard” to “Body As Home”: Making Body Image Changes Stick
Continuing Education — 2026
• Grief and Trauma in the Bones: Mindfulness and Indigenous Ways of Healing
• Bringing Men to the Table: Effective Interventions for Eating Disorders and Body Image Concerns in Males
• Every Body Counts: Culturally-Attuned Care for Marginalized Individuals Struggling with Disordered Eating and Body Image
• Ask the Experts: The Intersection of GLP-1s, Body Size, and Eating Disorders
• Culturally Responsive Suicide Prevention: Helping Marginalized Youth Move from Risk to Resilience
• Gender Dysphoria and Disordered Eating: Talking with Gender Expansive Clients about Body Image
• Treating Anxiety in Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC) Clients Utilizing a Somatic Approach
• Unleashing the Power of Family Therapy: An Introduction to EFT with Families
Advanced Specialty Certifications — In Progress
• Certified Eating Disorder Specialist (CEDS) — training in progress
• Complex Trauma Certified Professional (CCTP/CCTP-II) — training in progress
