Other Women's Jobs - A Day In The Life & Career Of Katrina Spartalis

Name  Katrina Spartalis

Age  45

Instagram Handle  @counsellorkat | @bloomfieldpsychology

Job Title  Founder and Clinical Director, Bloomfield Counselling & Psychology | CDA-Licensed Social Counsellor

Moved to the UAE in  2015

Katrina is Australian, a wife, a mum to three beautiful boys, and the Founder and Clinical Director of Bloomfield Counselling & Psychology in Dubai.

She has spent the past 20 years working across education, counselling and psychology, including 11 years here in Dubai. Katrina started out as a secondary school teacher and went on to hold roles including Whole-School Director of Wellbeing, Deputy Safeguarding Lead and Head of Counselling.

Having always been fascinated by people. Why we think, feel and behave the way we do, and how much the people and places around us shape how we feel. Opening Bloomfield was something she had dreamed about for a long time, and she still has moments where she can't quite believe it's real. After so many years within schools and established organisations, Katrina wanted to build a practice that reflected what she believes about wellbeing: that it's something we can develop throughout our lives, not just something we turn to when we're struggling. At Bloomfield, the team work with children, adolescents, adults, couples and families, offering counselling, psychological assessments and programmes for schools.

Outside of work, Katrina is mum to Alexander, Anthony and Christian, who are eight, five and three. They are her absolute world, and motherhood has taught Katrina more about myself, relationships and emotional regulation than any textbook ever could!

Katrina describes being a business owner, a counsellor, a wife and a mum is an ongoing lesson in priorities, and in accepting that not everything gets equal attention every day. But she loves what she is building. Even on the overwhelming days, she feels incredibly lucky to be doing it.

Here's a typical day in Katrina's life and career:

5:00 AM – A little time for myself

Our household starts early, which I actually quite enjoy! I'm usually up around 5am, sometimes before the boys and sometimes because one of them has decided the day needs to begin.

When everything goes to plan, this is my time. A run, the gym or some strength training. I notice such a difference in my mood and energy when I'm moving regularly, and I love the quiet. With three young children and a busy practice, there aren't many moments when nobody needs anything from me!

Of course, some mornings there's been a disrupted night or I'm simply too tired, and that's okay too.

6:30 AM – The morning rush

By 6:30am we're well and truly into family life. Three boys, three different personalities, breakfast, uniforms, school bags and the occasional disagreement about something that seemed completely unimportant five minutes earlier!

One of the funniest things about being a counsellor and a parent is that you can understand the psychology behind children's behaviour perfectly well and still find yourself negotiating with a three-year-old about putting on his shoes.

Knowing something and actually doing it are two very different things. Believe me, I have plenty of opportunities to practise!

8:00 AM – Switching into business mode

Once the boys are off, my attention turns to Bloomfield. I check in with the team, look over the day's appointments and work through whatever needs me.

What surprised me most about opening a practice was just how much happens behind the scenes. Recruitment, licensing, marketing, finances, enquiries, school partnerships and what feels like an endless stream of decisions. I'd gone from organisations where other departments handled all of that to suddenly being responsible for every bit of it. It's been an enormous learning curve!

And yet I really enjoy it. I've always been someone with a head full of ideas, and there's something so rewarding about watching one become real. Although I'll admit there are days I'd happily hand over every operational decision and just spend the day counselling!

10:00 AM – The work I love most

By mid-morning I'm usually with clients, mostly adolescents and adults, working through anxiety, relationships, family challenges and big life transitions.

I genuinely love counselling. There's something really special about being invited into someone's world and trusted with parts of their life they may never have shared with anyone else. It's a privilege I don't take lightly.

My years in schools have shaped how I work, too. I find it almost impossible to look at a person without thinking about the relationships and environments around them. None of us exist in isolation.

12:00 NOON – Wearing a few different hats

No two days look the same. I might be meeting with one of our clinicians, working on a school collaboration or developing a new service, and sometimes I go from a deeply personal session straight into a conversation about staffing or expenses. It's quite a shift!

Working with schools is a big part of my heart. I spent years in them, I know how much teachers give, and I'd love to see wellbeing woven into everyday school life rather than saved for the occasional workshop.

It's also why I wrote a children's book, Xander's Big and Little Feelings. Stories are one of the loveliest ways to help children make sense of their feelings, and it's a project very close to my heart.

2:00 PM – Usually the busiest part of my day

Afternoons are often back-to-back clients, with meetings, calls and decisions squeezed in around them. I'm still carrying a full caseload while running and growing the practice.

I love being busy. But one of the biggest lessons of this year has been realising that having the energy to create something doesn't mean I have to do everything myself.

I'm learning to delegate, to trust the brilliant people around me and to let Bloomfield grow at a pace that's sustainable. Building a team I trust has been one of the proudest parts of this whole journey.

4:00 PM – The pull between work and home

This is the part of the day when I feel the pull between work and home the most. The boys are finishing school, there's football to think about, and I'm often still at the practice.

I love my career, and I love being a mum. I know how quickly these years go.

Some afternoons I manage to finish early and spend time with them. Other days, I'm still seeing clients. I'm becoming much more intentional about my working hours, because being available all the time isn't the same as being effective.

Which is quite amusing, really, given I spend a big part of my working life helping other people develop healthy boundaries! I'm certainly getting plenty of practice.

6:00 PM – Back to my favourite people

Evenings are about reconnecting. Dan and I have three very different little personalities in our house, and I love hearing about their days, their friendships and whatever is currently the most important thing in their worlds.

Alexander is becoming so independent, Anthony has the most wonderful personality, and Christian is still our little one. I'm constantly amazed by how different three children can be, even growing up in the same family.

Then it's dinner, baths, stories and bed. Some evenings are lovely and calm. Others are complete chaos! But I really do love this chapter of family life.

I want my boys to see me doing something I'm passionate about, and to grow up knowing that work can be meaningful and that women can pursue their ambitions. I also want them to know that nothing I achieve professionally will ever matter more to me than they do.

8:00 PM – Finally, some quiet

By around 8pm the house is quiet again. People are often surprised to learn I'm actually quite introverted. I love people, but I also really value time alone and space to think.

Some evenings I'm catching up on something for the practice, spending time with Dan or reading for my studies. Other evenings I do absolutely nothing productive, and I'm learning that's perfectly fine too.

One thing this year has taught me is that rest doesn't always need to be earned.

10:00 PM – Almost certainly asleep!

Truthfully, I'm very rarely awake at 10pm! With three boys who wake early, I've become someone who really appreciates an early night.

If this chapter has taught me anything, it's that I need to give my own wellbeing the same attention I encourage everyone else to give theirs. It's so easy to put yourself at the bottom of the list.

But mostly, I feel grateful. I'm doing work I love, raising three boys I adore and building something I believe in. It's a very full chapter of life, and not always an easy one, but it's one I'm genuinely excited to be living.