One Therapist's Experience and Insight with Tarot Cards: The Importance of Spiritual Inclusivity

Ohh I love reading tarot. My journey of learning the cards, their meanings, and how I can apply them in my day to day has become a practice that has helped me understand myself more. I once had a side business for a very short period called, “Tarot Reflections with Allie”, that I no longer practice. Why? Because the spiritual applications that come with tarot are not regulated in the standards of practice as a psychotherapist. But even though I no longer do readings for other people, does that mean that tarot can’t be used in sessions at all? 

Let's start with what tarot cards are, and how they are traditionally used. 

Tarot is a 78 card deck with various images that tell a story. The Fool is considered card 0, or the first of the cards, as they walk forward in their life through the remaining 77 cards, learning many lessons about life. At least, this is one of many ways to describe what tarot is. Some practitioners use the meaning of the cards as a fortune telling tool. Some practitioners use the cards as a spiritual practice to connect with Spirit and the inner self, or to connect for other people to pass on messages from Spirit. For a time, tarot cards were stigmatized in my world, and it was considered taboo to practice tarot. I want to mention here that societies and cultures around the world have different perspectives on tarot, different interpretations, and I am far from an expert on the history and the practice. What I can say for myself and my cultural background, when I first started telling people that I was learning to read tarot, I was scared that people would judge me or think that I was doing something bad. 

So why did I learn anyway?

Within the last decade, tarot became more normalized as a spiritual practice. My first tarot reading in 2021 was a beautiful experience, and it impacted me where I felt validated and guided to live my best life. I remember my practitioner held up the card, “Queen of Swords” towards the end of my appointment and provided me with her intuitive insight on my situation. I thought, “Queen of Swords….hell yes!! I want to embody this Queen more!” I won't lie, I would love to have a Queen of Swords tattoo one day. But I digress. This experience prompted me to learn more about tarot and what the cards mean, and how intuition can be applied with the cards. Namely, tarot is like a map or a guide towards the inner self and the cards can prompt reflection on an experience or situation that we are currently going through. Also during this period of learning, I sought a spiritual mentor to help teach me how to tune into the language of my intuition and the language of spirit. This was a deeply personal journey, and one that I am still learning and embracing. Thus, the side business, “Tarot Reflections with Allie” came to be for a very short time.

So why did I stop and why can’t tarot readings be used in therapy?

Counsellors and psychotherapists are regulated professions that follow best practice guidelines. This means that therapists use tools and interventions that follow evidence and research that follow standards of practice. In other words, a regulated profession protects the client from unethical and malpractice. For example, if a client were to make a complaint of malpractice to a college that the therapist is registered under, then the therapist in question has to answer the complaint through the college. Namely, has the therapist been following the code of ethics and standards of practice? For myself as a registrant of the College of Registered Psychotherapists of Ontario, tarot readings do not fall under these guidelines. BUT - therapists who do use tarot cards in their practice, this DOES NOT make them unethical practitioners. Here is why: 

Spirituality is something that is unique to every individual. It is part of someone’s identity and culture. How someone practices their mind, body, and spiritual connection is not something that should be criticized or colonized. Thus, if someone uses tarot cards or oracle cards as a tool for their own reflective process, or for their spiritual practice, then that is beautiful. And how a client identifies their spiritual Self is welcome.

So then how can tarot cards be used ethically in a counselling setting?

Let’s look at the Queen of Swords card as one example. Even if you as the reader do not know the meaning behind tarot cards, what comes up for you when you have the image of the Queen of Swords? What does the queen look like? What does the sword symbolize? What feelings or physical sensations come up in your body? This process is similar to the free association intervention from psychodynamic therapy, where your interpretation of a prompt can say a lot about how you feel currently. This is also very similar to archetypal approaches in Jungian psychology. 

So there are many different ways to explore our inner process. For myself, even with best practice interventions, no matter how I guide my clients through this process, it is still my responsibility to practice ethically. So while I do not practice tarot readings anymore, I still occasionally  use the cards as a tool to prompt reflection with journaling or as free association. 

Tarot cards aside, this brings in the discussion of what it means to provide and refer to integrative care as a health professional. The mental health stigma is slowly being de-stigmatized across Canada, and there are more discussions happening on how Spirit is identified with our Self and culture. Thus, referring clients to other professions who practice integrative care, or helping clients connect to their community is immensely important. A quote that I'll end the blog with from the movie Kpop Demon Hunters, “To fix a part, you must understand the whole.”