FAT Moon Podcast

Lily Jiménez Dabdoub (she/her) identifies as a multi-ethnic Latina born and raised in Mexico City. As a woman who engages in continuous self-discovery through what she does her best: ecological art-making practice. Lily explores natural materials, upcycled canvas, recycled plastics, reuses sketches, and sustainable photographic prints. She continually challenges her own concept of identity to deconstruct her sense of self, using her professional work as a means to decolonialize and decapitalize her identity.

She is a first-generation immigrant to Kanata (Canada) seeking for the betterment of her life, and others facing vulnerability and uncertainty. She primarily offers her services to racialized “minorities” on the neurodivergent and queer umbrellas. Lily has worked as a neuroaesthetics and music cognition researcher, artist, and counselling art therapist. Lily acknowledges that she is a settler living, working, and benefits from occupying space in Tio'tia:ke colonized lands, in custody of the Kanien'kéha:ka Nation. Therefore, her labour as an art therapist and helper is continuously learn, support, and share decolonized knowledge to allow flourishing, reflexive, and open anti-oppressive WEllness spaces. For her, decolonized and intersectional knowledge is always keeping a critical view on research conducted and made by mostly Global North leading countries. 

Lily recognizes the immense amount of privilege she had in her academic life, growing up in an academic oriented house. It was a home built by two complex humans with complex intergenerational traumas. However, as an empath, she acknowledges she was always able to find safe haven with her chosen family: friends. She is deeply grateful to all the humans who have supported her through her meltdowns, moments of openness to vulnerability, moments of academic brain fog to push through study times, and so many adventures throughout life with lots of beauty and lots of dark moments, through a constant sough of light and hope. If you had a deep impact on my life, chances are you are mentioned somewhere in my research, theses, or somewhere. 

Creative art therapists as a racialized woman I encourage you to not let the systems put you down, float when you can, and swim when you have the strength, with time you will find spaces where the water is not as deep and you can find safe land to rest, restore and (re)connect with us all. Please be awkward, reach out even if you just feel like a funky meme will resonate with your experience listening to this interview. Again, deep gratitude to Kristy for this beautiful space of connections. 

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Negin (she/her) is a psychologist, visual artist, and art therapist. She studied a Master of Psychology in her homeland Iran and moved to Australia in 2013 to study art therapy. 

She has worked with adults, young people, and families in a variety of public and private health settings including community health, inpatient programs, relationship support and sexual health services. She has a passion for group work in the field of art therapy.

She has designed and facilitated a trauma-informed AT program named “Free Bird” and co-facilitated a series of workshops and groups with other art therapists called “Grounding through Arts”.

She has also facilitated professional workshops in Iran to psychologists interested in using art-based techniques in their practice. She has been in private practice since 2021.

You can get to know her more by visiting her website: www.neginsadeghian.com

Prarthna is an Art Psychotherapist, passionate about nurturing one’s well-being and inner strengths through the healing potential of the creative expressive arts.

During her MA Art Therapy training in Singapore, she supported special needs individuals by synergizing their unique strengths and abilities through concepts of psychodynamic art therapy and also had the privilege of engaging with service providers within an affirming and inclusive community.

Additionally, she has facilitated a range of therapeutic workshops for healthcare workers, allies, migrant workers, active seniors, and medical professionals in India and internationally.

Driven by an unwavering passion for engaging with diverse and underserved populations, she strives to create nurturing spaces that are inclusive, affirming, and strength-based while supporting individuals in their journey toward well-being and personal growth holistically. She strongly believes in the limitless potential of the creative arts and employs methods like breathwork and somatic healing in her strength-based art therapy practice.

On her return to Mumbai, India, she collaborated with several organizations, multidisciplinary therapists, and practitioners. She has introduced her art therapy practice under the name of Metta, wherein she offers art therapy to adults and seniors and conducts wellness-based creative workshops.

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Whatsapp business: +91 90046 71132

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I currently hold the role of Course Coordinator for the Master and Graduate Diploma of Art Therapy. Upon completion of my PhD, I took up a tenure-track position at Florida State University where amongst other activities I had the key responsibility for coordinating clinical placements. I continued my research in the area of art therapy and mental health recovery, as well as investigations on research and professional issues in art therapy. I have been the Principal Investigator on several research projects including: Group art therapy for children with Autism Spectrum Disorder, early intervention art therapy with Latinx farmworker children, as well as mindfulness-based art therapy, and technology-assisted approaches to dealing with anxiety and stress in university students.

I continue to play an active role in the American Art Therapy Association including as Associate Editor of the highly regarded professional academic journal. I currently serve as a Board Member for the Australian, New Zealand and Asian Creative Arts Therapy Association (ANZACATA) and External Member for the MIECAT Academic Board.

I have been the recipient of numerous awards including the American Art Therapy Association Seed Grant (2021); National Endowment for the Arts Research Award (2020); Department of Art Education Faculty Teaching Award (2019); the Rawley Silver Research Award from the American Art Therapy Association (2017); and the Transformation Through Teaching Award from Florida State University - Spiritual Life Project (2016).

www.artthxresearch.com

Mary Smail is a senior Drama Therapist and psychotherapist/trainer working in private practice at SoulWorksUK. www.marysmailsoulworks.co.uk

She was Director of the Sesame Institute UK and International, London, UK, until 2015. This educational charity promoted the importance of the creative arts in all psychological transformation through a way of working called the Sesame Approach. Sesame has been used in the UK as a trauma therapy since 1964. It trusts creativity and healing to speak through metaphor, movement, story, and sound – with words and left-brain thinking as a secondary process. The Sesame Approach is practiced as a dramatherapy intervention worldwide and throughout the UK.

From 2008, Mary moved away from the MA Sesame training at the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, London, by withdrawing from an academic setting and devising Psyche and Soma, Soul Making through Sesame, a continuing professional training for health professionals who are registered within their discipline. With its ‘reversed curriculum,’ the course differs from a ‘higher education’ pedagogy which stipulates goals and outcomes. Psyche and Soma allow the core of the person, the meaning-making soul, to be the teacher. The course has run in London, Wales, Serbia, and Austria. The next training is set to run in Vienna in 2024.

Mary also teaches students at Re-Vision Counselling & Psychotherapy with a Soulful Perspective.

www.re- vision.org.uk

She is co-author of Myth and Fairy-tale in Dramatherapy - The Golden Stories of Sesame and The Village of Grief – a new model for bereavement (publishing Nov 2023). Her particular interest explores the notion of the human soul and the presence of grace in the process of vulnerability, seeming failure, and rule-breaking; and in the deep lands which death, bereavement, and grief open to all.

She is a Scot living in south London and she constantly thinks about moving away to be close to the sea. She has two black cats and a lot of other things!

Louise Weston had an urge to change directions in her Autumn years, after her children were diagnosed Autistic. This period of time proved to be particularly traumatic for both herself and her children in navigating a somewhat deficit, ableist- based, clinical and educational system, not particularly supportive or even aware of neuro-affirming practice.

After a long career in design, Louise decided to pivot and focus on working with people rather than products and found that art therapy provided an opportunity for self-healing, reflection, growth and meaning making as well as using her lived experience to pay it forward.

Louise has experience in a range of environments including her private practice Creating Insights Art Therapy, as well as EACH Community Health, Austin Health (SECU), Box Hill CHYMS, CATA (Creative Art Therapy Australia), Very Special Kids, Primary Schools, and Aged Care. Louise loves working with all ages, needs, and presentations. My experience range is in disability (and associated co-morbidities), aged care, family violence, acute and chronic mental health, pain management, LGBTQI+, eating disorders, children, youth, and adult mental health, and palliative care.

Louise also developed an 8–10-week School Mental Health and Wellbeing Art Therapy Program in response to the Victorian Schools Mental Health Menu, which has been piloted successfully through ‘The Song Room’ and hopes to continue offering. The program is a strengths-based, person-centred approach designed to create awareness and support mental health and wellbeing in school-aged children.

Art Therapy gives Louise the capacity to work with a range of clients to help them gain insight into improving their daily life to manage their emotions and psychosocial needs as well as social and sensory challenges or anxiety. This in turn helps them gain the ability to assist with self-awareness, self-efficacy, or self-regulation. Louise truly believes that finding a modality to suit everyone gives them the opportunity to learn and grow at their own pace to set them up for success. Louise followed this fulfilling path to support her own family’s neurodivergent needs and in turn, support others’.

Louise has been able to provide insight into possible challenges with regard to avoiding or seeking certain sensory needs as well as increasing mentalization in a neuro-affirming way. Using her own lived experience, to establish connections, helps build upon their strengths as well as advocate for their needs where necessary. Louise believes strongly in radical acceptance, unconditional positive regard, and working within a safe, person-centred, and neuro-affirming way. Working collaboratively with clients with a strengths-based approach, together they build on their interests to create tools and techniques to help them navigate their day, make connections, manage emotions, celebrate successes, and nurture pride and identity.

Louise works from her studio space as well a clinical day in the somewhat leafy outer eastern suburbs of Melbourne and can be contacted at:

www.creatinginsights.com.au

I have always been interested in empowering others and supporting them in sparking change in their lives. I am an art psychotherapist and my practice has taken many exciting avenues.

My work is about supporting you in rediscovering yourself, unlocking your true potential, and connecting with your creativity. Through working together my aim is to help you to recognise patterns and habits in your life that may be keeping you stuck, finding ways to safely express and connect with your emotions, and support you in becoming empowered and inspired.

I provide private supervision and have years of experience working as an art psychotherapist in a variety of hospital and mental health settings. I have a particular interest in working with those who experience psychosis and providing family and carer support.

Alongside this, I also run workshops and reflective practice for staff teams working in Psychiatric Rehabilitation and inpatient settings. The workshops integrate art psychotherapy approaches within a psycho-educational framework to support team members to reflect creatively on the experience and impact of working with clients with complex needs and presentations

Art psychotherapist - HCPC registered
Mindset Coach
www.jessicacalnan.com

[email protected]

Tilly (she/her) has been a registered and practicing art therapist since 2017.

Tilly came to art therapy from a merge of interest in her studies in Psychology and work in design. For the last 5+ years, Tilly has worked as an art therapist at the Children’s Cancer Centre at The Royal Children’s Hospital to deliver individual/group sessions in a family-centred care model for patients and their families across their cancer journey.

Tilly is also the art therapist at the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre since early 2022. This role specialises in supporting the psychosocial needs of adult patients and their families through individual inpatient art therapy sessions. Tilly has also been a casual Academic at La Trobe University with the Master of Art Therapy since 2020.

Tilly’s areas of interest and applications in art therapy are palliative care, trauma-informed practices, somatic art therapy, supervision and the impact of architecture/design of the environment in wellbeing spaces.

[email protected]

Miki is an artist, Board-Certified Art Therapist, and Licensed Clinical Social Worker living in the United States (Virginia). 

In her 20 years+ career as an art therapist and a social worker, she enjoyed working with older adults in various settings such as nursing homes, assisted living facilities, private homes, an outreach mental health program, and an outpatient mental health 

program. Currently she has a private practice in Virginia and works primarily with older adults, immigrants, and clients of color. Her clinical interests are grief, aging related issues, acculturation, racial identity, and racial/cultural trauma. 

In addition to her private practice, Miki has taught in social work and art therapy graduate programs as an adjunct faculty for the past several years. Whatever the role she serves, she is committed to applying anti-oppressive approaches. Her writing and

publications explore topics of antiracism and other types of oppression, solidarity building among people of color, and cultural identity exploration. 

As a visual artist, Miki practices her creative expression through paintings, mixed media art, and printmaking. She believes that it is imperative for art therapists to maintain their artist identity through an ongoing artmaking practice. 

She provides group supervision and individual supervision for art therapists and social workers. 

www.mikigoerdt.com

Oratip Nimkannon is a registered art therapist (AThR) and counseling psychologist based in Bangkok, Thailand.

She works at a private mental health clinic, using the relational/psychodynamic approach.

Throughout her career, Oratip has worked with older adolescents, adults, and older adults from various cultural and professional backgrounds.

Her particular interest focuses on helping people who have felt disempowered, whether by their family, the larger society, or by their own mental health conditions. This interest grew out of her early experience helping survivors of political violence and multiple traumatic events. Depression, anxiety, loss and grief, attachment/relationship, identity/ character issues, self-discovery/growth, life transition/adjustments, stress, and relational trauma, are the areas that she can help with.

Email: [email protected]

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