Dr. Elena Ivanova

Primary areas:

• Anxiety Disorders;
• Depression;
• Self-esteem;
• Pain management; &
• Anger management

Location:

• Burlington

Licensing Body:

College of Psychologist of Ontario – Psychologist (Interim Autonomous Practice)

Authorized Area of Practice:

• Clinical Psychology

Populations:

• Adults
• Adolescents

About:

Dr. Elena Ivanova is a clinical psychologist providing psychological treatment services and assessments to adults and adolescents.  She completed her doctoral degree in Clinical Psychology from McGill University and a postdoctoral fellowship from the University of British Columbia.  Her research focused on personalising behaviour change strategies to promote long term health behaviours changes (e.g., eating behaviour habits, physical activity engagement, sleep modifications) to reduce the risk of developing chronic disease/s.

Dr. Ivanova’s treatment approaches are informed by evidence-based treatments, including cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), motivational interviewing, emotion focused therapy (EFT), dialectical behaviour therapy (DBT) skills training, and acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT). Dr. Ivanova’s treatment offers a supportive and validating therapeutic environment. Her communication style is to work together with the client to identify and support their needs and goals. Dr. Ivanova encourages clients with compassion to focus on meaningful explorations of their emotions and values to bring about personally relevant changes in their life.

Dr. Ivanova has experience and interest working with adults and adolescents who report concerns with anxiety-related symptoms, depression, anger, pain, living with and managing a chronic health condition, and making health behaviour changes.

Dr. Ivanova is a member of the Ontario Psychological Association.

Publications:

Ivanova, E., Vinek, J., & Jung, M. E. (2020). Reducing nursing student distress through a mindfulness-based curriculum. Current Psychology.

Bourne, J. E., Ivanova, E., Gainforth, H. L., Jung, M. E. (2019). Mapping behavior change techniques to characterize a social cognitive theory informed physical activity intervention for adults at risk of type 2 diabetes. Translational Behavioral Medicine.

Knäuper, B., Carrière, K., Frayn, M., Ivanova, E., Xu, Z., Lowensteyn, I., Sadikaj, Luszczynska, A., Grover, S., and McGill CHIP Healthy Weight Program Investigators. Increasing the Effectiveness of the Diabetes Prevention Program Through If-Then Plans: 3- and 12-Months Results of the McGill CHIP Healthy Weight Program. Obesity (in press).

 Ivanova, E., Bourne. J.B., Sadikaj, B., Locke, S.R., Beauchamp, M., Little, J.P., Jung, M.E. Pilot Findings on Manipulating In-Task Affect and Examining Physical Activity Behavior over Time. Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport.  (in print).

Ivanova, E., Burns, R. J., Deschênes, S. S., Knäuper, B., & Schmitz, N. (2017). A longitudinal investigation of anxiety and depressive symptomatology and exercise behaviour among adults with Type 2 diabetes mellitus. Canadian Journal of Diabetes. [adhead of pub] doi: 10.1016/j.jcjd.2016.07.006.

 Ivanova, E., Coroiu, A., Ahluwalia, A., Alexandrov, E., & Lafreniere, K. D. (2016). Preliminary findings on the association between symptoms of depression and adherence to antiretroviral therapy in individuals born inside versus outside of Canada. Journal of the Association of Nurses in AIDS Care. 27(4), 512-523.

Ivanova, E., Yaakoba-Zohar, N., Jensen, D., Cassoff, J., & Knäuper, B. (2016). Acceptance and commitment therapy and implementation intentions increase exercise enjoyment and long-term exercise behavior among low-active women. Current Psychology. 35(1), 108-114.

 Ivanova, E., Jensen, D., Cassoff, J., Gu, F., & Knäuper, B. (2015). Acceptance and commitment therapy improves exercise tolerance in sedentary women. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise. 47(6), 1251-1258.

Knäuper, B., Ivanova, E., Xu, Z., Chamandy, M., Lowensteyn, I., Joseph, L., Luszczynska, A., & Grover, S. (2014). Increasing the effectiveness of the Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP) through if-then plans: Study protocol for the randomized controlled trial of the McGill CHIP Healthy Weight Program. BMC Public Health. 14, 470-478.

Wagner, A., Ivanova, E., Hart, T., & Loutfy, M. (2014). Examining the traits-desires-intentions-behavior (TDIB) model for fertility planning in women living with HIV in Ontario, Canada. AIDS Patient Care and STDs. 28(11), 594-601.

Rosen, N., Ivanova, E., & Knäuper, B. (2014). Differentiating intolerance of uncertainty from three related but distinct concepts. Anxiety, Stress, and Coping. 27(1), 55-73.

Ivanova, E., Hart, T. A., Wagner, A. C., Aljassem, K., & Loutfy, M. R. (2012). Correlates of anxiety in women living with HIV of reproductive age. AIDS and Behavior. 16(8), 2181-2191.

Wagner, A. C, Hart, T. A., Mohammed, S., Ivanova, E., Wong, J., & Loutfy, M. (2010). Correlates of HIV stigma in HIV positive (HIV+) women. Archives of Women’s Mental Health, 13, 207-241. doi: 10.1007/s0073 7-010-0158-2.