About Gabrielle
Hi! Thanks for your interest in my work,
I am a cisgender, white, neurotypical woman with a disability. I use the pronouns she/her. I have a visual impairment and I have been living with vision loss my entire adult life. My lived experience as a woman with a disability informs my practice—I understand some of the barriers and marginalization that disabled folks face. Navigating a world that is not designed for us is hard, however, I also know how it feels to be empowered by finding community and a sense of control, or agency, over one’s life.
I believe that the therapeutic relationship is collaborative and therefore, our stories and identities intertwine as we work together. Given that, it is important that I am attuned to how my privilege affords me opportunities and influences how we work together. Through reflection and humility, I strive to remain open to others’ experiences of the world, adapting and adjusting my perspective as I learn more.
Beyond my own lived experience, I have had the opportunity to witness others’ challenges navigating the world with a disability or difference throughout my previous career as a special education teacher. I have worked with children of all ages with diverse needs, including those diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). I found it frustrating that there were so few mental health supports for my students and it became one of my goals to understand how to support better the mental and emotional well-being of autistic individuals.
Gabrielle Heselton,
Registered Psychologist
Over the years I have worked to improve my understanding of issues that all women in our culture face. Through this understanding came a desire to support, advocate, and educate on issues of gender inequality, gender-based violence, and women’s rights. I am a feminist, which means I believe that all humans (men too!) should be treated with respect and given equitable opportunities.
I am also a daughter, partner, sister, aunt, teacher, and friend. My favourite activities involve my niece and nephews, walking and enjoying the sunshine with my partner, discovering new bakeries, finding places where I can immerse myself among plants and flowers, and playing blind sports. I love coffee, music, TV comedies, and 90s nostalgia.
I love to learn, and especially enjoy when clients share their special interests and passions with me!
I continue to develop my skills in assessment and counselling through training, consultation, and clinical supervision.
My academic work has included:
- Bachelor of Arts in Applied Psychology – Concordia University of Edmonton
- Master of Arts in Teaching – Concordia University, Portland, OR
- Master of Education in Special Education – University of Alberta
- Master of Counselling – Athabasca University
I have taken additional training in:
- Eye Movement Desensitization & Reprocessing (EMDR)
- Clinical Hypnosis (Level 1)
- Narrative therapy (foundations and approaches to trauma)
- Feminist therapy
- Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT)
- Self-compassion
- Alexithymia
- Social cognition assessment and intervention
- Executive functioning
- Autism (foundations, neurobiology, and intervention)
- Certified Autism Spectrum Disorder Clinical Specialist
- Trauma (foundations)
- Autism Diagnostic Observation Scales—2nd Edition (ADOS-2) administration and interpretation
- Autism Diagnostic Inventory—Revised (ADI-R) administration and interpretation
- Weschler Intelligence Scales for Children—5th Edition (WISC-V) administration
- Weschler Individual Achievement Test—3rd Edition (WIAT—III) administration
- Monteiro Interview Guidelines for Diagnosing the Autism Spectrum—Second Edition (MIGDAS-2) administration and interpretation.
Professional Affiliations
- Registered with the College of Alberta Psychologists(CAP), 6185
- Member of Psychologists’ Association of Alberta
- Alberta Clinical Hypnosis Society (ACHS)