Gagnon Catherine

Expertises

Catherine Bernard first began her studies in psychology by completing a Bachelor’s degree at McGill University in Montréal, before starting and completing her doctoral studies in psychology at Université Laval in Québec City. She is a clinical psychologist and has been a member of the Ordre des psychologues du Québec since 2013.

Her professional experience has allowed her to specialize and develop expertise in the assessment and treatment of eating disorders in an adult population, more specifically binge eating disorder (compulsive overeating). She also has the knowledge and clinical skills required to assess and treat other eating disorders such as anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, as well as other difficulties related to food, body image, and weight.

Over the course of her practice, Catherine has also developed expertise in working with individuals experiencing relational and emotional difficulties, adjustment challenges, anxiety symptoms, and/or mood disorders. Her experience and clinical approach also allow her to work with personality-related issues.

Through her doctoral training and continued professional development, her interventions are primarily based on a relational psychodynamic approach, more specifically relational psychotherapy (“psychothérapie du lien”). She also draws on mindfulness and acceptance-based skills found in dialectical behavior therapy approaches, although her work remains primarily relational in nature. She views psychotherapy as a process in which a person, within a safe, confidential, and supportive space, gradually develops a deeper self-awareness of their internal functioning. This is achieved, among other things, through interventions that support the exploration of current life difficulties while making links with the person’s developmental history. With a clearer understanding of how life experiences influence current patterns and symptoms, she supports clients in developing more satisfying ways of responding to their needs in the present moment. Through therapy, she also helps individuals build more adaptive psychological resources for everyday challenges.

Catherine is currently completing training in Gestalt Object Relations Psychotherapy (PGRO), a three-year program offered by the Centre d’intégration Gestaltique (CIG). In recent years, she has developed a strong interest in and training in mindfulness in psychotherapy, particularly self-compassion-based approaches. She has completed several trainings in mindfulness-based self-compassion, including the Mindful Self-Compassion (MSC) intensive program developed by Kristin Neff and Chris Germer—an empirically supported program associated with improved overall well-being and a reduction in problematic eating behaviors and negative self-image. She is currently in the process of becoming an accredited MSC instructor. Finally, she also offers group therapy services, including dialectical behavior therapy groups targeting binge eating episodes.