Navigating life's defining journeys, together.
At DEFINING JOURNEYS, we believe that every journey is different, and the support you receive should reflect that.
Our mission is to provide compassionate, informed, and individualized support to people navigating fertility, surrogacy, reproductive loss, cancer and health diagnoses, grief, parenthood, and life's many unexpected transitions. Whether you are facing a difficult diagnosis, building your family in a way you never anticipated, grieving a loss, or simply trying to make sense of what comes next, we are here to meet you where you are.
Our work is grounded in safe, ethical, inclusive, and person-centred practice.
We believe in informed decision-making, autonomy, transparency, healthy boundaries, and ensuring that every person involved feels respected, supported, and heard.
We welcome all identities, family structures, backgrounds, and paths forward.
There is no single right way to build a family, navigate a diagnosis, experience loss, or move through a major life transition.
Your journey is unique. Your support should be too.
About Us
{ About the Founder }
Marisa Bernardo
MSW, RSW, Registered Social Worker, Psychotherapist, Surrogacy Specialist
INTENDED MOTHER ⋒ CANCER SURVIVOR ⋒ EDUCATOR & ADVOCATE
Marisa Bernardo (MSW, RSW) is a Registered Social Worker, psychotherapist, surrogacy specialist, and the founder of Defining Journeys, a counselling, psychotherapy, and reproductive support practice for individuals and families navigating infertility, surrogacy, reproductive loss, onco-fertility, postpartum adjustment, and the many transitions that come with building a family or facing a life-altering health experience.
Marisa's path to this work began long before it became her profession. Following a cancer diagnosis that took away her ability to carry a pregnancy, she pursued parenthood through surrogacy, ultimately becoming a mother through three separate journeys. Her first journey ended without a baby; her second journey with the help of her second surrogate brought her first son DJ in July 2023, and her third journey, with the help of her surrogate Alycia, brought her second son, West, in December 2025.
Living through that process, the uncertainty, the medical complexity, the emotional weight of relying on someone else to carry your child, showed her firsthand how isolating and difficult to navigate this path can be without informed, compassionate support close by. In 2019, Marisa was in school studying to become a social worker and psychotherapist, and as her life evolved, so did her career: Defining Journeys grew out of that gap, a practice built to offer ethical education, steady clinical care, and genuine understanding, from the earliest questions through decision-making, treatment, and
life beyond.
Today, her practice supports individuals and families working through infertility,
onco-fertility, reproductive trauma, health trauma and anxiety, fertility loss, embryo loss, miscarriage, postpartum transitions, parenthood after infertility or surrogacy, grief and loss, cancer, health journeys, life-altering diseases and diagnoses, life transitions, chronic pain, PTSD, and palliative journeys.
Marisa blends clinical therapy with education and advocacy, so clients leave feeling
not only supported, but informed and equipped for whatever decision comes next.
The Details
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Bachelor of Social Work (BSW) - University of Waterloo
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Masters of Social Work (MSW) - University of Waterloo
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Registered Social Worker (RSW) - Ontario College of Social Workers and Social Service Worker
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Bachelor of Childhood Development - University of Guelph Humber
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Early Childhood Education Diploma, University of Guelph Humber
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Canadian Fertility & Andrology Society (CFAS) Member
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American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM) Member
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Chair, Canada's First Third Party Reproduction Special Interest Group, CFAS
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Board Member, Oasis Fertility Support Network
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Partner & Ambassador, Fertility Friends Foundation
Marisa's approach is client-centred and trauma-informed, shaped as much by her clinical training as by her own experience sitting on the other side of these decisions. She believes no one should have to navigate infertility, surrogacy, a serious health diagnosis, or a major life transition without someone who understands both the clinical picture and the human one.
Rather than treating therapy and advocacy as separate things, Marisa weaves them together- helping clients process grief, fear, and uncertainty while also making sense of the practical and medical decisions in front of them. Her goal for every client is to feel grounded, informed, and genuinely less alone, whether they're just starting to ask questions or are years into a journey that hasn't gone the way they expected.
Beyond her clinical practice, Marisa is an active voice in the fertility and surrogacy community. She serves as a board member with the Oasis Fertility Support Network, where she develops resources and facilitates free support groups. She is also Chair of Canada's first Third-Party Reproduction Special Interest Group with the Canadian Fertility and Andrology Society (CFAS), and a partner and ambassador for the Fertility Friends Foundation.
Across all of this work, Marisa advocates for greater awareness, accessibility, and equity in reproductive care. She leads and hosts many free support groups, speaks publicly on fertility and surrogacy topics, and volunteers a significant amount of her time to the community, always looking for ways to make the industry more ethical, accessible, and safe for everyone involved.
Through this advocacy and education work, Marisa has supported hundreds of patients, fertility warriors, intended parents, surrogates, donors and families directly, and reached millions more with informed, compassionate guidance shared online.
Working with Marisa means working with someone who has sat on both sides of the table- as a clinician and as a patient. Sessions are a safe, non-judgmental space to talk through the parts of your journey that are hard to say out loud anywhere else: the grief, the fear, the logistics, and the in-between moments no one prepares you for.
Marisa meets clients where they are, at whatever stage of the journey they've reached, and works alongside them, not ahead of them- toward feeling more supported, more informed, and more able to move forward.
Alycia King
SURROGACY SUPPORT COORDINATOR
SURROGATE ⋒ SURROGACY EDUCATOR & ADVOCATE
Alycia began her surrogacy journey years ago and has since completed two journeys as a gestational carrier, welcoming her first “belly bud,” West, in December 2025. Through her experiences, she has become deeply immersed in the surrogacy community, developing a passion for community education, advocating for ethical surrogacy practices, and supporting intended parents and surrogates throughout each stage of their journey.
Her first experience was challenging, marked by a missed miscarriage and difficulties accessing medical care, which only strengthened her commitment to supporting and advocating for surrogates facing similar struggles. For years, Alycia has hosted a free surrogate support group, and she now provides personalized one-on-one support to surrogates who are currently on their journey and seeking additional guidance.
