Counselling, Therapy & Assessment

The reason’s people seek our help can be as varied as people themselves. However, some common reasons are:

• Improve relationships in their family, among peers, with work colleagues,
• Improve their engagement with life motivation, clarifying goals & values, improving confidence, self-image, problem-solving, educational and career directions
• Learn to take risks to change stuck or difficult situations: intimate relationships, roles with family or friends, negative habits, increasing positive expectations of what one is capable of
• Understand oneself better become more aware of what motivates one’s thoughts, feelings and actions, obtain feedback about how one comes across to others, better know one’s strengths and areas to improve, be more self-accepting, learn to like oneself
• Mental health issues such as depression, anxiety, suicidal feelings, past or recent trauma, destructive or addictive behaviour, poor coping, stress management, anger difficulties, and so on that are negatively impacting on one’s life and those around
• Everything seems “wrong.” Sometimes life in general, and our understanding of what is happening gets to the point where we feel completely confused and overwhelmed. Simply needing to “sort things out” is a common reason people seek help

Taking responsibility for our own needs is always important, and sometimes this means recognising that what is most responsible, or indeed helpful, may in fact be gaining support or guidance from someone you trust, who has the skills to actually help you, and who is in the right role to do this. Consulting a Psychologist who is professionally trained and experienced in helping people, who holds national registration with advanced endorsement with the Psychology Board of Australia and is governed by a strict code of professional ethics, and who can be independent and objective is an ideal person to obtain help from. For example, recent psychological research has shown that self-help books do little to assist people at best, and, in fact, may make people much worse than they would have been.

We are committed to assisting people “stand on their own two feet” – being able to help themselves without our support. For this reason we emphasise the principles of client empowerment, personal choice and responsibility, and respect for the uniqueness of each individual. For example, our innovative Wilderness Adventure Therapy® programs intrinsically involve a client participation approach to learning and therapeutic change, in contrast to the many traditional models of therapy that can lead to client dependency and disempowerment.

Many families find it valuable to obtain a second opinion on their family member’s psychological health and on the most effective approach to address their needs. In doing this, we work collaboratively with other professionals towards the best outcomes for the client. Further, families who access public mental health agencies can feel powerless or frustrated. Our consultants, most of whom have extensive experience working in public tertiary mental health services, are well versed in these services’ language, procedures and practices. Acting on behalf of the client, they can provide articulate advocacy for clients and families. Having a professional and authoritative “voice” can reduce confusion and stress, and lead to effective and positive collaboration between client, family and service provider.

Wise people recognise when

they’ve reached their limit,

and they need to let others assist them