[Be Exceptional] - Shining the Light on Grief Counselling Expert, Cait Wotherspoon

Meet Cait Wotherspoon, Grief & Bereavement Counselling Expert, Conference Keynote Speaker and Author of
Rediscover Joy: Living Life Alongside Grief

As part of our business coaching community, Women with Influence, we have gotten to know Cait, her story and her incredible influence with her clients.

Cait Wotherspoon is a grief and bereavement counselling expert, an expert conference keynote speaker and an author. With over 40 years of experience she's helped thousands of people unravel the twists and turns of grief. Cait assists them to rediscover the joy in their life while living alongside grief. She also provides the tools to create a new life without their loved ones.

Her qualifications include a PhD in the social sciences, a Grad. Dip. in Psychology and certifications in several useful psychometric and personality inventories. As part of our Women with Influence business coaching community I've gotten to know Cait and her story.

A life twist that became a cyclone

When Cait was 27 years old, her life took an unusual twist, which turned into a cyclone. She already had a gorgeous two-and-a-half-year-old daughter and was pregnant with twins. Her identical twin daughters were born at 24-weeks gestation.

The youngest twin lived for one week and the oldest twin was in the hospital for the first six months of her life. She came home for one month and then spent the next six years in and out of the hospital every couple of months and staying in for months at a time.

So, much of her daughters' first years were spent in and around hospitals. And Cait had firsthand experience of grief and loss. In fact, Cait learned so much about medicine during the first year of her daughter’s life that she decided to go to university to become a registered nurse.

But the hits would just keep coming. Cait's dad was then diagnosed with lung cancer and died 18 months later. Her favourite aunt was diagnosed with cancer that quickly metastasised as well. This became the catalyst for her field of study. Upon completion of her Bachelor of Nursing, she became certified in oncology and palliative care.

A passion for helping

Cait's passion lies in helping others. In particular, she helps her clients (organisations, adults and children) with their losses, grief and bereavement. She does this through her work as a grief and loss counsellor and through her conference keynote speaker work.

Cait understands that loss comes in many and varied forms. She has helped clients learn to cope with the loss of relationships, pets, careers, miscarriage, parents, grandparents, employment, independence, dreams and much more.

In her grief counselling work, Cait has helped many people with their bereavement so that they could rediscover joy and happiness again. This has often meant working with organisations who work with grief, such as veterinary services and the health sector.

Her rich and varied professional and family life has provided her with skills and experiences enabling her to become a better counsellor, psychotherapist and conference keynote speaker. She brings a wealth of personal and professional experience to her work, so you get the best help possible.

Rediscover Joy: Living life alongside grief

Cait is also the author of Rediscover Joy: Living life alongside grief. In Rediscover, Cait said that grief can feel lonely and isolating. Friends and family don’t know how to be with you, so they leave the griever alone. Or they may give them unwanted (but well meaning) advice on how to get on with their life.

Cait’s clients are often so overwhelmed with sadness and helplessness. They feel disconnected from friends and family and slowly drift away from everyone. Friendships disappear, relationships dissolve and families break apart.

Many organisation's have sought out Cait to help their leaders and staff cope with loss and grief. She works with them through providing counselling, or through her expertise as a conference keynote speaker. Whenever she works with an organisation, she helps them rediscover joy at work. And this leads to increased engagement, wellbeing and performance. And she helps them rediscover joy at home, to reconnect with their support system and themselves.

As a business coaching community what we love most about Cait is her insight into grief and her ability to translate such complex emotions into words. During Covid, health practitioners were exposed to increasing death rates and high suicide rates. In addition, veterinary science staff have been struggling to cope. That's why Cait's work is becoming more crucial for all organisations to better support their staff in this way.

You can connect with Cait on her LinkedIn profile here!

Join Women with Influence

Women's Business Coaching Community

As a 'woman with influence', Cait is part of our business coaching community, Women with Influence. Maybe you can see yourself being part of this women's community too!?

Find out more about the Women with Influence women's business coaching community…

Join Our Business Coaching Community

Interested in becoming a 'women with influence' today? Or to find out more general information about our women's business coaching community? Get in touch with our team today.