Meet Dr Toula Gordillo
Hello, I’m Dr Toula, an Australian clinical and Jungian psychologist and the creator of Story Image Therapy (SIT®) and SIT Shadow Work™.
For over thirty years, I’ve supported people from diverse backgrounds using creative, holistic approaches to personal growth and transformation.
My work is especially helpful for those seeking deeper insight beyond regular talk or cognitive therapies.
As a writer, teacher and healer, I offer scientifically supported tools to help people better understand themselves. I do this through Story Image Therapy sessions, workshops and the Shadow Self program.
What is Story Image Therapy?
Story Image Therapy (called “sit” for short) is an innovative psychotherapy method developed by Dr Toula Gordillo. It blends modern psychological science with ancient philosophical wisdom.
Other SIT features include:
- It uses symbolic stories and images grounded in academic research, lived experience and Jungian psychology.
- It is psychodynamic and transpersonal, meaning it focuses on the unconscious mind and its influence on everyone, including ourselves.
- It assists with clinical issues (eg. anxiety, depression, burnout, trauma) as well as enhanced personal and professional development.
Reflecting on symbolic stories and images guided by a trained SIT coach, counsellor or therapist (*dependent on skills, qualifications and what’s required) allows insight without blame or judgement.
This deeper work is known as SIT Shadow Work™.
Key feature of SIT
Story Image Therapy uses the best of both worlds: the wisdom and knowledge of our ancestors combined with the clarity and structure of modern science
What is SIT Shadow Work?
Swiss psychiatrist Dr Carl Jung described the shadow self as the hidden parts of our personality — thoughts, feelings and habits we push away as we grow.
We often hide these parts because they feel uncomfortable, painful, or not acceptable to ourselves or others.
Even though we tend to avoid the shadow, it holds important insight and can help us grow when we learn to understand it.
SIT Shadow Work is the practical use of Story Image Therapy. It helps people recognise, accept and work with their unconscious patterns (often called complexes) so they can live more consciously and with greater balance.
Through this process, people can:
Understand themselves more deeply through stories and symbols
Bring together mind, body and spirit for overall wellbeing
Create lasting change using insight and practical tools
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Trusted By Professionals & Clients
Ask most business owners and managers what challenges them most and they will likely answer ‘staff’ or ‘office politics’. Being adept at working with different personalities and communication styles can be the difference between successful business and failure; between a collegiate workplace, and low morale. Dr Toula’s books should be read by all business owners, and her programs and workshops integrated into employee orientation.
"I've been in charge of several government teams and I truly believe that any thought leader or manager should do their own shadow work to develop professionally. Based on research and proven to be effective, SIT Shadow Work™ is the best there is."
Dr Toula is extremely passionate about helping people to unlock and discover their unconscious patterns or blockages preventing them from achieving their goals. Understanding how I can unlock the power of my unconscious mind, through stories and images, has helped me personally. It has also provided me with extremely useful tools I can use with my coaching clients. I highly recommend Dr Toula for you, your staff or clients.
Based upon what I had read in The Rise of Jung in Me, I shared [with my client] the stories of the Frog and Scorpion and the Caring Continuum. This led into a wonderful discussion regarding listening to one’s intuition, followed by somatic work… I’m finding the book very helpful as a therapist and a father.
