With a practice grounded in over 30 years of experience as a medical doctor, psychotherapist and medical educator (teaching doctors about psychodynamic principals and how to apply them), as well as being a mental health care standards adviser (GPMHSC), I offer a compassionate and personalised approach to mental health care. Specialising in individual psychotherapy, I am dedicated to helping individuals navigate through a wide array of psychological challenges. If your problem is long standing and has been resistant to significant improvement via other treatments or you are on long term medication and you want to decrease your need for it long term, then contact me and I would be glad to offer you assistance. Even though my practice does not involve prescribing I understand that you may be on medication, and I am happy to work with this. In many cases as the therapy progresses there is the potential to reduce or eliminate the need for psychoactive medication. If there are changes to your medication requirements, then any changes will be in consultation with your regular medical practitioner. I specialise in treating Chronic conditions. (Chronic just means long lasting even though it may have ups and downs). Treatment is provided for a variety of chronic conditions, including but not limited to Chronic Depression, Chronic Anxiety Disorder, Chronic Grief, Chronic Stress, OCD, Recurrent Mood swings and Bipolar Disorder, Substance Dependencies, Chronic Social and Relationship Difficulties, Chronic Work Stress, Recurrent or difficult Career Challenges, Sexual Identity Issues, Existential Crises, Midlife and other Crisis', Personality Disorders. Psychodynamic psychotherapy(also often called Psychoanalytic therapy) has the transformative power to bring about meaningful and lasting change in an individuals mental health and personality. (see below). All consultations qualify for Government funded Medicare Rebates and the Medicare Safety net, with no Medicare-imposed limit on the number of sessions. While a referral is not necessary, patients are encouraged to bring any letters from their doctors, ensuring a comprehensive approach to care. Follow-up communication with your GP is also offered to maintain a coordinated treatment plan. Each appointment is carefully scheduled for 45 minutes, ensuring that every patient receives the focused attention they deserve. Complete privacy is always assured, and no third-party communication occurs without your full consent. Appointments are spaced so that absolute privacy is assured.
What is Psychodynamic Psychotherapy?
Psychodynamic Psychotherapy is a powerful non pharmacological treatment for, Depression ,Grief, Stress, Anxiety ,Addictions, Social and Relationship Difficulties, Work Stress or Career Difficulties, Sexual Identity Issues Existential Crisis, Personality Disorder.
Psychodynamic therapy is powerful because it can work on the unconscious mind which causes us to think and behave in ways that we don't always like or wish to.
Unconscious thought patterns often underlie relationship difficulties, self destructive behaviour and mental illnesses.
Why do we have an unconscious?
The unconscious develops throughout life and helps us to cope automatically with most life situations. By using unconscious short cuts the mind is able to deal with most things quickly and without effort. Unfortunately we may develop pathological mental shortcuts during development (assumptions) which do not work well in our current lives but which we are unaware of because they have become unconscious.
How does Psychodynamic therapy work?
Psychodynamic Psychotherapy uses the theoretical knowledge and techniques derived from psychoanalysis, for this reason it is also often called psychoanalytic psychotherapy as it involves analysis of the thoughts of the client to uncover hitherto unconscious meaning and processes. By making the unconscious thoughts and patterns conscious they become amenable to voluntary change so that new and more adaptive ways of thinking and being can be developed and mastered. It is thus able to resolve recurring destructive patterns of thinking or behaviour that stand in the way of an individual living life to the fullest. .
What does it treat?
Psychodynamic Psychotherapy is a powerful treatment for depression, anxiety, phobias, relationship problems, addictions, career difficulties, and personality problems. It is also very useful for releasing ones creativity and for developing the capacities such as empathy, assertiveness, self awareness to pursue a dynamic and authentic life.
What goes on in the session?
The work involves the exploration of dreams and thoughts that come to mind during each session (otherwise known as free association).
The therapist does not tell you how to be or what to do but rather helps you to find your own solutions while developing capacities to implement them. Thus this sort of therapy liberates and empowers one to be creative, independent and free to pursue life to the fullest.
How many sessions are required and how often?
Often maladaptive thought patterns become associated with mental pain and frustration and so your mind may resist allowing them to become conscious until it feels safe to do so. Therefore therapy requires the establishment of a safe, consistent environment.
Effective therapy producing lasting change requires the therapy be frequent enough to keep ones mind engaged in the process of exploration and growth. To this end the sessions must be regular. Generally the more frequent are the sessions the deeper are the changes possible in the therapy.
Therapy is continued until the desired results are achieved.
Each session is of 45 min duration.
Fees
Fees set in accordance with AMA rates and are largely covered by Medicare and the Medicare safety net. There is no limit set by Medicare on the number of sessions.
