About Psychotherapy
Psychotherapy is the use of psychological therapies, particularly focussed around regular interpersonal interaction, to help people change behaviours and overcome problems. It is a classic therapy – where you and look into your life and history in order to better understand your present state. Similar to relationship counselling and individual counselling, psychotherapy helps people of all ages live happier, healthier and more productive lives. Psychotherapy is a holistic process, and focuses on the mental, emotional, spiritual or relational health of an individual. People experiencing issues in personal psychology, relationships, and developmental wellbeing will benefit highly from psychotherapy. Psychotherapy offers you the chance to understand how your problems are influenced by events that have occurred over the course of your life. It gives you the chance to uncover patterns and themes that began a long time ago and understand how these patterns may be affecting certain parts of your life. Everything we experience over the course of our lives is connected. By beginning sessions in psychotherapy, together we can reduce your stress, help you feel better, and work towards achieving your personal goals.
Why do people choose me?
My counselling services are an excellent starting point for your psychotherapy journey due to:
- My outstanding reputation in the Sydney community.
- I have over 20 years of counselling experience.
- I make sure each client is completely relaxed and at ease
- I believe a large part of psychotherapy is the relationship between client and therapist – the deeper and more natural this connection, the better the treatment will work.
- Our therapy sessions are performed in beautiful, relaxing environments, so you can feel right at home as you begin your journey
- My service is open to anyone regardless of race, creed, colour or religion. More importantly, I aim to provide culturally appropriate support.
After several sessions, you can expect to better understand the idea of discomfort and where these patterns originate from, as well as the origins of dissatisfaction, suffering and loss.
Understanding these issues can lead to a person feeling motivated to take charge of their own life, and from here – well, the sky’s the limit.
Explore my other services
Hypnosis
I can help you to free yourself from unhelpful beliefs, habits or negative thought patterns with the use of Ericksonian hypnosis. This method allows us to create a script together, using words and phrases that have meaning for you, facilitating a way to loosen blocks you may have to change or to help with pain management. Hypnosis allows us to engage fully with your mind, bringing the underlying causes of relationship dysfunction to your conscious awareness, where we can work towards resolving them.
Individual Relationship Counselling
I have extensive experience and training in many areas of the counselling field, however my speciality is working with individuals who are experiencing relationship pain, whether with partners, or with various family members or even within friendships. Providing insights into the dynamics of your relationship, learn to apply an assertiveness that takes care of both your needs and the needs of your relationship. When relationships become unbalanced, it can be beneficial to attend a session on your own.
EMDR
Developed from Thought Field Therapy by psychologist Roger Callahan, this is an energetic therapy which uses our body’s energy system to release blockages created by negative thought patterns. We release these by tapping on acupressure points throughout the body, rather like ‘do it yourself’ acupuncture, without the needles. I have been doing EFT with my clients for 14 years and many report feelings of immediate relief as well as the reassurance and comfort that comes with knowing you have a tool you can use any time you need it. EFT works especially well for those who have experienced a trauma of some kind
Emotional Freedom Therapy
Developed from Thought Field Therapy by psychologist Roger Callahan, this is an energetic therapy which uses our body’s energy system to release blockages created by negative thought patterns. We release these by tapping on acupressure points throughout the body, rather like ‘do it yourself’ acupuncture, without the needles. I have been doing EFT with my clients for 14 years and many report feelings of immediate relief as well as the reassurance and comfort that comes with knowing you have a tool you can use any time you need it. EFT works especially well for those who have experienced a trauma of some kind
Meditation
I offer meditation practice and instruction for those who are interested in learning more about themselves and who wish to foster an increased ability to self soothe and relax, using various breathing techniques. Creating awareness of your surroundings, meditation encourages you to see your partner’s needs more clearly, helping you work towards common ground. Teaching forgiveness, developing gratitude, spreading positivity, and bringing contentment, meditation can help keep you connected with your partner.
Couples Counselling
I work with couples who are experiencing negative and destructive patterns of communicating and help them develop the skills for forming and maintaining healthy and loving relationships. I also work with couples who have committed to a relationship and want to learn how to make it work as well as they can. Whether you and your partner are arguing more often, find your relationship has lost its spark, or there is a major difference in opinion across cultural, racial or financial aspects, couples counselling can help you reconnect with your partner and in many cases leave with a stronger bond.
Are you struggling with any of the following conditions?
Anxiety
Anxiety is an extremely common, extremely unpleasant mental condition. It can cause feelings of dread and doom, as well as feelings of disconnection from reality and a sense of growing panic for which there is no clear reason. Understanding the causes of anxiety, and where it may have stemmed from in an individual’s life, is a huge part of managing it and reducing its effects.
Depression
While depression and anxiety are two different medical conditions, their symptoms, causes, and treatments can often overlap. For people who suffer from depression, simply getting out of bed in the morning can be a challenge. The very first step you need to take is to get help. You can’t do it alone, and we understand that. Beyond this, it is a learning curve requiring the individual to pick up techniques and positive mantras for dealing with everyday situations with may previously have seemed impossible. Most importantly, depression can be cured.
Unresolved trauma
A huge part of psychotherapy is dealing with unresolved trauma. Often, when we experience mental health difficulties in later life, it may be due to events that occurred in our past, yet have managed to leave invisible scars. Through psychotherapy we can explore these feelings of unhappiness, and find the root cause.
Lacking confidence
Whether it’s body confidence, public speaking, or simply walking down the street, it is perfectly common and normal to have low confidence. If however, your quality of life is being affected by this, psychotherapy can help you to trace your lack of confidence or insecurity back to key points in life, or key aspects in how you view yourself in relation to others. Once this has been established through multiple personal discussions with a counsellor, the negative thought processes that lead to low self-confidence can be turned around.
Take back control of your life
As psychotherapy supports the notion of positive change through better understanding the negatives in our lives, as sessions continue you may come to find that you begin to make conscious decisions to focus on positives.
As you develop a more in-depth understanding of discomfort, suffering and dissatisfaction, common outcomes to be expected can include a new sense of meaning and purpose in the world, and improved decision making due to an increased knowledge of their true selves.
Post-therapy, I’ve found my clients commonly begin taking charge over their own lives, and may feeling empowered and self-sufficient.
Psychotherapy may help you to:
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✓ Develop a new sense of meaning and purpose |
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✓ Learn to make conscious decisions and focus on the positives |
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✓ Improve your decision making |
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✓ Experience greater joy in daily life |
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✓ Develop feelings of peace, contentment, self-awareness, insight, and, one of the most important benefits, self-love. ✓ Become more self-sufficient |
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Getting started with psychotherapy
Step One – Book a free 10 minute phone consultation
Taking the first step to attend counselling can be a challenge. Convenient, flexible and with your needs in mind, let’s chat about your expectations and concerns in a complimentary 10 minute phone consultation.
Step Two – Make an Appointment
If you choose to go ahead and book a counselling session we’ll arrange a time that’s suitable to you and your partner (if applicable). As a safe and transparent space my consulting room is private, tranquil, and completely confidential. With your privacy my priority, there are no notes unless requested, with any notes taken yours to access at all times. As an experienced counsellor it is my goal to equip you with the skills to overcome your obstacles in the real world, not to stay in the cycle of counselling long-term.
What to expect during a psychotherapy session
During a psychotherapy session, we will work together closely in a holistic engagement that focuses on the conscious and unconscious aspects of the life of the client.
As mentioned earlier, a key part of this work is the relationship between the client and their therapist.
In an atmosphere of trust and respect, greater discoveries can be made.
The course of each session may involve looking at a variety of past experiences to see any links between the events themselves and how they may have influenced the life of the client leading to the present.
Topics which may be discussed in these sessions can include (but are not limited to) personal history, family and upbringing, previous relationships, creativity, history of illness, sexuality, religious beliefs or spirituality, as well as culture, heritage and ethnicity.
All of these factors can play enormously important roles in determining the personality a client has built up over time, and through understanding these key factors, a vibrant picture can be built up by the therapist.
Testimonials
I first attended psychotherapy six months ago on the recommendation of my sister. Despite being a natural cynic, I gave it a whirl, mostly out of curiosity. However, I was fascinated to find that by going deep into my past and upbringing, I was able to contextualise some behaviours I have displayed in recent years which I was unable to explain. It really has helped me move forward.
Clark
After reading about it online I decided to give psychotherapy a try – I didn’t need much convincing, the idea seemed incredibly interesting to me and I was itching to give it a try and see what I could ‘dig up’! I have definitely got one or two skeletons in the closet that until recently I pretended were not there at all, but psychotherapy has helped me to understand that everything we have been through makes us the person we are today. I feel freer than ever before.
Julia
I went to my first psychotherapy session just last week, and I found my counsellor to be extremely kind and inviting. I felt at ease almost the moment I stepped through the door, and the next hour was blissful – how often are you able to sit and talk about your troubles with a truly attentive audience? Together we built a grand picture of my life, and everything made infinitely more sense to me – who I am, why I’m here, where I want to go. It all makes sense.
Alberto
I would recommend psychotherapy to anybody. I was a little intimidated at first by the name of the therapy, but it is simply a very gentle, slow discussion of your life and everything that makes you who you are. There’s so much that we bury or hide from ourselves, and just being asked simple little questions by my counsellor allowed me to open up more than I have ever done before. I am incredibly happy I attended that first session.
Claire
Have questions or need free advice?
Have questions or need free advice?
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