My philosophy of supervision is grounded in relational psychotherapy, feminist philosophy of intersubjectivity, and developmental theory, as well as a recognition of the importance of systems of power and oppression in our work. I also bring my trauma therapist side to my role as educator, because knowledge of the nervous system and survival responses lays a crucial groundwork for healthy learning.
I see our work together as a collaboration with a precious tradition to uphold. I recognize that as a supervisor, and as a senior clinician, I hold a measure of power; to deny that could be dangerous. But my goal is the judicious transfer of that power as you become more and more ready to wield it. That means supporting your learning, and attuning to you to know when you are ready for more challenge. It also means a predictable, engaging, and empowering process of evaluation, both formative and summative. I would not enter into this relationship if I were not invested in your development and success, and if I were not excited to welcome you into a profoundly meaningful profession.
I believe that learning, and the development of identity, happens in relationship. To me, that means intersubjectivity: a shared process of meaning-making based in mutual respect and transformative growth. I believe that the supervisory relationship needs to provide grounding and safety in order for exploration, experimentation, and play to happen, all of which facilitate learning and growth. The goal of supervision is that the supervisee learns the skills of psychotherapy and grows in their professional identity as psychotherapist. So, our relationship serves those goals, providing the fertile ground for supervisees to gain and hone their skills, to make mistakes and recover. And by attuning to you and your whole personhood, I’m also modeling for you what a therapist can be.
Good relationships aren’t possible without good boundaries. Boundaries communicate safety and care in a relationship. They are a way of showing respect to each other, to our clients, and to the dignity of our profession. Practicing good boundaries is an essential skill for a therapist. I will hold myself, and you, to high standards of dignity in behaviour, but I will always make those standards and the paths for repair clear to you.
I work with flexibility and compassion, and I also want to pass on to you the pride I have in this powerful profession. That power means we have the capacity to do great harm. So as I help you become more identified with this profession, I want you to be able to hold the joy of transformative power responsibly, along with the knowledge that you can harm. I want you to be able to walk this path with lightness, confidence, and a reverence for the gravity of what we do.
My relational focus does not stop at the two of us: all relationships develop in the context of structures and systems, and I acknowledge these by working from feminist and anti-oppression frameworks. I work with individuals, dyads, and groups, and I encourage all of us to remain conscious of how our multi-layered identities fit in larger systems, and how they affect our relationships with our clients.
Seeing the supervisee as a whole person also means recognizing their developmental stage on the path to becoming a therapist and meeting them right where they are. Depending on your needs, which you and I will both assess at regular intervals, I may introduce structured exercises to hone particular skills, focus on case studies and role plays, or encourage you to experiment to develop a particular aspect of your professional identity. In all of this, I will approach our work together with both gravity and playfulness, precision and flexibility, compassion and curiosity.