Featured Interview With Dr Toula Gordillo
Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
I am a practicing clinical and Jungian psychologist who specialises in helping people to ‘tap into’ their unconscious through stories and images. It is part of a teaching and counselling method I have developed over the past fourteen years called Story Image Therapy (SIT) and it’s practical application: SIT Shadow Work™. Every day, I do regular teaching and counselling in schools, medical centres, private organisations, businesses etc. What I love the most, though, is helping people to REALLY know and understand themselves better on an unconscious level. Uncovering the cause and effects of deep seated issues, understanding the responses in our daily life that we were not consciously aware of… for me, it’s like panning for gold. When you find a ‘nugget’ of truth or explanation, it really does feel like you’ve struck gold. It’s the most rewarding thing you can do, and I believe, the most important.
At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
I know I’ve always been a writer because I have a diary that I started writing in when I was just nine years old… and I never really stopped. I’ve also always had a fascination with storytelling, I think, due to my father’s narratives as a child. He would tell me a story (about life, work or some other lesson) and then we’d discuss it. These vivid stories always contained a moral or message that I could relate to. He’d also read me stories as a child too, or we’d listen to audiobooks containing stories like The Hobbit. This was during a time when audiobooks weren’t really popular – certainly not like they are today. I loved the stories and particularly the bonding that happened between us due to the stories and accompanying images. It really is the best way to learn about life, ourselves, and the other person.
Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
JRR Tolkein of course was one of my early favourites, Enid Blyton too, as well as more contemporary works. What I really love reading though is ancient quotes, like from the Stoic and Taoist philosophers as well as Dr Carl Jung’s quotes, and then thinking about how they can be applied to every day life. It’s deep, but old metaphors can easily be remembered, yet their effects can last a lifetime.
Tell us a little about your latest book?
The Rise of Jung in Me resulted from journalling during my own Story Image Therapy healing journey. Ironically, I’d been creating SIT as a form of therapy, and using it to heal others’ deep-seated issues for years, but I’d never really thought about using it on myself. That is, until my unconscious adolescent feelings of powerless, rejection and abandonment (we call them complexes in a person’s shadow in Jungian psychology) became triggered – first in my job at age 38, and then ten years later in my private life. I couldn’t ignore these old familiar feelings any more, and found I HAD to work on them. Healing my own adolescent shadow, (that’s issues in my unconscious that I’d suppressed since my teen years) and the subsequent creation of SIT Shadow Work™ to help others heal their inner ‘wounded adolescent’, regardless of age, is what the book is about. I also include six case studies of how I’ve used a combination of ancient and modern Science, Spirit and Story to help six amazing young people whose lives were transformed through SIT Shadow Work™.
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