Meet Elizabeth
Elizabeth Nardella, MSW, RSW, RCC — 15 years with children, youth and families, and the mentor behind The Conversations We Didn't Have in Training.
Hi, I'm Elizabeth. I'm a Registered Social Worker and Registered Clinical Counsellor in South Surrey, BC. I've spent about 15 years working with children, youth and families in walk-in clinics, community agencies, grief programs and my own private practice through high-conflict separations, court involvement and every kind of caregiver you can imagine.
My child and family therapy story
I came to therapy through creativity. For years I ran my own creative studio and led workshops for women, and that love of expressive arts led me into co-facilitating grief and expressive-arts groups at Gilda's Club Toronto.
From there I studied narrative therapy at the University of Melbourne and joined the walk-in and brief services team at Reach Out Centre for Kids (ROCK) in Oakville and Milton, Ontario. As a family therapist there, I sat with families on some of their hardest days, building safety plans, working through high-conflict separations, and supporting families involved with the courts.
When I moved to BC, I spent nearly five years as a Child & Youth Mental Health Counsellor at Sources White Rock Family Services, using play therapy and sand tray with kids and working closely with the caregivers who love them. I've also had my own private practice since 2016, now in South Surrey.
Fifteen years of curveballs
Along the way I've had supportive managers, overwhelmed managers, absent managers and toxic ones. I know what it feels like to need help and worry that asking for it looks like incompetence.
How I work
My work is grounded in narrative therapy: getting curious about the problem as something separate from the child, and getting to know a young person away from the story everyone walked in with. The parent gives me the background. The kid is the expert.
Around that foundation I bring play therapy and sand tray, expressive arts, grief work, and two years of Somatic Attachment Psychotherapy training, so I'm paying attention to what's happening in the body and the relationship, not just the words. I've trained with the Vancouver School for Narrative Therapy and with David Epston, and I'm also trained in breathwork.
Teaching and presenting
I love teaching this work. I've presented at the European Narrative Therapy Conference in Spain and at an international narrative therapy conference in Australia, led Tree of Life workshops in New Zealand and Singapore, and presented at Grand Rounds at Reach Out Centre for Kids. In 2025, I completed Clinical Supervision Levels 1 and 2 at the Justice Institute of BC.
Why I built this mentorship
Early in my career, I didn't always feel safe going to my manager when I'd gotten something wrong. This mentorship is the room I wish I'd had somewhere to bring the forgotten consent step, the note you're unsure about, or the "I honestly don't know what to do next," without shame.
A note on scope: this program is clinical consultation and mentorship. It isn't clinical supervision.
Education and credentials
Master of Social Work (MSW), University of New England, 2019
Master of Narrative Therapy and Community Work, University of Melbourne, 2015
Brief & Narrative Therapy Externship, University of Toronto, 2014
BA, Communication Studies, Wilfrid Laurier University, 2001
Registered Social Worker (RSW), British Columbia
Registered Clinical Counsellor (RCC), BCACC
Clinical Supervision Levels 1 & 2, Justice Institute of BC, 2025
Somatic Attachment Psychotherapy, two-year training, 2023–2024
Sand tray and sandplay training; narrative therapy certificates, Vancouver School for Narrative Therapy
Breathwork, Journey Into Breath Levels 1 & 2
Curious whether the mentorship is a fit?
Start with a free 20-minute intake call. We'll talk about your practice and what you're hoping for — no pressure.
