Investing in our mental health is one of the most important things

we can do for ourselves and our loved ones.

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The terms 'counselling' and 'psychotherapy' are often used interchangeably and as disciplines they often overlap as both involve working through life challenges and emotional issues and helping people to develop new strategies to manage them. The main difference is that psychotherapy is a more in-depth process that explores the impact of buried past experience and ingrained patterns of behaviour and emotional responses that continue to impact the present.

 

People attend counselling and psychotherapy to alleviate suffering by addressing issues that impede their lives, including anxiety, unhelpful behaviours, emotional existential and relationship problems, and to develop insight, self-knowledge, and new skills that help them achieve their goals and live more meaningful lives. Psychotherapists recognise the complexity of human experience and understand that mental health and life challenges are influenced not only by biological and psychological factors but also by environmental, social, relationship, family, historic and existential concerns. Psychotherapy can be short or long-term and occur in individual, couple, family, or group settings.

 

Psychotherapy involves in-depth therapist guided exploration of client experience through talking and other forms of expression; the process enables clients to understand how conscious and unconscious processes shape their lives and to develop fresh perspectives and strategies that support a process of positive change. A relationship built on trust that supports active client engagement is central to the therapeutic process; selecting a qualified therapist who empathically, skillfully and non-judgmentally supports them safely through their journey is critically important to positive outcomes. Always choose an ARCAP* member counsellor or psychotherapist to ensure you get the best experience from a highly trained and expert practitioner.

 

Contact me to arrange a free 15 minute telehealth or online consultation to see if I am the right therapist for you.

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Does psychotherapy work?

Everyone can benefit from therapy, not only those who are in crisis. Recent studies** show that 3 out of 4 people who engage in therapy experience brain function process and physiological changes that decrease symptoms across a range of mental health conditions, and improve emotional, physical and social functioning.

 

Renowned philosopher and author Alain de Botton details the value and process of psychotherapy in this brief and informative School of Life video.

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*ARCAP (Australian Register of Counsellors & Psychotherapists) for accredited members of:

• ACA (Australian Counselling Association)

• PACFA (Psychotherapy & Counselling Federation of Australia)

**Source: Amercian Psychological Association