About Us

Sojourn serves Greater Vancouver and the Fraser Valley from our conveniently accessed location in Surrey, BC. Our therapists are dedicated to providing counselling tailored specifically to the expressed needs and goals of our clients and are equipped to deliver a vast array of treatments in order to help those we serve. Setting up an appointment is easy and can be done directly online.



Jonathan Wieser, MA-MFT, RCC-ACS, RMFT

Jonathan Wieser, RCC, RMFT - Surrey Therapist

Jonathan is a Registered Clinical Counsellor, Approved Clinical Supervisor, and Registered Marriage and Family Therapist specializing in counselling and neurofeedback for individuals, couples and families, maintaining a private practice in Surrey, British Columbia. He holds a Masters Degree in Marriage and Family Therapy from Trinity Western University and a Bachelor's degree in Biology.

Jon works in collaboration with his clients to find the best method to address problems. His therapeutic approach is to provide support and practical feedback to help clients successfully overcome personal life challenges.  He integrates complementary methodologies and techniques to offer a highly personalized approach tailored to each client. With compassion and understanding, he works with his clients to build on strengths and attain the personal growth they are committed to accomplishing.

Treatment areas include:
- Anxiety, including panic and phobias,
- Trauma, including abuse, neglect, victims or witnesses of crime, motor vehicle accidents,
- Depression,
- Marriage and relationships,
- Stress management,
- Family distress,
- Cultural adjustment,
- Personal growth, and
- Peak performance

Make an appointment with Jonathan.



Shahrzad Jamali, MA-MFT, RCC

Shahrzad Jamali

Shahrzad is a Registered Clinical Counsellor and has a Master’s of Arts degree in Marriage and Family Therapy. She holds a Bachelor degree in Psychology with an emphasis on neuroscience from University of British Columbia. She has over 6 years experience of helping individuals with developmental disabilities and their families.

Shahrzad enjoys working with individuals, couples, and families ranging from children to adults. In her role as a therapist, She supports clients to overcome their relational and emotional problems in a safe and non-judgemental environment. She understands how easily we can get stuck and how profoundly the stories and wounds from the past can impact our current relationships, situations and outcomes. Through working collaboratively with clients, she approaches each individual with empathy, respect, curiosity and hope.

Shahrzad practices with a foundation in Attachment Theory while using Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT), Solution Focused Therapy, and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT). She believes that every person lives within a system: family, community, and culture. She approaches therapy through this systemic framework and walks alongside her clients in their journey of healing and transformation.

Shahrzad has experience working with a range of modalities and issues including:
- Marriage and Couple Therapy (including conflict and communication issues, intimacy challenges, and infidelity).
- Premarital Counselling
- EMDR
- Anxiety and Depression
- Grief and Loss
- Trauma (Including childhood abuse, sexual assault)
- Addiction (Substance use and sexual addictions)
- Parenting
- Spirituality
- Cultural adjustment
- Developmental disabilities
- Chronic Illnesses

She is fluent in three languages including English, Farsi, and Turkish.

Book an appointment with Shahrzad.



Katherine Ouano, MEd 

Katherine Ouano Therapist

I strive to provide a safe place to share and be yourself. I believe people can uncover within themselves a way of coping and relating to their experiences in life, with strength and perseverance. I believe in the resiliency of the human spirit. My aim is to alleviate pain where possible, encourage growth, and work alongside you as you navigate through troubled waters, in a way that helps you feel at home in your sense of self, and to live authentically. 

I have completed my Master of Education in Counselling. I also have a Bachelor of Arts in Child and Youth Care; as well as a Diploma in Child and Youth Care Counselling. 

I have happily spent over 20 years working for the Surrey School District as a Child and Youth Care Worker, working with students who have moderate to intensive behavioural, social, and emotional complexities. 

I also have extensive experience working with youth and adults who have developmental disabilities, and who have been diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder. 

I operate from a relational, person-centred, strengths based and trauma-informed lens. At the same time, I draw from emotionally focused, solution focused, cognitive behavioural, mindfulness-based and humanistic approaches with clients. The counselling therapies are chosen based on the personal preferences, tendencies, the therapeutic relationship we develop.

The perspectives I work from promote healing fundamentally from empathy and compassion. I have been enjoying my twenty-five years of experience working with children, youth and their families. The relationships developed are most important to me. 
I also support children, youth and adults with a variety of concerns including:

• Anxiety
• Depression
• Grief & Loss 
• Trauma
• Emotional Regulation
• Personal Growth
• Life Transitions
• Self-esteem
• Conflict in relationships  
• Communication skills
• Issues relating to Covid-19 and the pandemic

I look forward to meeting and building a genuine connection with you, to help you on your journey.

Book an appointment with Katherine Ouano 


Amandeep Brar, MA (in progress)

Amandeep Brar Therapist

I am enrolled in a Master of Counselling degree at City University in Vancouver and have experience working with high risk youth and their families as a Safe Schools support staff.  Therapeutic Approach

My therapeutic approach comes from a multicultural, trauma-informed, and anti-oppressive lens. Within my sessions I draw on a variety of approaches, such as Person-Centered, Cognitive Behavioural, and Mindfulness theories. I often work with those who are struggling with anxiety, trauma, and clients that are new to therapy. I know therapy can appear intimidating and have a lot of uncertainty around it, that’s why I spend individualized time with all my clients to create a trusting environment. Whether you're familiar with therapy or new to it, you can expect to be welcomed with kindness, acceptance, and openness.

My hope as a counsellor is to give you choice in therapy, while co-creating a toolbox to help you identify, as well as manage your emotions in your life. It would be a privilege to be able to walk alongside my client’s journey in self-reflection and healing.  I am motivated to understand and relate to people from all walks of life. I welcome youth, adolescents, families, and couples. 

My identity as a first generation Southeast Asian woman of colour, has come with experiences of struggling to balance my bicultural upbringing with pressures to please family and do well with peers. My childhood and adolescence took me through my own journey of understanding mental health and the importance of supporting myself as well as asking for help when I needed. I have always appreciated that part of myself that was able to provide support and space for others, and while I had many experiences along the way, I believe that those parts were preparing me for becoming a counsellor.

I look forward to working with you.

Book an appointment with Amandeep.


Andrew Phillipps, MA, RCC 

Counsellor Andrew Phillipps

My goal is to provide a warm, accepting and calm space for clients to mindfully explore their challenges with life in a secure, non-judgemental environment. Change occurs when an individual feels secure enough within an accepting relationship to explore their feelings, and move past emotional issues that may prevent them from living authentically. The human condition is fraught with challenges and it can be agonizing to carry your burdens alone. I believe it is my calling to help people journey through life in a way that alleviates burdens and reduces the sense of isolation. I use a person-centered and systemic approach known as Internal Family Systems that connects you to different parts of yourself in order to improve the intrapsychic as well as interpersonal connection.

I also incorporate a mindfulness approach, as I believe increasing awareness of one’s own behavioural patterns is a driver of personal transformation. Mindfulness is an essential tool because it helps to identify issues to work on in counselling, and also serves as a tool to empower people to remain in the present even when something from the past is triggering, or something from the future is anxiety-provoking.

Another unique element to my practice is the incorporation of Traditional Chinese Medicine, as it emphasizes seeking balance in all things. Emotional issues arise due to imbalances within the psyche, and mindfulness helps to identify these imbalances, as well as any maladaptive behavioural patterns. Traditional Chinese Medicine has given me insight into Eastern, collectivist thought, which helps me to understand different client worldviews.  

I am a Registered Clinical Counsellor, have a Master's of Arts degree in Counselling Psychology from Yorkville University, have completed a Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction course, as well as the ASIST suicide intervention course.  I have 6 years' experience as a support worker caring for mentally challenged clients. 

I am registered with the BC Association of Clinical counsellors and my Registered Clinical Counsellor designation allows those with third-party insurance subsidizing RCC rates to have part or all my fees covered.

I aim to use interventions and design a treatment approach that is tailored specifically to you. No matter who you are and where you come from, my therapeutic practice will ensure that you feel seen, heard and understood. I commend you for taking this step and choosing Counselling as a modality for your healing and it will be my honour to work with you.

Andrew works with a variety of clients facing issues of:
- Depression
- Anxiety
- Trauma and PTSD
- Marriage and couple conflict
- Addiction
- Grief and Loss
- Alcohol and substance use
- Anger management
- Family conflict
- Life transitions
- Men's issues
- Stress
- Suicidality
- Self-esteem
- Intellectual disability
- Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD)


Book an appointment with Andrew.





Professional Associations and Memberships

Jonathan, Shahrzad, and Andrew are members of the BC Association of Clinical Counsellors. Jonathan is also a member of the Canadian Association of Marriage and Family Therapists.

Registered Clinical Counsellor A designation of BC Association of Clinical Counsellors

Registered Marriage and Family Therapist


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