0423 489 885Contact

About

Brian’s Areas of Special Interest

Here’s what Brian can do for you to help you achieve the better quality of life that need and deserve.

Couples and relationship counselling

Trauma – sexual abuse – domestic violence – PTSD

Anxiety – Depression – Stress – Work-related issues

Addictions – Phobias – Grief

Anger management – shame – self-esteem

Therapeutic weight management

Brian’s Background and Experience

Qualifying as a Gestalt psychotherapist in 2010, Brian has continued to expand his knowledge and experience. He has a master’s degree in Gestalt psychotherapy and his research was in domestic and family violence.

Supported by current neuroscientific research, Brian believes that psychotherapy and therapeutic counselling have a major role to play in treating complex mental health issues and assisting those who have other impairments associated with intellectual disabilities. This aspect of care is seldom used in helping families and individuals adjust to the complexity of impairment and in supporting people through periods of crisis.

Working in various organizations and private practice Brian has developed skills and experience building an extensive toolbox to work with a broad range of presenting issues including the use of hypnosis. Where it is appropriate the blending of Gestalt Therapy and Hypnosis has proved itself time and time again as an effective intervention for mood disorders, addictions, anger regulation, phobias, motivation and many more.

See Brian’s Psychology Today Listing

Research

Brian’s research focused on the:

  • Many types of violent abuse and its impact on all sectors of the community
  • Trauma associated with this type of anti-social behaviour

Writer for the Daily Mercury

In 2016 Brian’s profile as a psychotherapist developed further as a regular writer to the then Mackay Daily Mercury on domestic violence matters.

This included comments on teaching boys how to relate to and have respect for women and girls. He spoke at schools and other groups who were interested in ending domestic violence in the Mackay region.

This was a busy time for Brian as he realised there was a need for men to be more involved in ending domestic violence.

Helping Prevent Domestic Violence in the Solomons

In 2019 Brian was asked to travel Solomon Islands to assist the community in ending domestic violence. He helped the community to identify domestic violence and to look at strategies to help men and women find safer solutions to family conflict.

Cultural beliefs and differences can be a trigger for uncontrolled violence and family dysfunction in many parts of the Solomons. The close-knit connections of most Solomon Island communities meant that domestic violence was felt across the whole community causing instability and great fear for everybody not just those at the centre of the abuse.

Accident Compensation Commission

In 2020, Brian worked as a counsellor for the NZ Government in the Accident Compensation Commission’s sensitive claim unit helping adults who experienced early childhood sexual abuse.

The unit is a government support service developed to help people tell their stories and have some redress without the fear of being judged or blamed for what happened to them. Brian provided therapy and support to navigate the redress system. Working in this area was challenging requiring sensitivity, compassion, and a great deal of patience.

Department of Veterans Affairs

Brian was also contracted to the Department of Veterans Affairs in NZ to provide counselling and psychotherapy for ex-servicemen and women who suffered combat fatigue and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).

As an ex-soldier from the Vietnam conflict, Brian is well-versed in how soldiers react to trauma and how they deal with their experiences in combat situations. It was often said, “It’s great to be able to talk to someone who knows the environment and the language of soldiers, I feel more comfortable talking about my stuff”.

Indigenous Communities

Brian has worked with indigenous communities throughout the Northern Territory travelling to remote locations to offer counselling services and advice to communities on how to reduce alcohol and other drugs consumption, and domestic violence. During his time there he wrote a paper on Lateral Violence, presented the paper at the Gestalt International Conference in Brisbane and later had it published under the title, “Living on the Edge”. Dealing with oppression, despair, and hopelessness in Central Australia. Gestalt Journal, Vol 11. No 1 November 2014.

Lorraine’s Areas of Special Interest

Here’s what Lorraine can do for you to help you improve your life.

Weight loss

Giving up smoking

Anxiety and stress management

Eliminating phobias

Supporting people with disabilities and complex mental health needs

Emotional support for people who are dying

Lorraine’s Background and Experience

From an early age, Lorraine cared for others who needed a hand up. The importance of family and community connection was never far from Lorraine’s passion for assisting people in need. From these early life experiences, Lorraine set goals to help others.

Lorraine immersed herself in professional and personal development, becoming a dynamic and dedicated change facilitator in the disability and complex mental health sector.

She is also a qualified, clinical hypnotherapist and end-of-life doula.

  • National Health and Disabilities Certificate Level 4
  • Diploma in Clinical and Advanced Hypnosis (DipCAH)
  • Diploma in Social Studies
  • Diploma Massage for Special Needs
  • Certified Erikson Hypnotherapist
  • Certified Practitioner Virtual Gastric Band Procedure
  • Certified Anxiety Specialist
  • Certified Smoking Cessation Specialist
  • Interactive Drawing Therapist (IDT)
  • Certificate In ESOL Home Tutoring
  • Certificate Level 4 Health and safety

NDIS Certified Provider (HCPA)

NDIS Registered Provider (Pending)

Australian Society of Clinical Hypnotherapists (ASCH)

Hypnosis New Zealand Professional Member (Prior)

Born and raised in a family of eight other siblings in Ireland, Lorraine has one beautiful son who lives in the UK. Like his mother, he has a great sense of humour and a sharp intellect.

Lorraine emigrated from Ireland 11 years ago and immersed herself in professional and personal development, becoming a dynamic and dedicated change facilitator in the disability and complex mental health sector. Lorraine has a wealth of professional experience to support people with specific needs to live in the community with dignity. Lorraine believes that this is a basic human right for all.

Additionally, Lorraine is conscious of the need to attend to the whole person. As a master practitioner in Reiki healing and as a qualified podiatrist, reflexologist and therapeutic masseuse for over 15 years, Lorraine has seen the life-changing benefits experienced by applying these practices to those who traditionally have not had access to them.

Lorraine continues to upgrade her skills and academic knowledge in her work with impaired and vulnerable people.

Lorraine has worked in one-to-one and group settings where the focus has been to support those with high and complex needs including children. Lorraine’s goal is to provide care and support to clients where the needs of clients are paramount, and that they deserve and receive the very best.

Lorraine attributes her success in meeting client milestones to the following:

  • High levels of empathy.
  • Unique insight into people’s needs.
  • Ability to develop rapport and trust quickly.
  • Innovative methods of encouraging client participation
  • Ability to work across all age cohorts, particularly those who suffer from Dementia, MS and Alzheimer’s.
  • Other mental health issues and those suffering from trauma and who have complex needs.

Lorraine’s approach to client care is soft, warm and encouraging. Lorraine’s ability to plan appropriate programs empowering people to meet their own needs and goals includes teaching a wide range of practical and social skills. Lorraine is always looking for innovative ways to provide individualised support.

Lorraine ensures that families are included in the overall objectives of ensuring the very best opportunities are available to those seeking support to become fully included in the community.

We work with a variety of clients …

Adults

Adolescents

Couples

Individuals

Groups

Disabilities

WorkCover

More

You are in Safe Hands …

Registrations & Professional Memberships

Clinical Member Australian Counselling Association (ACA)

Member of the NZ Association of Psychotherapists (MNZAP)

Member Clinical Advisory Board (MOSAIC)

Member Psychotherapy Board Aotearoa New Zealand (PBANZ)

Clinical Member Blue Knot Foundation (Australia)

Qualifications

Master in Gestalt Therapy – Gestalt Therapy Brisbane (GTB)

Diploma in Gestalt Psychotherapy – Gestalt Institute of New Zealand (GINZ)

Advanced Diploma in Social Science – James Cook University, Queensland

Certificate in Counselling – James Cook University, Queensland

Advanced Certificate in Interactive Drawing Therapy – IDT New Zealand Ltd

Certificate in Professional Supervision – Otago Polytechnic

Counselling & Therapy Services

Psychotherapy will help you become your own master and over time provide you with skills to manage your life better. Whether long-term or brief psychotherapy you will generally notice changes in yourself and in your perception of others as you explore your feelings and experiences in a way that ordinary life seldom allows for.

Psychotherapy or therapeutic counselling provides you with answers as to why you do things that cause you grief and pain no matter how hard you try to change what you habitually do. For example, you may feel inadequate, shame; suffer from depressed energy and anxiety or feel you are not in control of your life or that you are controlled by others. You may not have a voice anymore and just want to be heard and acknowledged by others.

The proven benefits of spending structured time with an experienced psychotherapist will give you a better understanding of why habitual problems occur in your relationships or why you become stuck and unable to move forward in life.

My Approach to Counselling & Therapy

The Gestalt approach to psychotherapy informs my work as a psychotherapist. The Gestalt approach is very useful in getting to core issues quickly and will help you to discover, explore and experience how you shape, and develop fixed patterns in your life, and how you view your world both externally and internally. By becoming aware of these things, you can allow yourself to be who you are, and to recognize your full potential and achieve your dreams and goals.

As an experienced therapist, I will listen carefully to you without judgment. Your work with me will always be collaborative and our relationship will be based on equality, trust, and confidentiality. We will focus on what matters to you. I will help you gain a clearer understanding of how you see and react to things that impact on your life.

We offer services to self-managed & other NDIS participants