I have found in my work that generally when a person experiences different types of trauma, the distress and dysregulation caused by the trauma can lead to other manifestations of the pain including depression, anxiety, self-harm, and attachment difficulties.
I provide individual therapy for:
It is well known that in the first few years of life the patterns of how we relate to others is created. Starting in-utero, our environment directly influences the growth of the developing foetus. The actual structure and function of our brain and nervous system is shaped by our earliest interactions with our environment. When attachment needs are met, the infant feels safe in the world, comes to expect her needs to be met and feels that the world is a good place to be in. When attachment needs are not met, infants must develop survival strategies to protect themselves, and these become lifelong ways of being in the world. Sometimes caregivers are loving and attuned, and sometimes they are emotionally unavailable, rejecting, or even abusive.
Approaches informed by attachment theory and interpersonal neurobiology help develop more secure connections.
Affect Regulation refers to the ability to experience intense positive and negative affect without becoming overwhelmed or using protective strategies such as numbing, dissociation, alcohol/drugs, or other defences. When the nervous system is out of balance due to early attachment breeches, we may feel chronically stressed, tense, anxious and overwhelmed or numb, deadened and depressed. Somatic approaches can be helpful in working to regulate the nervous system and increase resiliency.
One of the most profound determinants of how we experience our lives is how we feel about ourselves–our sense of worthiness. We live with ourselves day in and day out—and the story about ourselves and our lives that we create as we go. You are not alone if you have low self-esteem (it is one of the most common underlying issues people experience), but it doesn’t have to be that way. Through the lens of self-loathing, everything is bleak—not even successes, love and closeness with others can be fully enjoyed. Shame and lack of self worth can prevent full connection and the ability to be open and free. Developing self-esteem and self worth provides resilience when you make mistakes or get hurt in relationships. If you have a negative view of yourself, it is not your fault. Lack of felt worthiness means you didn’t get what you needed to feel valued somewhere along the way.
If you are tormented by anxiety, you are not alone. Anxiety is one of the most common struggles. It is also incredibly treatable. Whether you suffer from panic attacks, stress, OCD, phobias, social anxiety, fear of public speaking, agoraphobia, or chronic butterflies, anxiety can be crippling and pervasively affect your life experience and quality of life.
At CogniZen Psychology, our integrated approach of working with mind, body, and emotions can help to facilitate the ability for self-regulation and self-soothing. Calming both body and mind helps to facilitate integration that will reduce symptoms of anxiety.
Whether you have lost interest in things you used to enjoy, want to sleep all the time or at least stay wrapped up in bed, or see yourself isolating from your important relationships and withdrawing from life, depression is a miserable experience that can leave you lifeless. Sometimes it feels like you can’t go on another day, and it is true that recovering from depression often takes time but the good news is, most people with depression, even severe depression, can get better with treatment.
At CogniZen Psychology we can help you to find ways out of the depressive cycle and sense of hopelessness about the past, present, and future.
There are 2 types of traumas. The first is big T trauma, which usually involves a threat to your well-being or the well-being of another. It is what we typically associate with trauma: a natural disaster, abuse, a car accident or childhood abuse. The other type is small t trauma. This occurs more frequently and isn’t always thought of as traumatising. Here are some examples: teasing, bullying, parental neglect, impairment in parental empathy, a sudden breakup, discovering an affair, suddenly losing a job, being left out, being publicly embarrassed, or being betrayed. An essential ingredient to both small t and big T trauma is the experience of helplessness.
The symptoms can be physical or psychological and range from more obvious and paralysing symptoms to more subtle ones. It’s important to note that often the symptoms don’t surface immediately but can appear days, months or even years later.
ALL SESSIONS will take place via Telehealth (Zoom).
Our primary goal is to protect you, our clients and our staff, as well as the general public. We have been given the discretion to set our own rules.
We will continue to work with our new and existing clients to ensure smooth transition to Online therapy moving forward as Teletherapy has been equally beneficial for all our clients in the past 2 years.
IF YOU ARE IN A CRISIS CALL 000 or GO TO YOUR LOCAL EMERGENCY DEPARTMENT
Mental Healthline 1800 011 511
Lifeline 131 114
Beyond Blue 1300 224 636
ALL SESSIONS will take place via Telehealth (Zoom).
Our primary goal is to protect you, our clients and our staff, as well as the general public. We have been given the discretion to set our own rules.
We will continue to work with our new and existing clients to ensure smooth transition to Online therapy moving forward as Teletherapy has been equally beneficial for all our clients in the past 2 years.
IF YOU ARE IN A CRISIS CALL 000 or GO TO YOUR LOCAL EMERGENCY DEPARTMENT
Mental Healthline 1800 011 511
Lifeline 131 114
Beyond Blue 1300 224 636