Counselling Services
I offer both face to face and online counselling. Face to face sessions are held at my office in Table View and online sessions are done via Zoom Video. Much like in-person sessions, online sessions offer you an opportunity to have time in the week solely dedicated to you, your emotional growth and healing, from the comfort of your home. To read more about these benefits on online counselling, click here. I am happy to work with you in a way that is most comfortable for you.
Individual Counselling
I offer counselling for individuals, from adolescents
through to adults covering a wide-range of issues.
Adolescents
I offer counselling to adolescent from age 14 years and older, covering a wide-range of issues affecting our youth.
Family Counselling
I offer counselling to parents and families covering issues such as communication, coping with illness and blended step-families.
Psychometric Assessments
I offer school readiness assessments for Grade R students as well as career & subject choice assessments for high school students, college students or for anyone looking at making a career change.
"The greatest discovery of my generation is that human beings
can alter their lives by altering their attitudes of mind"
- William James
Individual Counselling
At some point in their lives, individuals seek outside support, sensing that something is not right in their lives. Counselling can provide many benefits and just beginning the process of counselling can help ease some of the isolation we can all feel when confronted with difficulties in our lives.
In individual sessions, we'll work together to develop positive attitudes towards life's most complex and challenging circumstances. I will work with you as we dive into any current problems you are experiencing in order to improve behavioural patterns while helping you to "re-frame" your thoughts, feelings and reactions. Working together, you will begin to develop empathy and compassion for what feels stuck or painful in your life.
I believe that turning towards what is uncomfortable in a way that is safe and friendly, allows you to feel acceptance of what you have previously pushed aside or hidden away. This will lead you in the direction of growth and change. These breakthrough moments are exciting surprises, offering fresh perspectives and new possibilities for growth and healing. Together, we will find the most valuable tools to help you cope with life's obstacles.
Family Counselling
Growing a healthy family is one of the most important tasks we can undertake. While family life can bring us some of the most joyful experiences, it can also be a source of great tension and pain, especially during times of stress. Children, spouses, and in-laws can challenge our patience and at times bring us to our knees. Healthy relationships are key to our longevity, success and happiness. Yet many of us struggle with the ones we care about the most.
Families play a big part in our lives, shaping who we are, how we think about ourselves, and what we do. Families are a powerful system that can get stuck in roles and patterns that are difficult to break. Family members respond and react to others in a patterned way, a way that everyone in the family becomes used to.
In working with the family or parents, I aim to get any circular patterns unstuck and invite new ways of being and responding within the family system. When families are able to see others in a different light, newer, healthier roles and patterns begin to emerge. If you are struggling with your brother, sister, parents, extended, chosen, or step-family, counselling can help. By getting help, reassurance and guidance, you can begin to realise your family's potential as a successful and thriving family unit.
Adolescent Counselling
As a parent, it may feel overwhelming to think about taking your teen to counselling. As a parent myself, I understand the challenges parents face raising children - especially today. I have spent most of my adult life working with children and young adults in various NGO settings and I am extremely passionate about working with adolescents and helping them navigate their inner world. Often teens show us how they are feeling through their behaviours. I work with children and teenagers. Some teenagers may be experiencing stressful life transitions such as a move, relationship issues, loss, parental divorce or blended families. Others may be distressed without a known stressor. If you notice your teen is acting differently or appears withdrawn, counselling may help.
Navigating the Teenage World
For teenagers, it's a tough world, navigating social relationships, digital worlds and pressures, self-esteem and body image, academic pressure and differentiating oneself from the family. During the uncertain and confusing years of adolescence, teenagers have a strong desire to express themselves, sometimes resisting authority and being wary of talking to adults. Emotions get bottled up and expressed in angry outbursts and other unhealthy ways. Teenager stressors can include things like a move, divorce, conflict, abuse or trauma.
I work with teenagers that are struggling to understand, fit in and communicate with their families or struggling with daily teenage pressures. I use age-appropriate, creative, and expressive methods that allow an outlet for teenagers to process their feelings, emotions, fears, hopes and dreams. This results in teenagers having a greater self-understanding of themselves and their families and they are able to start feeling more well-adjusted at home, school and with their peers.
I work with a wide range of issues including but not limited to bullying, anxiety, self-harm and suicide ideation, trauma, grief and loss, illness, social skills, and self-esteem.
Psychometric Assessments
Psychometric assessments that I offer include Career Guidance Assessments as well as School Readiness Assessments.
A career assessment can be a beneficial tool for individuals who are trying to decide on a study or career path, whether it be a high school student, a university student or an adult wanting to embark on a new career field altogether. The Career Guidance incorporates career counselling as well as a battery of various psychometric assessment measures. Feedback is given in a feedback consultation, together with a comprehensive report. Group assessments at different schools can be arranged.
School Readiness Assessments for children help to facilitate decision-making regarding school readiness for Grade R students. When a child is ready to learn, schooling is more successful. School readiness is measured by conducting a comprehensive school readiness assessment. This includes an assessment of perceptual, spatial, reasoning, numerical, Gestalt, coordination, memory, fine–motor and verbal readiness for school. The aim of the assessment is to assist you and the school to help your child to be optimally ready for Grade 1. Feedback is given in a feedback consultation, together with a comprehensive report.
Other Services Offered
Critical Incident Trauma Debriefing
A "critical incident" is sudden death in the line of carrying out day-to-day duties, serious injury, or a physical or psychological threat to the safety or well-being of an individual, business, or community regardless of the type of incident. Moreover, a critical incident can involve any situation or event faced by emergency, public safety personnel (responders) or employees that causes a distressing, dramatic or profound change, or disruption in their physical (physiological) or psychological functioning.
Often, unusually strong emotions are attached to the event that has the potential to interfere with that person’s ability to function either at the crisis workplace scene or away from it at home. Debriefing is a specific technique that assists others in dealing with the physical or psychological symptoms that are generally associated with trauma exposure.
Debriefing allows those involved with the incident to process the event and reflect on its impact. Ideally, debriefing can be conducted on or near the site of the event.
Group Counselling
While it’s true that each of us is unique and may have unique circumstances, none of us is alone in our struggles. Some problems are better managed in a group setting where you can have the support of others and can offer support to others who are experiencing similar problems. Annually, several therapeutic and support groups are hosted. These group sessions have a specific focus and are short-term groups.
Groups can cover a variety of topics including bereavement & loss, handling emotions, self-concept/self-esteem, social skills, managing conflict, social anxiety, and stress. The group dynamic often helps people feel supported as they move forward. Whether your goal is growth, improving social skills, or something else, group therapy could help you achieve it.
Workshops & Psycho-Educational Talks
I facilitate various psycho-educational workshops and talks in school, corporate and community settings. Workshops and talks can be customised to meet individual needs. Recent topics include but are not limited to Self-Harm, Substance Abuse, Subject and Career Choice, Effective Study Methods, Identity and Personal Development and Conflict Resolution.