Seeking psychological services is a courageous first step towards alleviating personal and interpersonal distress. I am trained to provide the highest quality care to adults (including seniors), couples, and families. My primary therapeutic approach is Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT) but I also have experience with other evidence-based treatments, including Cognitive-Behavioural Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavioural Therapy (DBT), and Prolonged Exposure (PE) for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Regardless of the approach and type of service (individual, couple, family), I believe a compassionate therapeutic relationship is essential in creating a safe environment to work collaboratively with clients so they can identify their unique needs and treatment goals.

Individual Adult Therapy: If you’re looking for quality individual therapy sessions with a certified Psychologist that cares, then you’ve come to the right place. Screening assessments may be conducted to help gain an understanding of what might be at the root of your struggles with anxiety, depression, or your intrapersonal and interpersonal problems. I guide my clients every step of the way and integrate various interventions to help them develop new perspectives towards all of life’s most complex matters.

Couples Therapy: I also have extensive experience in helping couples bring closure to incidents that have damaged their relationship bond. Every couple undergoes and screening assessment involving the initial appointment, an individual session each, and the completion of two questionnaires followed by feedback and recommendations. Using attachment theory as the lens to understand painful interactional patterns, I focus on emotional processing to help couples reconnect with each other in a manner that leads to safe and secure attachments. The goal of the therapy sessions, is to externalize the problem as the negative interactional cycle, help partners understand the perspective of the other, identify and express underlying feelings and attachment longings. I’m confident you’ll find the Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT) approach beneficial.

Family Therapy: My expertise in couple therapy also extends to distressed family relationships. If your relationships within your family are strained, it might be time to seek help from a licensed professional. Using an Emotionally Focused approach, family therapy sessions aim to help clients develop a new understanding of life’s most complex and challenging circumstances. Together I will help you develop a stronger bond.

Work Experience: Over the years, I have provided assessment and treatment in a variety of hospital (e.g., Royal Ottawa Hospital and the Ottawa Hospital Rehabilitation Centre) as well as private practice settings.  For 10 years, I held an adjunct faculty position at Briercrest Seminary where I taught modular courses (i.e., Emotionally Focused Therapy; DSM & Psychopharmacology). From 2004 to 2021, I was employed full-time at the Royal Ottawa Mental Health Centre – Youth Psychiatry Program. I held a Clinical Professorship in the School of Psychology at the University of Ottawa and was actively involved in the training and supervision of doctoral students.  For three years, I was the Director of Training for The Royal Ottawa’s Predoctoral Residency Training Program in Clinical Psychology.

Chapters in Books

Makinen, J.A. & Ediger, L. (2011).  Rebuilding bonds after the traumatic impact of infidelity. In J. L. Furrow, B. Bradley, & S. M. Johnson (Eds.), The emotionally focused casebook:  New directions in treating couples (pp. 247-268).  New York:  Routledge. 

Johnson, S., & Makinen, J.A. (2003).  Emotionally focused approach to working with traumatized couples.  In D.K. Snyder, & M.A., Whisman (Eds.), Treating difficult couple: Helping clients with coexisting mental and relationship disorders (pp. 308-320).  New York: The Guilford Press.

Papers in Refereed Journals

Courtney, D. B., Makinen, J. (2016). Impact of Diagnosis Disclosure on Adolescents with Borderline Personality Disorder. Journal of the Canadian Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 25 (3), 177-184.

Thatte, S., Makinen, J.A., Nguyen, H., Hill, E.M., Flament, M.F. (2013).  Partial hospitalization for youth with psychiatric disorders:  Program description and treatment outcomes. Journal of Nervous and Mental Diseases, 201(5), 429-434.

Zuccarini, D., Johnson, S. M., Dalgleish, T. L., & Makinen, J. A. (2013). Forgiveness and reconciliation in emotionally focused therapy for couples: The client change process and therapist interventions.  Journal of Marital and Family Therapy, 39 (2), 148-162.

Halchuk, R., Makinen, J., & Johnson, S.  (2010). Resolving attachment injuries in couples using emotionally focused therapy:  A 3-year follow-up study.  Journal of Couple and Relationship Therapy, 9(1), 31-47.

Ryan, C.A., Stiell, K.M., Gailey, G.F., & Makinen, J.A.  (2008). A family centered approach to leisure education and community reintegration for individuals who have had a stroke and their spouses.  Therapeutic Recreation Journal, XLII (2), 119-131.

Makinen, J.A., & Johnson, S. (2006). Resolving attachment injuries in couples using EFT: Steps towards forgiveness and reconciliation.  Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 74(6), 1055-1064.

Naaman, S., Pappas, J.D., Makinen, J.A., Zuccarini, D., & Johnson-Douglas, S. (2005).  Treating attachment injured couples with emotionally focused therapy: A case study.  Psychiatry: Interpersonal & Biological Processes, 68(1), 55-77.

Johnson, S. M., Makinen, J. A., & Millikin, J. W. (2001). Attachment injuries in couple relationships: A new perspective on impasses in couple therapy, Journal of Marital and Family Therapy, 27(2), 145-155.

Makinen, J. A., & Pychyl, T. A. (2001). The differential effects of project stress on life-satisfaction.  Social Indicators Research, 53, 1-16.

Memberships and Professional Affiliations

Registered member of the The College of Psychologists and Behaviour Analysts of Ontario (CPBAO) 2005 to present

Canadian Psychological Association (CPA) 2004 to present

American Psychological Association (APA) 2004 to present

Registered and Qualified Practitioner of Emotion Focused Therapy (EFT) 2004 to present

International Centre for Excellence in Emotionally Focused Therapy (ICEEFT) 2005 to present