I am a white, queer, polyam, trans Registered Psychotherapist (he/they) living and working in the city of Tkaronto/Toronto. I’m a teacher, naturalist, ritualist and death worker. My clients are often reassured to know I have navigated my own dark times, met my own demons and learned to show up for myself in life’s transitional moments. Doing that deep, hard work for myself is how I got here.
I’m trained in Transpersonal Therapy, Gestalt Therapy, as well as Psychospiritual Care and Existential Therapy as my theoretical practice models. Clinically, I have worked at Canada’s largest mental health and addictions treatment centre for the last 7 years, with a special focus on trauma, major mental illness, and health equity.
Braiding together these experiences, I help clients take a top-down (insight-oriented) and bottom-up (somatic) approach to their life challenges. I lean heavily on neuroscience, existentialism, embodiment, Jungian psychodynamics and (your) spiritual/religious strengths (if any) as pillars of understanding the growth process.
I take a trauma-informed, anti-racist, sex- and kink-affirming and culturally-aware approach in my work with people of all identities. I work within a harm reduction model, and work through a lens of equity and inclusion. I prioritize the safety and autonomy of clients with marginalized identities and take a practical approach to minimize the negative outcomes of substance use and self-harm behaviours.
Eli Hood, Registered Psychotherapist (RP) 