About Heather Caruso
Heather Caruso offers psychotherapy and art therapy services to adults, children, and teens online and in person. She serves the Guelph, Cambridge, and Kitchener-Waterloo areas. She is a Registered Psychotherapist (RP), Trauma Counselor, Registered Canadian Art Therapist (RCAT) and and the owner of Art Therapy Guelph.
Heather has personally experienced and continues to witness the gentle, transformational power of art therapy. As an art therapist in Ontario, she believes art therapy is liberating and healing. Her hope is that together with her clients, they can process the darkness of the past and paint a brighter future.
Heather’s Approach
Heather’s aim in psychotherapy is to work alongside her clients to support them in reaching their goals. Her approach tailor suits various psychotherapy techniques to the clients needs. In sessions she uses Art Therapy, Creative Art-making, Brainspotting, CBT, DBT, Mindfulness, and Internal Family Systems.
Brainspotting Therapy™ (BSP) is a therapeutic technique that uses specific points in a client’s visual field to access unprocessed trauma and/or stuck points in the subcortical brain. BSP uses related eye positions, somatic awareness, focused mindfulness and the therapist’s attunement to process and release the stored traumas which underlie a wide range of emotional and physical problems.
Heather's goal is to help her clients to do the following in their own time and space:
- Recognise thoughts and behaviors that help or hold them back.
- Express their emotions and feelings in a safe space and healthy way
- Understand and process stored trauma and negative life experiences.
- Work through the client’s choice of personal stuck points that hold them back in their minds and behaviors.
- Cope with difficult life experiences in the present and past.
- Feel respected as a unique individual.
- Develop coping skills such as mindfulness and body-based grounding tools.
- Identify core values and strengths to live according to one’s principles.
- Learn healthy boundaries and assertive communication.
- Enhance self-compassion, kindness, and curiosity about themselves.
- Cultivate a balanced life for a healthy mind, body, and spirit.
Our Services
At Art Therapy Guelph, we support the mental health of adults, teenagers, and children across Ontario. We offer individual therapy for all ages and group sessions for adult women. We facilitate a warm, open environment where our participants feel accepted, supported, appreciated, and understood.
Qualifications and Continuing Education
Heather’s extensive education and training as an art therapist in Ontario include:- Bachelor of Science from the University of Toronto
- Diploma in Art Therapy from the Vancouver Art Therapy Institute
- Certified Clinical Trauma Professional level I and II for Complex Trauma (CCTP-II)
- Certified Narcissistic Abuse Treatment Clinician
- Certificate in Trauma Counselling for Mental Health Professionals
- Certificate in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Level 1 and 2
- Certificate in Dialectical Behavior Therapy
- Certificate in Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction
Professional Affiliations and Memberships
- College of Registered Psychotherapists of Ontario
- Canadian Art Therapy Association
- Ontario Art Therapy Association
- Ontario Society of Registered Psychotherapists
Professional Development
- Internal Family Systems
- Internal Family Systems for PTSD and Complex Trauma
- Somatic Internal Family Systems
- Brainspotting Phase 1
- Trauma Informed Culturally Responsive Expressive Arts
- Healing Trauma with Guided Drawing
- Bilateral Stimulation, EMDR and Art Therapy
- Restorative Embodiment and Expressive Arts Therapy
- Restorative Attachment and Expressive Arts Therapy
Get in Touch
Want more information? Art Therapy Guelph offers a complimentary 15-minute chat where you can ask questions and see if our services are a good fit for you. Click the BOOK NOW button to reserve your time.