Move My Heart, Move My Feet: A Narrative and Arts-Based Inquiry into Settler Counselling Psychologists' Decolonizing Journeys

In Turtle Island, the psychology community is urged to transform colonial practices per the Truth and Reconciliation Commission's (TRC) Calls to Action. This research, guided by two- eyed seeing, explored two questions: (1) How do White settler counselling psychologists (WCPs) experience their professional and personal decolonizing journeys? (2) What is a White settler therapist’s role in decolonizing therapeutic practice? Four WCPs participated in collage-making focus groups and individual interviews. Narrative analysis revealed five “narrative trails”: (1) Awakening to shifting worldviews (2) Growing awareness to decolonization imperative (3) Grappling with White guilt and shame (4) Enacting decolonization in client work (5) We hope and we press on. These trails highlight critical reflection, tension, and unsettling moments, offering insights for other settler psychologists to follow in clinical praxis. Findings underscore the importance of decolonizing self and practice. Findings offer insights for psychology education, training, and research, emphasizing ongoing critical reflection and cultural humility.