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  • About Kaitlin
  • Somatic Workbook [Pre-Order]
  • Podcast & Blog
  • Learn with Kaitlin
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  • FREE STRESS RELIEF TRAINING

Cultivating The Strength For Compassion

with Professor Paul Gilbert
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Welcome to the seventh episode of Season Five of Wisdom for Wellbeing Podcast. On this episode I interview Professor Paul Gilbert, FBPsS, PhD, OBE and Professor of Clinical Psychology.

Want to keep in touch? Head to @drkaitlin on Instagram or @wisdomforwellbeingpod on Facebook to connect.

What is covered in this episode:

>>An introduction to Professor Paul Gilbert and how he came to develop CFT

>>Consideration of compassion as an active, courageous and wise practice

>>What does it mean that we have a ‘tricky brain’?

>>Why learning to fail is important

Tune in next week to hear about the 3 flows of compassion (receiving for others, for yourself), about the need for compassion to have a political focus, and to learn a practices to cultivate compassion in mind and body

You’ll find a copy of the Episode Transcript below.

Professor Paul Gilbert

Paul Gilbert, FBPsS, PhD, OBE is Professor of Clinical Psychology at the University of Derby and honorary visiting Prof at the University of Queensland. Until his retirement from the NHS in 2016 he was Consultant Clinical Psychologist for over 40 years. He has researched evolutionary approaches to psychopathology with a special focus on mood, shame and self-criticism in various mental health difficulties for which Compassion Focused Therapy was developed. He was made a Fellow of the British Psychological Society in 1993, president of the BABCP 2002-2004, and was a member of the first British Governments’ NICE guidelines for depression. He has written/edited 23 books and over 300 papers and book chapters. In 2006 he established the Compassionate Mind Foundation as an international charity with the mission statement: To promote wellbeing through the scientific understanding and application of compassion (www.compassionatemind.co.uk). There are now a number of sister foundations in other countries. He was awarded an OBE by the Queen in March 2011 for services to mental health. He established and is the Director of the Centre for Compassion Research and Training at Derby University UK. His latest book is a major edited book with Prof G Simos (2022) Compassion: Clinical practice and Applications (Routledge).

Transcript

[Will appear here when completed.]

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Your pain is your purpose. Sometimes, it leads you Your pain is your purpose. Sometimes, it leads you exactly where you’re meant to go. 💛

Unboxing The Somatic Workbook feels surreal. This little book began as my own search for healing, and now it’s something I get to share with you.

To my family and friends who have cheered me through every chapter, to the incredible team at @pesipublishing who helped bring this vision to life, and to my aunt, who once gave me a journal and said, “You’re going to write a book one day.” You saw it long before I did. (Not bad for the kid who used to get 0/10 on spelling tests. ✏️)

Thank you, truly, for being part of this journey. Every bit of support, every preorder, every kind message means the world. 🥹

✨ Just a couple more days to preorder The Somatic Workbook, grab your own FedEx hug 🤗* and receive the Bonus Bundle details in my bio link + drkaitlin.com/somaticworkbook 

(🤫 sneaky little add is that I’ll be offering a live virtual nervous system training for health and wellness professionals! I’ll advertise more later, just note in your sign up if you’d like to be included for this too. It’s great for therapists, body workers, yoga teachers etc)

*please check with your FedEx delivery person 🤣 and it’s completely fine to claim the bonus bundle without them, of course!

#TheSomaticWorkbook #BookLaunch #SomaticTherapy #YourPainIsYourPurpose #Gratitude #AuthorJourney #NervousSystemHealing
When the mind goes quiet… the default mode netwo When the mind goes quiet… the default mode network wakes up.
It starts asking: Who am I? Where do I belong? How do I stay safe?

It means well, but it loops into worry, rejection, and imagined failure.
That’s your negativity bias at play, scanning for danger instead of joy.

And each time you travel that path, neuroplasticity makes it easier to return.
But this is also the path to change.

📻 Turn Down the Radio
Your mind is the radio.
The self-critical stories are the music.
You can’t (healthily) switch them off, but you can lower the volume.

Notice when it spikes, turn it down, and gently return your attention to what matters most.

🧠 Explore the art of mindful awareness and embodied presence in Chapter 7 of The Somatic Workbook.
Details + pre-order link in bio 🧘‍♀️ last days to access the Bonus Bundle (drkaitlin.com/somaticworkbook)
✨ Regulation isn’t just a therapy skill, it’ ✨ Regulation isn’t just a therapy skill, it’s a life skill. ✨

Whether you’re a clinician, coach, yoga teacher, or someone walking your own healing path, The Somatic Workbook bridges the science of psychology with the wisdom of the body.

This is your step-by-step guide to self-regulation, offering practical, evidence-based tools to calm your nervous system, connect with your inner parts, and cultivate everyday self-compassion.

LAST DAYS to pre-order and get your bonus bundle:
🎥 Free video course — Somatic Skills for Everyday Resilience
📓 Downloadable Reflection Journal
🎧 Audio downloads
💆🏽‍♀️ PLUS a chance to win a Shakti acupressure mat + pillow!

✨ And a little extra, for my integrative health community...
If you’re a healthcare provider, therapist, yoga teacher, or wellness practitioner, I’m also about to announce I’ll be offering a bonus live training on the nervous system and polyvagal theory (with a PD certificate available.)

Simply mention it when you enrol for your pre-order.
🗓️ Available only until October 14th, this one hasn’t been advertised publicly yet!

This workbook was designed as a bridge… between mind and body, therapy and yoga, reflection and action. A resource to support you and those you care for, wherever healing and integration are unfolding. Ultimately, I wrote the book I’ve always needed 💕

#somaticpsychology #selfregulation #mindbodyconnection #integratedhealth #holistichealing #nervoussystemregulation #traumainformed #polyvagal #healingjourney #mindfulness #embodiment
🧠 World Mental Health Day reminder: Anxiety and 🧠 World Mental Health Day reminder: Anxiety and depression are so common, and what we know from the research is that they often begin with stress. When our nervous system stays in a state of overwhelm for too long, it can spiral into anxiety… and eventually, depression.

This year’s theme is community, and I love that! Because, regulation doesn’t happen in isolation. Other regulated nervous systems regulate us, just as we do for others. Connection truly is medicine. 💞

This said, we don’t always have another nervous system available to us. So, today I’m sharing some cool ideas for calming your nervous system when you’re distressed.

These exercises aren’t about bypassing emotion, they’re about helping your body find safety first, so your mind can think clearly again.

Which one will you try next time you feel overwhelmed? 👇

✨ The Somatic Workbook by @pesipublishing is available for pre-order (Yey!), grab it before October 14th to access the bonus bundle of video + audio practices, journal prompts, and the chance to win a @shaktimats mat + pillow. Link in bio for details 🔗 or head to drkaitlin.com/somaticworkbook

#WorldMentalHealthDay #SomaticPsychology #TheSomaticWorkbook #NervousSystemRegulation #MindBodyHealing #CommunityCare
👑 I said what I said. The lioness does concern 👑 I said what I said.

The lioness does concern herself with healing that starts in the body.

On World Mental Health Day, I’m not here for surface-level calm or toxic positivity strictly cognitive practices can offer. I’m here for nervous system regulation that’s felt from the inside out.

The @shaktimats mat is one of my favourite tools for body-based calm, gentle acupressure that supports vagal tone, helps downshift tension, and reminds the body it’s safe.

🧘‍♀️ You can learn more somatic tools like this in The Somatic Workbook for Nervous System Regulation and Anxiety Management. There we also talk about the importance of relationships - and the Mental Health Day theme this year is about connecting with your community. 🤗 Because just like the Shakti can be a nervous system regulation tool, so too can another nervous system - co-regulation - along with healthy relationships being the deepest source of meaning in our lives. 

Pre-order the Somatic Workbook now for access to the bonus bundle (including video + audio practices and the chance to win a Shakti Mat).

(And hey, this video is based on a trend… if the 🦁 reference seems unusual.)

#WorldMentalHealthDay #SomaticPsychology #NervousSystemRegulation #DrKaitlin #TheSomaticWorkbook #MindBodyConnection
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Dr. Kaitlin pays her respects to the Kaurna peoples as the Traditional Owner’s of the land on which she works and lives. Dr Kaitlin acknowledges that the Kaurna people have social, spiritual and historical connections to this land and their connections are as strong today as they have always been. She would like to extend this acknowledgment out to the Traditional Owners of the land on which you are based, and to acknowledge the Ktunaxa and Kinbasket Peoples of what is now called Canada, as she was born and gratefully raised on their traditional unceded territory.

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