About me

I’m Cat. I am a white, cis, queer femme with French, British and Scottish ancestry. I was raised in Mi’kma’ki in so-called Halifax, Nova Scotia and am currently living in Tiohti:áke / Montréal.

touchstone craniosacral is the home for my bodywork practice which aims to be affirmative, trauma-informed and politicized.

I’ve found so much potency in this work. I believe the quality of touch, presence, and gentleness that BCST offers is a valuable resource for all kinds of bodies, and I am grateful to be able to grow and share in this work.

My commitments

I am committed to the intersection of healing work and justice; to anti-racist, decolonial, anti-oppressive practice rooted in community care and mutual aid. I work to attend to the ways that structural power and privilege operate in relation to my practice, knowing that our experiences of embodiment are always impacted by our social and cultural environments. I am committed to divesting from the ways that white supremacy shows up in my work and in my life. I approach these commitments with a lens informed by the work of Indigenous, Black, queer, and disabled folks. As I step into this work, I centre these commitments and welcome any feedback regarding how I might do this better.

I am committed to coming alongside you to support you in your healing process. You know your body better than anyone; in the practitioner-client relationship, I work to unpack the idea that the practitioner is “expert”. In our work together, your body leads, setting the pace, according to your capacity.

I am committed to “grappling with cure” (borrowed from the work of Eli Clare) and investing in finding ways to support one another in health beyond myths of purity and cure. As a neurodivergent and chronically ill person, I work to unpack the ways that ableism shows up in the world of healthcare and in my own practice.

My background

I completed the BCST practitioner certification course offered through Body Intelligence, receiving my diploma in November 2021. From fall of 2021 until summer of 2022, I was grateful to practice out of Heart & Hands Health Collective in Lkwungen territory (“Victoria, BC”).

Before studying BCST I received a Bachelor of Arts degree in philosophy, focused on feminist philosophies and philosophies of embodiment, at Mount Allison University on the unceded lands of the Mi’kmaq and Wolastoqiyik people in so-called New Brunswick.

In varying capacities over the past 6+ years, I have worked as a caregiver and have been involved in community care and mutual aid work. I am currently a community worker at an organization in Montreal supporting young parents.

Further training/continuing education

Craniosacral for Skeptics with Michael Hamm at Integrative Bodywork Education 12/03/2022

Return: The Roots of our Practice 4-month course in embodied ancestral inquiry for white somatic practitioners facilitated by Marika Heinrichs at wildbody somatics 03/2022-06/2022

Embodied Anatomy: Unwinding and Becoming with Michael Hamm at Integrative Bodywork Education 06/18/2022

Embodied Anatomy: Mapmaking for Somatic Practitioners with Michael Hamm at Integrative Bodywork Education 04/02/2022