Therapy

I am a family therapist, registered with the Medicare Rebate Scheme as a mental health social worker.

I morphed into a family therapist one day in Bristol when my fellow Child Guidance colleagues and I decided that rather than seeing individual family members alone when there was a family problem, it made more sense to work with the whole family together. We were all young and feisty, so - having reached what was back then a radical decision - we wasted no time. We went outside, took down the Child Guidance shingle and replaced it with one that read Family Therapy. Then we set about getting ourselves trained.

Ever since those heady early days, training myself and training others have always gone hand-in-hand, and my practice is pretty evenly divided between therapy (for families, couples and individuals) and training and supervision of fellow workers.

Complacency can be a trap for therapists who work alone, so I seize every opportunity to challenge myself, via books, films, theatre, public lectures and professional development opportunities.

I'm very out-and-about. I'm also a ‘lady who lunches', because self-care is high on my agenda – it's how I've lasted so long in the work.

I have long-standing links with the Narrative and Gestalt Therapy worlds, and a particular interest, since working in the area of HIV/AIDS counseling in the ‘80s, in working with LGBTQIA clients. Body image and eating disorders, vicarious trauma, grief and loss and blended families are also specialties. Seeing people with highly divergent issues keeps me on my toes.

If you would like to discuss therapy or training with me, you can use the 'Contact Me' button. I look forward to hearing from you.