I use the terms counselling and psychotherapy interchangeably. Both are tools for attending to and inquiring about the Self, identifying and overcoming blocks to personal growth and developing healthy relationships to oneself, others and the world around us. Psychotherapy is also a way to learn about how to regulate our nervous systems, be with our emotions and heal our trauma. There are a multitude of ways to practice therapy. I specialize in practices of depth psychotherapy and nature-based therapy. As listed below, I am also proficient in a host of other complimentary modalities.
Depth Psychotherapy
Inspired by the work of Carl Jung, depth psychotherapy is a process of going down and in to unearth and connect with one’s true Self, nature and essence. In depth psychotherapy we actively and intentionally deconstruct the ego self – or our personalities – for the purpose of awakening our true Selves or souls. From a depth perspective, our personalities develop in response to our early environments, often as defences against pain and in bids for belonging and acceptance.
“Instead of transcending ourselves, we must move into ourselves.” — Marion Woodman
Our true Selves and souls live in the realms of the body, dreams and the unconscious. They carry our deep and often unconscious longings, desires and shadows. When we turn our attention inward, we learn to access our own deeper knowings, intuitions, and unique truths. In depth psychotherapy we invite our deeper natures and our hidden parts forward to enter into dialogical relationship with consciousness. As we look ahead – for our role, place, purpose and meaning in the cosmos, we stay in relationship with the mysterious unfolding at the core of our true Selves.
“There is no coming to consciousness without pain. People will do anything, no matter how absurd, in order to avoid facing their own Soul. One does not become enlightened by imagining figures of light, but by making the darkness conscious.” – Carl Jung
Folks who are drawn to darkness and mystery, places like swamps and caves and the underworld are often called to do depth and shadow work. When we embark on this work, we accept that things are likely to feel more uncomfortable before they feel comfortable. In depth work, we intentionally orient towards the dark and seen so we can bring it to light. For more information on depth psychotherapy, read on below.
Nature-Based Therapy
Outdoor sessions are a powerful and often fun way to do counselling. Working in natural settings enables us to draw on the direct and immediate experience of nature as a resource in the healing process. In an outdoor session we might sit by the ocean, take a stroll in the forest, learn about the medicinal and energetic properties of plants, build an outdoor shelter, or co-create a ritual.
The possibilities for working with nature are vast, sometimes spontaneous, often creative and meaningful. Outdoor sessions can teach us how to connect with nature in an intentional and therapeutic way. These practices and the connection to nature as a resource can be drawn on outside of counselling sessions and integrated into everyday life.
Outdoor therapy work is inspired by ecopyschology, a way of understanding the human psyche as interdpendent with and interconnected to the wild world around us. For more information on ecopsychology and outdoor work, check out this blog post.
Who I work with
I have a special interest in working with queer and non-binary folx, neurodivergent individuals, spiritually-oriented people and creative types. As someone who identifies in these ways, I am able to relate to the issues, challenges, worldviews and gifts that often arise alongside these identities. I also welcome all people who are committed to self development and deep inner work.
I also work with folx in relationships along the spectrum from family dynamics to intimate connections.
In addition, I have experience supporting clients struggling with depression, anxiety, grief, loss and personal exploration.
How I work:
I work to provide you with a safe, confidential and non-judgemental space as you take your unique path to wellness. I bring a holistic perspective to mental health which integrates a variety of approaches and perspectives in our work together. I value this approach because I believe that when our challenges are multifaceted, our solutions must be too.
To this end, I work with a wide variety of therapeutic approaches, including:
- Mindfulness
- Somatics/Body-based psychotherapy
- Existentialism
- Nature-based therapy
- Spirituality
- Jungian psychology
- EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing)
- Expressive arts
- I encourage clients to lean into art, movement, writing, inquiry and dreamwork among other things as pathways into creativity and connection to their deeper selves.
The Journey of Depth Psychotherapy
Embarking on the path of depth psychotherapy is like starting a journey or a trek into unknown terrains. We open, invite and enter into the Mystery that is at the heart of this life and uniquely encoded in each of our souls. We often find ourselves traversing new landscapes, accessing new tools and outlooks. We come to meet ourselves and the world in new ways. Sometimes we find new relationships in our journeys – to guides, dreams, archetypes or people. We also learn to navigate the underworld and bring vision into darkness.
This journey is poetic, alchemical (transformative), and not for the faint of heart. We must be ready to give up the life we knew and open to the unknown. As a depth psychotherapist, I position myself as a guide and companion along your unique journey to Soul and Self.
For the Traveller by John O’Donohue
Every time you leave home,
Another road takes you
Into a world you were never in.
New strangers on other paths await.
New places that have never seen you
Will startle a little at your entry.
Old places that know you well
Will pretend nothing
Changed since your last visit.
When you travel, you find yourself
Alone in a different way,
More attentive now
To the self you bring along,
Your more subtle eye watching
You abroad; and how what meets you
Touches that part of the heart
That lies low at home:
How you unexpectedly attune
To the timbre in some voice,
Opening in conversation
You want to take in
To where your longing
Has pressed hard enough
Inward, on some unsaid dark,
To create a crystal of insight
You could not have known
You needed
To illuminate
Your way.
When you travel,
A new silence
Goes with you,
And if you listen,
You will hear
What your heart would
Love to say.
A journey can become a sacred thing:
Make sure, before you go,
To take the time
To bless your going forth,
To free your heart of ballast
So that the compass of your soul
Might direct you toward
The territories of spirit
Where you will discover
More of your hidden life,
And the urgencies
That deserve to claim you.
May you travel in an awakened way,
Gathered wisely into your inner ground;
That you may not waste the invitations
Which wait along the way to transform you.
May you travel safely, arrive refreshed,
And live your time away to its fullest;
Return home more enriched, and free
To balance the gift of days which call you.
Connection
In my experience as both a recipient and practitioner of therapy, I have learned that many of us struggle with the pain of disconnection. Meditation teacher and psychologist Tara Brach speaks to the challenges of living in an age of social media and materialism; we live in a culture that is at once highly communicative and highly disconnected. High quantities of interactions (e.g. texts and social media interactions) often mean we give and receive low quality connection. Modern culture makes it easy to lose touch with the people around us and more importantly with our deeper sense of ourseves.
As a therapist, I help clients:
- Reclaim their connections to their authentic selves
- Work through blocks in connecting to others and develop healthy relationships
- Connect to their place and purpose in the world
Remembering how to be in authentic connection can help address challenges like loneliness, isolation, relationship issues, depression and anxiety.
Working Together
Currently based in Victoria, B.C., and the Cowichan Valley, I am available to work with clients in person and online.
I offer a free consult to help you assess whether working with me will be a fit.
contact: caitlin@pivotintoharmony.com
Testimonials
“Working with Caitlin has been a very natural experience, full of ease and trust. I really appreciate the way she holds space and simultaneously responds in a helpful and appropriate manner. As a result, I have left our sessions feeling heard, and with a lot more clarity. She is a very talented, grounded therapist, who offers so much wisdom and clarity.” — S.H
“Working with Caitlin has been a great experience. Her interest in and ability to tailor our sessions to my specific needs has been positive and helpful. As my first foray into therapy she has made me feel comfortable and supported and I find so much value in our relationship.”
— M.A.
Pivot into Harmony 