Hello, I'm Karen Durkin, founder of Phoenix Therapy & Learning.

My professional journey began as a primary school teacher, where I spent ten years supporting children and young people in their learning and development. Those early experiences continue to shape my belief in the importance of curiosity, creativity, and meaningful relationships as foundations for growth and change.

Today, I work as a clinical supervisor, therapeutic practitioner, trainer, and international author. Across all aspects of my work, I am guided by values of compassion, authenticity, respect, creativity, and reflective practice. I believe that growth happens when people feel safe enough to explore their experiences with curiosity, support, and without judgement.

Creativity sits at the heart of everything I do. While reflection is central to personal and professional growth, I have found that insight often emerges most powerfully through symbolism, metaphor, imagery, story, and creative exploration. These approaches can help us access thoughts, feelings, and perspectives that are sometimes difficult to reach through conversation alone.

As a clinical supervisor, I am passionate about creating reflective spaces that feel alive, engaging, and growth-oriented. My supervision approach combines professional rigour with creativity, helping practitioners deepen self-awareness, explore relational dynamics, and strengthen confidence in their work. I believe supervision is most effective when it balances reflection, support, challenge, and curiosity. SandStory Therapy forms an integral part of my supervisory practice, providing creative and symbolic ways for supervisees to explore client work, professional identity, relational dynamics, and deeper layers of reflection.

Alongside supervision, I work with adults and teenagers seeking greater self-awareness, wellbeing, and personal growth. Through creative and reflective approaches, I offer a space where individuals can pause, explore life's challenges, reconnect with their strengths, and develop a deeper understanding of themselves. My work is grounded in the belief that meaningful change often emerges when we create space to reflect, explore, and make sense of our experiences.

I am also trained in SandStory Therapy, a creative and symbolic approach that enables individuals to explore experiences, emotions, and personal narratives through the use of sand, miniature figures, and metaphor. I integrate SandStory Therapy throughout my work with both adults and teenagers, offering opportunities to express experiences visually and symbolically when words alone may feel difficult or limiting. This gentle yet powerful approach can support insight, emotional processing, self-discovery, and personal growth.

My passion for creativity and reflective practice led me to become an international author. I am the author of Creative Supervision: 50 Creative Activities for Reflective Practice, a practical resource designed to help supervisors bring reflection to life through creative and accessible approaches. Through my writing, I aim to support therapists, supervisors, and helping professionals in developing reflective, engaging, and meaningful practice.

Whether through supervision, therapeutic work, SandStory Therapy, training, or my writing, my aim remains the same: to create spaces where creativity and reflection deepen practice, strengthen wellbeing, and support meaningful growth.

Thank you for visiting Phoenix Therapy & Learning. I hope you find a space here to reflect, grow, learn, and reconnect with what matters most.

Interested in clinical supervision, wellbeing sessions, SandStory Therapy, training, or my published resources? I would be delighted to hear from you. Please get in touch to explore how we might work together.