Fatoumata Barrie (she/her)

MSW, RSW

Fatou is a Social Worker registered with the Ordre des travailleurs sociaux et des thérapeutes conjugaux et familiaux du Québec (OTSTCFQ), and is also registered with the Ontario College of Social Workers and Social Service Workers. She holds a Bachelor of Social Work and a Master’s degree from the University of Toronto, where she completed a clinical specialization in mental health.

Fatou supports individuals, couples, and families, drawing on experience from hospital programs, community organizations, and specialized outpatient services.

Fatou has advanced clinical experience working with individuals living with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). At Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, she provided individual and group clinical support for people with complex, treatment-resistant presentations, drawing on evidence-based approaches such as Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP), acceptance and commitment strategies (ACT), dialectical behaviour skills (DBT), mindfulness-based strategies, and psychoeducation.

At Forward Thinking, Fatou works with individuals with OCD experiencing intrusive thoughts, compulsions, perfectionism, contamination fears, moral scrupulosity, and relational or responsibility-based obsessions. Her focus is on helping clients gradually face feared situations, reduce avoidance and compulsive behaviours, and build more flexible relationships with distressing thoughts and sensations. She supports clients in reconnecting with their values and regaining a sense of agency in daily life.

Beyond her work with OCD, Fatou supports individuals, couples, and families navigating a variety of concerns, including anxiety, depression, trauma, grief, life transitions, caregiver stress, substance use, identity-related issues, and relational conflict. Her clinical background includes work with youth and families experiencing developmental and social challenges, adults adjusting to aging-related changes, and individuals affected by migration, displacement, and systemic trauma.

Fatou also works with individuals with ADHD and autism. She is attentive to how neurodivergence, sensory sensitivity, and emotional regulation differences shape self-understanding, relationships, and daily functioning. Her approach integrates relational, mindfulness-based, and somatic-informed interventions to support nervous system regulation, emotional awareness, and a sense of safety in the body. She maintains a strong sensitivity to cultural, social, and systemic contexts.

Fatou’s clinical style is warm, collaborative, and trauma-informed. She strives to create a compassionate space where clients can explore uncertainty, shame, and self-criticism while developing self-supportive ways of relating to their experiences. She values transparency, curiosity, and attunement, encouraging moments of pause, grounding, and reflection during times of stress or change.

In her work with couples and families, Fatou emphasizes mutual understanding and emotional safety. She helps clients explore recurring patterns, attachment needs, communication dynamics, and the impact of transitions or stressors, with the goal of strengthening connection.

Fatou believes this work can hold both depth and lightness. She often incorporates creativity, imagery, metaphor, and gentle humour to invite new perspectives.

Outside of her clinical work, Fatou is a passionate reader who finds inspiration in literature and storytelling. She values curiosity, slowness, and shared moments of laughter, qualities that naturally extend into the way she connects and builds trust with the people she works with.