I offer creative arts therapy to adolescents and adults. I am ACC registered but currently am not taking on new ACC clients unless it is for short term focussed work. I provide supervision to counsellors wanting to use creative arts and I specialise in working with trauma. I have a studio in Lyttelton and I also work as a survivor specialist at Project Restore- a survivor led restorative justice project. In 2024 I will be offering Open Floor conscious dance/art classes in Christchurch- see workshops page for more details.
Creative arts and conscious dance have enhanced my life, helped me through some challenging times and deepened my experience of life. You don’t have to be an artist to express something that is almost impossible (and often painful) to put into words, you just have to feel safe enough to have a go. I am a qualified Arts Therapist, counsellor and Open Floor teacher and offer Therapy in Motion to people who want to blend and integrate a body (bottom up) approach with a mind (top down) approach, using the wisdom of their own physical experience in the therapeutic encounter.
When we use dance movement to be fully embodied—physically, emotionally, mindfully—it means we are present for anything and everything. To be embodied is to come to our senses, to feel our power and to make things happen in our world. My approach combines talk therapy, movement and art to enable powerful body experiences to be given meaning and be understood.
I have built an eclectic mix of skills and incorporate the creative into whatever work I do. I have over 30 years of extensive experience working with sexual abuse, trauma, anxiety, and self harm, with families, adolescents, children and groups. I have worked for Start, STOP, CanTeen, Project Restore and other organisations providing counselling and creative arts/dance therapy to clients.
I offer individual sessions; group work; and supervision for counsellors and arts therapists.
I also teach Open Floor Dance.
What is Open Floor?
What is this dance practice?
Of course, any form of dance is fun, can be uplifting and releasing of tension, encourage connection with others and make us feel good.
However Open Floor is an opportunity, for those who are curious, courageous and craving deeper connections, to take this further.
Open Floor is a guided, facilitated class with a teacher holding the space, which makes it a little bit different.
When we begin a class, we say ‘the floor is open’.
But open for what?
In this practice of embodiment, we harness the magic of the myriad ways that the heart, mind and body communicate, often without us realising.
There is a growing acknowledgement that these 3 parts of self are all connected and are in constant communication with one another. Therefore, if we pay attention to each, and deeply listen, we can gain useful insight and understanding which can enable growth.
If we step onto the Open Floor with intention to include all of our being, the mind, the heart, the body and the soul, we are offered the opportunity to learn about ourselves and integrate that learning.
Through dance we can begin to access the wisdom of the body- which stores experiences in the somatic realm. Through this mindful noticing we can:
- Release tension and stored trauma.
- Understand, process and heal through
- Connect to our instinctual wild physicality through the engagement of movement,
- Allow the curiosity of the mind to ponder without judgement and be held in the loving embrace of the heart.
If we dance with an intention and an openness to whatever arises we can learn so much about ourselves, our needs and how to heal past hurts.
To dance on the Open Floor is more than a good dance…it is a place to grow.
Qualifications MA(clinical) in Arts Psychotherapy from Whitecliffe College of Arts
Diploma in Humanistic & Integrative Psychotherapy BCPC/UK (Registered Psychotherapist UKCP in UK til 2003)Open Floor and Therapy In Motion Teacher-Open Floor International Certificate in Professional Supervision BPS301
Membership of Professional Associations
New Zealand Association of Counsellors NZAC
Australia, New Zealand & Asia Creative Arts Therapy Association ANZACATA