Frequently Asked Questions

Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR) therapy is different from traditional talk therapy approaches like CBT and ACT. In EMDR, you don't have to reveal every detail of your painful experience like you would in talk therapy and the bulk of EMDR therapy work is done in session. This makes EMDR particularly useful for people who have difficulty talking about their trauma.

EMDR therapy was founded by Francine Shapiro in the late 80s and has since emerged as a key intervention in treating trauma, which is now recognised by the Australian Psychological Society (APS) as a Level 1, top tier, evidence-based psychological intervention for PTSD in Adults, and Level 2 for children. Extensive international research also reveals that EMDR therapy’s effectiveness extends- far beyond addressing trauma, as it has been found that it can heal developmental wounds that underlie a wide-range of psychological and behavioural issues. For example, EMDR has been shown to be effective for addressing issues like anxiety, phobias, panic, social anxiety, OCD, depression, chronic pain, grief & loss, addictions, and even performance enhancement. EMDR Therapy is also beneficial in addressing non-diagnostic issues, such as attachment-based/childhood wounds, shame and perfectionism.

The main idea underpinning EMDR, is that when we experience an intense negative event that is too overwhelming for our minds to make sense of, this information is thought to form a ‘stuck’, unprocessed, or Dysfunctional Memory Network - and so EMDR is thought to help by processing memories in a way that discards unhelpful or harmful information about an event (e.g. negative and inaccurate beliefs about yourself), while keeping more balanced and adaptive information that has arisen during the process.

EMDR helps your mind and body to process your past trauma and get over ‘stuck’ memories, so they no longer show up as flashbacks, nightmares, anxiety, and depression. EMDR taps into the brain’s natural ability to heal and helps it file away memory appropriately so that when a previously overwhelming memory is recalled, there is no longer any distress associated with the memory.

In addition to decreasing the distress associated with trauma and other mental health issues, EMDR can also help a person to gain confidence in their ability to perform a task or reach a goal. EMDR works to achieve this by installing positive beliefs, and by having the person imagine doing the thing they are nervous to do/or want to improve in, while undergoing bilateral stimulation (I'll explain this more soon). This has the effect of simultaneously decreasing the fear, anxiety, or stress associated with the task, and boosting confidence. It seems that EMDR helps the brain to think in a healthier, more adaptive way by removing blocks (such as negative self-limiting beliefs) and helps the person to tap into his or her strengths and potential.

What is Bilateral stimulation (BLS)

BLS is a unique aspect of EMDR Therapy. This is believed to relate to how the brain processes memories while we are asleep. One of the most important stages of sleep is called ‘rapid eye movement’ (or REM). REM sleep is where we process and consolidate learning and memories from the previous day. As an example of what REM does- have you ever woken up after a good sleep and realised that your dream actually gave you the answer/or shed light on a problem you've been dealing with? Yep- that's the power of REM- solving your latest dramas while you sleep.

A key component of REM sleep is bi-lateral eye movements (when our eyes flicker rapidly from left-to-right). EMDR Therapy utilises this process by mimicking the eye-movements of REM sleep to stimulate the brain’s natural way of healing and processing memories. EMDR does this by using sounds, lights, movement, and vibrations to stimulate both sides of the brain, using a technique called bilateral stimulation (BLS).

EMDR Therapy identifies a stuck memory and brings the information into the persons' present awareness, while pairing it with the bilateral eye movements observed in REM sleep. This in turn allows the brain to process the memory, resulting in the resolution of distress- associated with the memory, and a sense of freedom from related emotional, psychological and behavioural issues holding people back.

Does EMDR Therapy Work Online?

There is strong evidence supporting the effectiveness of EMDR Therapy delivered online, with research reporting that online EMDR therapy can be just as effective as in person sessions. Prior to commencing online EMDR therapy, your psychologist will work with you to make sure that you are emotionally ready to engage in trauma processing work, and that you have some self-care and emotional regulation tools to manage any distress that may arise.

Recommendations include:

1. Ensuring a reliable and stable internet connection, the use of a hands-free device with a suitable/large screen to facilitate the required left-to-right eye movements for BLS.

2. It’s also key to have a quiet, private uninterrupted space for memory processing sessions, free from potential disruptions such as people, pets, or device notifications.

3. Also ensure that a phone next to you during the session so that your psychologist can easily contact you if there are technological issues.

4. Having tissues, water, and other comfort items close by can also help

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CBT teaches us to change and reframe negative thought patterns, while ACT teaches us to accept negative feelings or situations as part of the human experience. Both are considered ‘talk therapies'. CBT helps us to identify unhelpful or unbalanced thinking patterns we have, and then challenge them with more helpful and balanced ways of thinking. CBT also involved changing our patterns of behaviour, such as gradually facing our fears or things we’ve been avoiding, or role playing ‘what if’/worst case scenarios with your therapist and seeing how likely they are to happen and figure out ways you can cope. The goal of CBT is to improve your quality of life through shifting your thoughts and behaviour patterns.

ACT helps us focus on our motivations and values once we have learned to accept the challenges in our life, while CBT helps us identify things that we need to change ACT acknowledges that sometimes using logic doesn’t work and aims to help people to accept what kinds of things are not in their control and once that is achieved, ACT helps us to commit to actions that will us move in a positive and meaningful direction. ACT teaches us that suffering is a normal part of life and utilises mindfulness approaches to help us accept reality has it is. ACT helps us to make room for undesired feelings, emotions and sensations, and practice moving forward with our life at the same time.

CBT and ACT often involves practicing skills outside of session and includes worksheets for you to do on your own to become more self-aware. ACT can be considered is an action-oriented approach that helps people build their psychological flexibility to promote a better quality of life, while CBT can be considered a goal-oriented therapy that is mainly interested in tackling specific problems, and less interested in the delving into causes.

Somatic Experiencing can be thought of as a body-mind approach to healing from trauma, as it does not focus on thoughts or emotions associated with a traumatic event. Within SE, trauma is defined as the constant dysregulation of the nervous system and bodily experiences. It was created by Dr. Peter Levin, PhD, and is based on the notion that trauma gets trapped in the body and thus SE works with the body to access and change feelings, thoughts, and behaviours. Somatic experiencing helps us increase our awareness of our internal experience and release trauma, finding ways to relax and calm the body and mind.

Empirical research has shown that SE can be an effective therapy for treating trauma and many trauma therapists utilise SE as an adjunct to other level 1 evidence-based psychological intervention for PTSD, such as EMDR and CBT.

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We specialise in providing top quality, accessible, and affordable online therapy and services:

Extensive research has found online therapy can be just as effective as traditional face-to-face therapy. Telehealth removes the need to travel to an appointment, which providing more flexibility, convenience, saving on time and travel cost, and takes away the issue of having travel after a heavy session.

Telehealth also improves access to psychological support by removing geographical barriers, where you can choose to work with any therapist regardless of their location.

Although Telehealth may not suit everyone, most people report they find it more convenient than travelling to / from a doctor’s office for appointments. Your psychologist will ask you some intake questions to help determine if telehealth is good option for you.

Freedom Psychology and Life Coaching uses Microsoft (MS) Teams which is compliant with the Australian standards for online security and encryption. MS Teams provides flexibility for clients, who can use Teams on Windows or Mac computers, as well as tablets and phones running Android or Apple operating systems, with no cost to you. On most platforms clients can choose between a downloaded application or a Web-based version.

 

Prior to commencing online therapy, your psychologist will work with you to ensure that telehealth therapy is a suitable option for you.

 

Basic requirements for Telehealth:

A reliable and stable internet connection.

A laptop, desktop computer, iPad/tablet or smart phone.

Headphones and an in-built camera or webcam on your device.

If you are going to be using your smartphone or tablet for teletherapy, you will need to download the Microsoft Teams app. Just search ‘Microsoft Teams’ in the app store.

a.      If you are going to use your desktop computer, then you need to have the latest version of Google Chrome or Microsoft Edge.

b.     If you don’t want to use these browsers, then you can download the Microsoft Teams desktop app. You don’t have to setup an account to use Microsoft Teams for telehealth, but you can if you like.

c.      Your psychologist/coach will send you a Microsoft Teams meeting request by email. In the email there will be a link to join the meeting. 

d.     If you have setup a Microsoft Teams account, then you will be taken to the meeting in the app or your browser. You may have to sign in.

e.      If you haven’t setup an account, click ‘Join as a guest’ and type in your name.

5.      A private, safe and uninterrupted space where you feel able to speak freely with minimal distractions.

A phone next to you during the session so that your therapist can easily contact you if there are technological issues.

Tissues, water, other comfort items nearby during your session.

Make sure that your psychologist has the details of your key support person in case of emergency contact.

Malika is a SIRA Approved (Workcover) Psychologist.

Trauma is a very common experience that lots of people sweep under the rug. Trauma doesn’t discriminate. But the good news is that you don’t have to live with it for the rest of your life (more about this later).

Trauma and PTSD can be experienced in situations such as a witnessing or being in an accident, natural disasters, being assaulted, bullied, betrayed, or in a war.

Trauma which occurs overtime between people is called complex trauma and is also common. When we have been through complex trauma, we often don’t realise that there are other ways of being- how we think and feel about ourselves, what we expect from others and how we function in the world. When we are been through trauma, we might feel alone and unsafe (even in our own bodies and even our dreams can feel like they’re against us), so we scramble for whatever works to help us survive and feel safe again. These coping strategies can include things like people pleasing, perfectionism, dissociating, feeling empty, cutting off from our emotions, we might turn to substances or other addictions to numb out the pain, or default to fight mode to feel in control and safe.

If you have experienced trauma, learning about trauma can help you to understand yourself better, realise that your reactions and behaviours make sense given what you have been through, and find freedom from unhelpful or painful beliefs (e.g. “It was my fault”, “I’m worthless”), distressing feelings, and memories. Our psychologist, Malika, has applied effective evidence-based approaches that has helped many people find healing from trauma and towards a life where you don’t just survive, but thrive. We are here to support you.

Is it normal to feel so wound up all the time, is something wrong with me? Do I have an anxiety disorder? These are common questions that a significant number of Australians adults ask themselves at some point in their lives. You are not alone. Anxiety is what we feel when we are worried, tense, or afraid – particularly about things that are about to happen, or things that we think could happen in the future. Anxiety is a natural human response when we feel that we are under threat and plays a key role in keeping us safe and alive. Without anxiety we'd all be in serious trouble.

When our brain senses we’re in danger, a part of our brain called the amygdala kicks into action and sends out an S.O.S message to brain to release stress chemicals like adrenaline and cortisol that gets our body ready to react and run away or fight - it's called the fight flight or freeze response.

The only problem is that while our anxiety is vital at keeping us alive – it’s not so great at knowing what to do when our threat is only an emotional one. When our threat is an emotional threat, like taking a challenging test, meeting new people, or speaking in front a group, when we don’t actually have to fight or run away, our brains misread the risk and it overreacts- our hearts beat faster and we breathe heavily to pump more oxygen into our muscles so that were ready to fight or run if needed. When we don’t need to run for our lives, all that adrenaline running through our veins has nowhere to go (we don’t get to discharge all the energy), so we end up just feeling really tense and sweaty, sometimes our minds go blank, we hyperventilate, or we feel like we’re frozen and just want to disappear. When this happens, there's nothing actually physically wrong with you, it's just your amygdala trying to keep you safe, even if it gets confused about how much danger you are actually in.

So how does knowing all this help? Well, understanding and being able to label all of the above as a survival or anxiety response is an important first step in learning how to manage it. Therapy can equip you with the tools to cope (like using calm breathing and ground strategies).

A quick note about panic: panic attacks are common to many anxiety disorders and can seem impossible to overcome. A panic attack can be very distressing and make you feel like you are dying, but they cannot directly turn into a heart attack.  With a systematic approach and adopting some straightforward strategies, panic attacks can become manageable.

“Anxiety disorders are very treatable. The majority of people who suffer from anxiety are able to reduce or eliminate symptoms after several (or fewer) months of therapy, and many people notice improvement after just a few sessions. Our psychologist Malika is trained in evidenced based therapy approaches that can help you to tame your anxiety and be free from its control.

Grief is a natural response and a term used to describe what we feel and how we respond to a significant loss in our life. Grief often involves a roller coaster of feelings including deep sadness, feelings of shock and numbness, or denial and anger.  We can feel grief over a range of things, including the death of a loved one, family breakdown, miscarriage or infertility, loss of a pet, work changes, loss of good health, sense of having lost ‘what could have been’, or separation from friends and family.

There is no right way to grieve. Grief is an important process that eventually allows us to come to accept our loss. It is important that we allow ourselves time to grieve, so that we can move forward. It’s key to understand that ‘moving on’ doesn’t mean forgetting, but rather, it’s about learning how to live without that person or thing in your life. ‘Moving on’ doesn’t mean that your grief will end, but that you will learn to live with it... that you will figure out how to live a meaningful life again.

For some people, feelings of loss an become debilitating, overwhelming and where you can struggle to resume your own life. If you have persistent feelings of sadness and despair, and if your feelings are getting in the way of your everyday life, then it’s important to seek help. We are here to listen to your loss and help you find relief from your pain.

Have you been affected by a relationship that often leaves you feeling confused, belittled, distressed, or alone? Narcissistic abuse can involve behaviours such as “gaslighting”, emotional, verbal, physical, sexual and financial abuse. Narcissistic abuse can be experienced in romantic relationships, parent-child relationships, in the work/community context and other close relationships. Not only can narcissistic abuse undermine a person’s rights, wellbeing and sense of reality, but it can also cut to the core a person’s sense of self- “Am I even worthy of love/respect?... It was probably my fault anyway.”.

People who have narcissistic personality disorder (NPD) tend to be self-centred, lacking in empathy, and experts in manipulation and control, which means that they know how to play at people’s emotions to draw them in and fool people into believing their lies and empty promises.

Narcissistic abuse can even lead to Complex PTSD, which includes some common signs listed below:

·         Flashbacks (visual and emotional) and nightmares.

·         Ongoing hypervigilance and sense of threat- e.g. always feeling jumpy and walking on eggshells.

·         Avoidance behaviours– e.g. changing your behaviours to avoid triggers, reminders of abuse, and anxiety.

·         Feelings of worthlessness, shame, and self-blame – “I must be doing something wrong to have pushed away the loving part of my partner”.

·         Challenges with emotion regulation- e.g., intense feelings of sadness or anger.

·         Ongoing struggles in relationships- including difficulty trusting others.

·         Feeling detached from your body and/or emotions and memory issues.

Helpful in the literature for survivors is the topic of the “trauma bonding”, which can be understood as an emotional attachment that forms with an abusive person, where the abusers’ manipulative tactics result in significant power over the individual being abused, and dependency that is hard for the survivor to escape. The good news is that healing from narcissistic abuse is possible. Recommended treatments include Eye Movement Desensitisation Reprocessing (EMDR) Therapy, somatic therapies (such as Somatic Experiencing) and psychotherapies that helps you to address your trauma, grief and loss. I wasn’t your fault, you deserve to be heard and supported to thrive.

OCD can cause intense feelings of worry or shame, but many types of treatment can help. Therapy, medication, and self-care techniques can help you manage OCD and relieve unwanted symptoms.

There are two main parts of OCD: Obsessions and Compulsions. OCD likes to play on our uncertainty and goes after what matters most to us (e.g. our health, sexuality, morality, relationships, those we love most). An obsession is an unwanted, intrusive thought. But even people without OCD experience intrusive thoughts- so what’s the difference? Obsessions occur more frequently, last longer, are more distressing than normal intrusive thought and seem “more important” to the sufferer (e.g. “this thought must mean I’m a terrible person”). Obsessions may present itself as an image, impulse, idea, urge, memory, or other internal information, and you experience it as distressing and unwanted.

A compulsion is a behaviour designed to avoid or reduce the discomfort that comes from your experience of an obsession. This behaviour may be physical (such as checking/washing/rituals) or mental (such as reassurance seeking/reviewing/neutralizing). The endlessness between obsessions and compulsions in OCD can be seen as cycle, a loop of (1) experiencing discomfort from an unwanted thought, (2) attempting to reduce the discomfort, then (3) engaging in the exact behaviour that brings the discomfort back.

The way an OCD sufferer perceives the world is as if it has unlimited potential (it’s pretty cool if you think about it), where anything can be thought of as possible (no matter how unlikely). This kind of thinking can foster out of the box thinking, imagination, creativity, and empathy. But it also comes with a burden, a painful awareness that everything is essentially uncertain and that even the worst things imaginable are possible.

Living with OCD can be challenging (to say the least), but help is available. FPLC can provide you with effective OCD treatment including Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP), mindfulness-based approaches, and EMDR that is tailored to suit your unique needs.

We all go through ups and downs where we can feel sad or dejected, but often these feelings are situational and pass on their own. However, if these feelings go on for weeks at a time, or get in the way of everyday life stuff, you might be experiencing depression. Depression is a mental health problem that involves having ongoing low mood, a loss of interest and in things and it can also cause a heap of other changes to how you think, feel or act. While mild depression might not stop you from living your life, severe depression can make you feel suicidal and unable to function normally. One of the biggest misconceptions about depression is that people can just snap out of it, but depression is quite complex and involves structural changes and chemical interactions in our brain. Often someone with depression has very little control over how they feel and telling them that they should just stop being depressed is invalidating and hurtful.

No body is immune to depression, it has been estimated that more than 260 million people worldwide, suffer from depression at some point in their life. Depression does not discriminate and effects people from all walks of life. The good news is that there are many effective treatments for depression. Our psychologist is experienced in helping many people overcome their depression and reconnect with the things that matter most to them.

 

 

Anger is a normal and valid emotion. Like any emotion, it conveys a message and gives us clues about how to respond in a situation. Anger can indicate to us that a situation is unjust, unfair or threatening and that we need to put some boundaries in place or act to defend ourselves. So, while it’s perfectly normal and valid to feel angry when we’ve been wronged, anger can become a problem when we express it in a way that harms us or others.

For some people, may we turn to anger as a kind of amour to protect ourselves, or maybe it masks a bunch of vulnerable feelings and experiences we haven’t dealt with, or maybe unleashing anger to deal with problems was modelled to us - so it’s what we know… Either way, there is probably a valid reason why it’s hard to let go of the unhelpful parts of your anger. However, we know that an unhealthy relationship with anger can take a huge toll on our relationships, work, success, quality of life, and even our health.

If you want to find new ways to relate with and express your anger, we are here to support you.

Most people go through periods where they feel tired or unhappy at work. However, if your job leaves you feeling emotionally exhausted, beyond the point of caring, or unable to function normally, you might be experiencing burnout.

While stress is one of the main causes of burnout, the two are quite different. Most people experience stress as being too ‘full’ of tension, pressure, or anxiety. Burnout, however, feels like you’re extremely ‘empty’ of energy, motivation, or hope.

‘Burnout’ describes what happens when we feel so depleted by the stresses of work that we struggle to perform. It can leave us feeling emotionally drained, unmotivated, and ineffective.

We understand that burnout doesn’t happen in a vacuum: people get burnout when they work in environments that they find highly stressful. The good news is that burnout can be addressed in lots of different ways, whether working at the level of an individual, a team, or an organisational level. We understand and are here to support you.

 

A perinatal mental health problem is one that you experience any time from becoming pregnant and up to a year after you give birth. Research suggests that factors such as the changes to your hormones during pregnancy and after giving birth, lack of support, difficult childhood experiences, history of abuse, low self-esteem, and stressful life events can make some women more vulnerable to developing mental health issues.

Having a baby is huge life transition and it’s natural to experience a roller coaster of feelings. But if these feelings begin to impact your daily functioning, this might be a perinatal mental health issue. It can be tricky to know what is normal and when it might be time to seek help.

If you have a mental health issue and you get pregnant, it’s a really good idea to talk to your GP as soon as possible. This is because having pre-existing mental health issue can increase your risk of becoming unwell in the perinatal period.

There are a range of individual perinatal mental health problems that include, perinatal anxiety, perinatal depression, perinatal eating disorders, and postnatal PTSD. We are here to listen, and nurture you through this new chapter in your life. 

This privacy policy applies to both our website and our business. This document describes the privacy policy of Freedom Psychology and Life Coaching for the management of clients’ personal information. Freedom Psychology and Life Coaching collects, utilises and retains its clients’ personal information. This information is important in the optimal provision of psychological services. We understand that it is also important that the information is appropriately managed in accordance with law and ethical guidelines of the profession. The psychological service provided is bound by the legal requirements of the Australian Privacy Principles set out in the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth).

 

RIGHTS AS A CLIENT OF A PSYCHOLOGIST

Please refer to the “Charter for Clients of APS Psychologists” (from the Australian Psychological Society) and “The Rights of Clients of Australian Psychologists” (from the Australian Association of Psychologists Inc.), documents that explain your rights as a client of a psychologist.

 

 

Client information

Client files are held in electronic document management systems, which complies with various privacy legislative requirements (i.e., the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth)), and is accessible only to authorised employees or any authorised service provider in accordance with the practice's policies and procedures. The information on each file includes personal information such as name, address, contact phone numbers, medical history, and other personal information collected as part of providing the psychological service.

 

What is personal information?

Personal information is any information which identifies you or could reasonably be used to identify you.

 

De-identified information

You can browse our online website anonymously (although cookies may identify your IP address). However, if you use, request or sign up for any of our services, you will need to identify yourself and at that point we will start collecting your personal information in order to deliver a service or send information about our services. If you do not give personal information to us, it will affect our ability to deliver our services or to provide you with requested information.

 

How clients' personal information is collected

At all times we aim to only collect the minimum information we need to keep to provide our services (as requested by you) and to keep our records up to date. All personal information collected once engaged with our service is stored for as long as is required under relevant health regulations.

 

A client's personal information is collected in a few ways during psychological consultation with Freedom Psychology and Life Coaching, including:

when the client provides information directly to Freedom Psychology and Life Coaching when you contact us; when you submit information to our website, email, or in person (e.g. initial intake forms); correspondence via email; when you correspond with us in person, over the phone, via email or through completion of online forms; when you ask for access to information we hold about you; and when other health practitioners provide personal information to Freedom Psychology and Life Coaching via referrals, medical reports, and correspondence.

 

When you use our website, we may receive data from third parties such as analytics providers and advertising networks like Google and Facebook.

 

This information forms part of the personal information described in this policy.

 

Consequence of not providing personal information

If the client does not wish for their personal information to be collected in a way anticipated by this Privacy Policy, Freedom Psychology and Life Coaching may not be in a position to provide the psychological service to the client. In some circumstances, clients may request to be anonymous or to use a pseudonym, unless it is impracticable for Freedom Psychology and Life Coaching to deal with the client or if Freedom Psychology and Life Coaching is required or authorised by law to deal with identified individuals.

 

Purpose of holding personal information

A client’s personal information is gathered and used for the purpose of

providing psychological services, which includes assessing, diagnosing and

treating a client’s presenting issue. The personal information is retained in order to

document what happens during sessions, and enables the psychologist to

provide a relevant and informed psychological service.

 

Disclosure of personal information

Clients’ personal information will remain confidential except when:

It is subpoenaed by a court, or disclosure is otherwise required or authorised by law;

Failure to disclose the information would in the reasonable belief of the Freedom Psychology and Life Coaching place a client or another person at serious risk to life, health or safety; or

The client’s prior approval has been obtained to:

a) Provide a written report to another agency or professional, e.g., a GP or a lawyer; or

b) Discuss the material with another person, e.g. a parent, employer, health provider, or third-party funder; or

c) Disclose the information in another way; or

d) Disclose to another professional or agency (e.g. your GP) and disclosure of your personal information to that third party is for a purpose which is directly related to the primary purpose for which your personal information was collected.

 

A client's personal information is not disclosed to overseas recipients, unless the client consents or such disclosure is otherwise required by law. Clients' personal information will not be used, sold, rented or disclosed for any other purpose.

 

In the event that unauthorised access, disclosure or loss of a client’s personal information occurs Freedom Psychology and Life Coaching will activate its data breach plan and use all reasonable endeavours to minimise any risk of consequential serious harm.

 

Requests for access and correction to client information at any stage clients may request to see and correct the personal information about them kept on file. The psychologist may discuss the contents with them and/or give them a copy, subject to the exceptions in the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth). If satisfied that personal information is inaccurate, out of date or incomplete, reasonable steps will be taken in the circumstances to ensure that this information is corrected. All requests by clients for access to or correction of personal information held about them should be lodged with the Office of the Federal Privacy Commissioner. These requests will be responded to in writing within 30 days. A reasonable period would not exceed 30 days and an appointment will be made if necessary for clarification purposes.

 

We may also share your personal information (eg. contact details) for business purposes including:

 

• Third party suppliers we engage to provide services which involve processing data on our behalf, for example IT and system administration services, website developers. In this case, we will require them to use that information only for the purpose of providing the services we have requested, and in compliance with the provisions of this privacy policy (or equivalent standards).

 

• Payment third parties if there is a dispute over a payment. For example, if our third-party payment provider contacts us regarding a dispute over a payment, we will provide them with requested information and billing details on our system etc to allow the payment dispute to be resolved.

 

• If you have received Medicare or health insurance rebates and we receive a request for information from that provider, we will share information with them to validate your claim.

 

• Professional advisers including accountants, lawyers, bankers, auditors and insurers for the compliant operation of our business.

 

• Government bodies that require us to report processing activities.

 

• Third parties where we are required to in accordance with the law. We reserve the right to fully co-operate with any law enforcement authorities or court order requiring or requesting us to disclose the identity or other usage details of any user of our online services, or in accordance with a properly executed court order, or as otherwise required to do so by law.

 

Telehealth Services

The privacy of any form of communication via the internet is potentially vulnerable and limited by the security of the technology used. To support the security of your personal information this practice uses Microsoft Teams, which is compliant with the Australian standards for online security and encryption.

 

Testimonials, Service ratings and public comment

Under national health regulations we are prohibited from publishing testimonials from our clients. You may talk about our services on websites or social media platforms that are not under our control.

 

Please be aware that if you provide any public rating or comment about your use of our services, you will be making your status as our client part of public record.

 

Third Party Links

Our website may contain links to other websites who will have their own privacy policies. Once you leave our website, we are no longer responsible for your personal information, and you should ensure you are familiar with the privacy policies of third party sites you visit.

 

Concerns and Complaints

Clients have a right to make a complaint about the handing of their personal information. Complaints can be made to Freedom Psychology and Life Coaching by email ( malika@freedompsychologyandlifecoaching.com ). We will endeavour to respond appropriately to reasonable complaints within 30 days of the receipt of the email. Ultimately, if clients have a concern about the management of their personal information, they may also inform the Office of the Federal Privacy Commissioner. Upon request they can obtain a copy of the Australian Privacy Principles, which describe their rights and how their personal information should be handled. Ultimately, if clients wish to lodge a formal complaint about the use of, disclosure of, or access to, their personal information, they may do so with the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner by phone on 1300 363 992, online at https://www.oaic.gov.au/privacy/privacy-complaints/lodge-a-privacy-complaint-with-us or by post to: Office of the Australian Information Commissioner, GPO Box 5288, Sydney, NSW 2001

 

Data breach plan

We follow the national requirements. See here:

https://www.oaic.gov.au/privacy/notifiable-data-breaches/

 

Changes to this policy

We may from time to time make changes to this policy to reflect changes in the law or professional best-practice guidelines. All clients and referrers are encouraged to periodically review this policy to remain informed.

 

 

 

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Freedom psychology and Life Coaching (FPLC) acknowledges that social and emotional wellbeing (SEWB) is the foundation of physical and mental health for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander (First Nations) people. A SEWB framework takes a holistic view of health and acknowledges that social, historical and political factors can also affect wellbeing. It is acknowledged that approaches such as Narrative Therapy can be of particular benefit to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to reclaim strong stories of strength, connection, and resilience and healing.

FPLC recognises Australia’s First Peoples and value their cultural knowledge, ways of being, strength and resilience. We pay our respect to Elders, past and present, and we are committed to the empowerment of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities.

Do you find yourself repeating the same patterns over and over in relationships? Having relationship problems? They could be related to the schemas you developed as a young child. Schemas are strongly held core beliefs that we have about ourselves, others, relationships, and the world. Schemas are like the lens/sunnies from which we see the world. 

Schemas are developed through the interplay of our temperament, our earliest experiences of relationship and how others meet our core needs. Once schemas are formed, that tend to stick around unless we make active efforts to change them. Schemas helping us to predict how people/the world will respond to us, schemas provide us with a template for how to make sense of and respond to the world, and schema’s help us organise and interpret incoming information and experiences.

For example, you may have developed an abandonment schema, because your parents prioritised their needs/wants first (e.g., their career, vacays, substance use, benders, and/or they struggled to manage their mental health), neglecting to meet your needs/leaving you behind. So, you learned that people are unreliable or unstable, and may leave at any moment, which left you to figure out how to adapt to your circumstance and cope the best way that ‘little you’ knew how. You may have coped by becoming clingy/needy with the people you love for fear that you would lose them, or you may have become super self-reliant (putting up strong walls to protect yourself/shutting people out).

Whatever coping strategies you learned when you were a kid, chances are you continue to use them repeatedly in your adult relationships. This leads us to construct ‘self-fulfilling prophecies’ in our current relationships where the same core needs that were not meant for us in childhood, continue not to get met in our adult relationships. The challenge is that as time goes on, and our situation naturally changes, we often don’t realise that the abandonment schema (or other maladaptive schema) that we’ve been holding on to, is now outdated (e.g., we have stable and safe people in our life now), and we struggle to realise that there are other ways to cope (more adaptive ways).

Understanding where our schemas stem from allows us to see them not as truths, but as perceptions shaped by our past experiences, which provides us with opportunities to respond to them differently in adulthood. Another way to put it is that schema work is like figuring out where to buy a new lens or sunnies (that are fresh and updated) and then learning how to adjust your behaviours accordingly (i.e., why take the long route home now that you can see clearly and take the short cut home?).

To identify your schemas, you can take a Schema Questionnaire (just ask your psychologist). This understanding can be an important step toward changing how we interact with others and ourselves, offering a path to healthier and more satisfying relationships. Contact us for support to overcome schema-driven relationship problems. You deserve to experience loving and secure relationships that enable you to thrive.

Malika is available to mentor and support psychologists in Australia via Telehealth. She is a board approved supervisor with the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (since 2020) and supervises clinical psychology registrars (principal and/or secondary supervisor), registered psychologists, and clinical psychologists.

Malika provides supervision for psychologists who work with children, teens, and adults, across a wide range of presentations including dissociative disorders, dual diagnosis, personality disorders, and elite athletes. Malika has worked with in various private practice settings, Drug Health and Adult Community Mental Health, Whole of Family Team, CYMHS/CAMHS settings, Department of Communities and Justice, over her 12+ years of clinical psychology practice. Her area of specialty is complex trauma, PTSD, grief and loss, anxiety, depression. The frameworks that inform her supervision include and integration of Trauma Informed Care, Attachment based, Interpersonal Neurobiology, family systems frameworks, and modalities such as CBT, ACT, Schema Therapy, Positive Psychology, Narrative Therapy, Emotion coaching, EMDR and Somatic Experiencing.

Malika provides an understanding, encouraging, and reflective space for her supervisees and helps people to strengthen their professional identity. She is committed to understanding her supervisee’s processes, exploring hypotheses around clients’ presentations and evidenced based ways to assist.

Malika is passionate about contributing to the psychological community with what she has experienced and learned over the years, she also continually learns from her supervisee’s and feels grateful to be able to share this journey with others.