Offering therapy to adults who are ready to embrace positive growth and well-being
Phone: 0405 660 993
Melbourne based Psychologist
IFS and TRTP therapist
Online appointments available
Rooms in Blackburn and Murrumbeena
I'm Catherine. Please feel free to contact me if you would like to enquire about the work I do and whether it feels like a good fit for your needs.
I am happy to speak briefly over the phone to discuss your therapy goals prior to making an initial appointment.
I love to work with adults who are ready for meaningful life change.
I have
I'm Catherine. Please feel free to contact me if you would like to enquire about the work I do and whether it feels like a good fit for your needs.
I am happy to speak briefly over the phone to discuss your therapy goals prior to making an initial appointment.
I love to work with adults who are ready for meaningful life change.
I have a special interest in treating anxiety. Anxiety presents in many forms and can often be expressed through our bodies as pain or fatigue. If you would like to explore opportunities for improved health and wellbeing through psychological therapy I would love to hear from you.
I am committed to providing a therapeutic space in which you feel seen, heard, safe and supported. A space in which you feel empowered toward personal growth and agency.
I believe the power to heal from anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress is within you. My role is to guide you toward that power within.
There are exciting developments in the collective understanding of the human brain and how it appears to be programmed to keep us alive and safe. Experts now understand there are safety mechanisms deep within the brain that are influenced by experiences of 'safety/lack of safety' as we grow.
Poly-Vagal Theory contends: when certain str
There are exciting developments in the collective understanding of the human brain and how it appears to be programmed to keep us alive and safe. Experts now understand there are safety mechanisms deep within the brain that are influenced by experiences of 'safety/lack of safety' as we grow.
Poly-Vagal Theory contends: when certain structures deep within the brain (including the thalamus, hippocampus, amygdala) detect information linked to a previous distressing experience, they take over, and generate a response designed to keep us safe (eg: running away/punching out/or yelling; or by hiding/staying silent/or doing what is expected of us rather than what we desire).
Experts including Bessel van der Kolt and Gabor Mate believe an ongoing trauma response is not so much determined by the event, but determined by how our body and mind process the event. Our minds create a memory of the event to protect us from experiencing the event again. This memory remains 'online' long after the event is over. When conditions similar to those experienced in the previous distressing event arise in future events, a safety response is generated and our bodies direct us to act in a way that reduces the possibility of re-experiencing the original distressing event.
One might say, we get stuck in unconscious patterns of survival.
Trauma experts now believe anxiety, depression, post traumatic stress, and phobias occur as a result of this safety response. The 'fight-flight response button' gets stuck 'on' for long periods of time. After time, the body and the mind start to become exhausted by the effort expended by this unconscious protection, and a range of symptoms can arise. Symptoms can be psychological (eg: avoidance, tearfulness, irritability) cognitive (eg: reduced concentration, forgetfulness) and/or physical (eg: pain, fatigue, headaches, tummy upset).
When these symptoms persist and cluster together we tend to identify them with names like 'anxiety' or 'depression'.
The symptoms elicited are variable, across individuals but tend to be influenced by the nature, intensity, and chronicity of events as well as our genetic history and predisposition.
When the distressing event is a big 'T' trauma event, the 'alarm' eliciting the fight flight response might be registered by the body as loud and urgent, and the person might experience sudden surges of anxiety that stop them in their tracks (eg: panic).
When distressing events are subtle and constant across time the 'alarm' eliciting the fight flight response might be less noticeable and may feel more like self-doubt or low confidence. In this instance we might make small adjustments toward safety (eg: we might do what we are told rather than speak up). As we grow from childhood to adulthood these subtle safety responses become habits. Sometimes we identify ourselves through these protective behaviours (eg: I am a quiet shy person because I don' feel comfortable speaking my mind).
This new understanding of trauma has led to the development of new and exciting psychological treatments. Experts have learned that we can now heal from the impact of trauma, and resolve symptoms generated by trauma by 1) helping the body to learn the event is over and the person is now safe, and 2) providing the person an experience of psychological empowerment.
Integrated Psychology is unable to offer crisis support.
In a life threatening emergency please call 000.
For 24 hour telephone support call:
Acknowledgement of Country We respectfully acknowledge the Traditional Owners of the land on which we usually practice, the Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung, and Bunurong Peoples of the Kulin Nation. We pay our respects to their Elders, past, present and emerging. We thank them for guarding country and acknowledge their continuing connection to the land and waterways.
Statement of Inclusivity
We are dedicated to providing inclusive healthcare for all individuals. We foster an environment where everyone, regardless of their race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, abilities, or beliefs, feel valued, heard and respected.