Alex Castro - PhD Student

Alex received her Honours B.A. with a specilization in Psychology at the University of Ottawa. Following her undergraduate degree, her desire to combine her interest in both neuroscience and clinical psychology lead her to join the NEST lab in 2020. She is currently pursuing her PhD in clinical psychology at the University of Ottawa, under the supervision of Drs. Sara Tremblay and Patrick Davidson.

Her research project proposes to use transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) to study the functional integrity and excitability of the cholinergic system across the lifespan, specifically to probe the underlying neurophysiological processes of memory. Her research is currently being supported by a NSERC Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarship.

Beyond being born in Portugal, another surprising fact most people do not know about her is that she saw the Canadian Rocky Mountains from an unusual vantage point - by free-falling from 10,000 feet at a speed of 120 mph while skydiving in British Columbia.

Noémie Landry - PsyD Student

In 2017, I graduated from Cégep de l'Abitibi-Témiscamingue with a Technique of Social Work. Passionate about the study of brain mechanisms and human behavior, I decided to pursue my academic career with a Bachelor's degree in Psychology at Université du Québec en Outaouais (UQO).

In July 2020, during my last year of undergraduate studies, I got involved in the NEST lab. Thus, I had the chance to complete my honours thesis under the supervision of Dr. Sara Tremblay. My project aimed to study the impact of the abrupt cessation and resumption of theta burst stimulation treatment (TBS), due to the pandemic, on the depressive symptoms of two patients with major depression.

With a growing interest in the field of neurosciences, I decided to pursue a PhD in clinical neuropsychology at UQO. My PhD project will investigate the role of the combination of transcranial magnetic stimulation and electroencephalography (TMS-EEG) as a neurophysiological measure to predict clinical response to TBS treatment in patients with depressive disorders. In parallel to my studies, I’m working with a clinical population with Alzheimer disease. The areas of intervention and research that fascinate me are mental health and neurodegenerative diseases.

Manon Desforges - PsyD Student

I graduated from the University of Montreal with a B.Sc and a M.Sc in Psychology in co-direction with The Royal Institute of Mental Health, I am currently enrolled in a PsyD in Clinical Psychology at Université du Québec en Outaouais in collaboration with The Royal. It has been a great pleasure as well as valuable and rewarding experience to work with Dr. Sara Tremblay since January 2017, to get involved in the lab since its very beginning and to see it grow.

I take part in several projects. I am very happy to help train new lab members and assist with TMS-EEG data preprocessing. My research focuses on understanding the neuronal mechanisms of intermittent transcranial magnetic theta-burst stimulation of the prefrontal cortex and on optimizing its use as a stimulation tool applied to the treatment of major depressive disorder. I am passionate about neuropsychology and I plan to pursue both clinical and research practice. I truly believe that both of them are essential and I aim to help people struggling with major depressive disorder while offering them a better and shorter noninvasive treatment.

Marie-Claude Desjardins - PsyD Student

Marie-Claude recently joined the NEST Lab. A criminologist by training, she completed a second bachelor's degree in psychology at the Université du Québec en Outaouais (UQO) in 2022. Under the co-supervision of Drs. Caroline Blais and Sara Tremblay, her honours thesis focused on the impact of direct current stimulation on empathic abilities and the processing of facial expressions of pain.

This mentoring continues as part of her clinical doctorate in neuropsychology, which she began in 2022 at UQO. Her doctoral thesis will address the themes of empathy and pain perception using repeated transcranial magnetic stimulation. More specifically, her projects focus on visual and social perception, in particular the decoding and underestimation of facial expressions of pain. She is particularly interested in understanding how the neural mechanisms involved in social cognition interact with the perceptual factors underlying the human visual system, and how this in turn influences behavior. She is currently fortunate to benefit from a master's scholarship from the Fonds de recherche en sciences naturelles et en technologie du Québec. Outside of her academic activities, she is an avid wilderness camper and road-tripper!

Alexandra Lemoyne - PsyD Student

Hello, my name is Alexandra. In December 2020, I completed my Bachelor's degree in Psychology at the University of Montreal. In September 2021, I started my PsyD in clinical neuropsychology, under the supervision of Dr. Tremblay at the Université du Québec en Outaouais in collaboration with The Royal. My doctoral thesis focuses on comparing the therapeutic efficacy of unilateral and bilateral theta burst stimulation in patients with major depression, as well as predicting treatment response using resting state connectivity between the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and the anterior cingulate cortex. During my undergraduate degree, I also worked as a research assistant at the Douglas Hospital on a project on psychological pain and cognition in elderly depressed patients at risk for suicide. I am passionate about neuropsychology and my future career goal is to be a clinical neuropsychologist. A fun fact about me is that I play the piano in my spare time, and I really enjoy running.  

Christophe Carleton - PsyD Student

Christophe obtained his bachelor's degree in psychology from the Université du Québec en Outaouais (UQO) in the summer of 2023. He is currently doing a PsyD in neuropsychology at UQO under the supervision of Dr. Sara Tremblay. In addition, he has been a member of the NEST lab since October 2021, assisting with document translation, rTMS treatments, TMS-EEGs and other lab projects. The main focus of his research projects is the representation and neuromodulation of motor cortex in neurotypical participants. His current hobbies include chess and sport.

Ines Jani

I graduated from Carleton University with a BSc Honours in Neuroscience and Mental health with a minor in Psychology in Spring 2020. I have volunteered in Dr Tremblay’s lab since January 2019 and completed my honours thesis from September 2019 to April 2020. I have been involved in the iTBS and PET study in Dr Tremblay’s lab. I received the award of best poster presentation at the Psychiatry Research Day conference in November 2019. I worked as a part-time Research Assistant from June 2020 to June 2022.

I am now completing a Master’s in Neuroscience in Paris, France.

Kelly Schincariol

I completed my Bachelor of Science in 2020, at Carleton University, majoring in Neuroscience and Mental Health with a minor in Psychology. I started volunteering at the NEST lab in January 2019 and worked a full-time Research Assistant II position from July 2021 to January 2023! During this time, I assisted in both the clinical double-blind rTMS trial, as well as a study that looks at neural mechanisms of theta burst stimulation. During the fourth year of my undergrad, I completed the Honours Workshop in Neuroscience at Carleton which largely focuses on science communication. Through this year-long workshop, I discovered my passion for education and helping others understand complex concepts.

I now work in the field of pharmaceutics.

Abir Gebara

I worked as a full-time research assistant and research coordinator from August 2019 to October 2021, and loved every minute of it! My main role was coordinating the rTMS Clinical Trials Study, which includes administrating treatment, enrolling participants, and conducting clinical interviews. In 2016, I graduated from Carleton University with a Bachelor of Social Work (Honours) Degree and in 2018 I graduated from Ryerson University with a Master of Social Work Degree. I completed my Master’s thesis on the impact of religion and culture on the mental health of young adults who identify as Canadian, Arab, and Muslim. 

I now live in California and work as a research coordinator at Stanford University.