Therapy approaches.

We don't run one model on everyone. The approach is chosen for the person and the problem, and named plainly so you know what you're being offered and why.

Why it matters

Why the approach matters.

Therapy isn't a single thing. It's a set of different, well-evidenced ways of understanding difficulty and working through it. Some focus on current thoughts and behaviour, some on long-standing patterns learned early in life, some on processing specific memories directly. None of them is more "real" therapy than the others.

We choose an approach with you, based on what you're bringing and what has worked (or hasn't) before. We'll say plainly what we're using and why, and we'll switch if something isn't landing. You're never signed up for a model without knowing its name.

The approaches

The approaches we draw on.

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)

A structured, present-focused approach to the loop between thoughts, feelings and behaviour. Often the starting point for anxiety, low mood and unhelpful patterns of avoidance.

Schema Therapy

For patterns that trace back further: beliefs about yourself and others formed early and repeated since. Useful when the same difficulty keeps recurring across different relationships or situations.

EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing)

A structured approach to processing specific distressing memories directly, so they carry less charge day to day. Used for trauma and for a range of other conditions.

How we use EMDR →

Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT)

Skills-based work on managing intense emotion, tolerating distress and navigating relationships, usually alongside other therapy rather than instead of it.

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)

Building a workable relationship with difficult thoughts and feelings rather than fighting them, in service of what actually matters to you.

Choosing

How we decide, and how it changes.

The first sessions are as much assessment as they are therapy: understanding what's going on, what you've already tried, and what you want out of this. From there we'll suggest an approach, explain it in plain terms, and check it makes sense to you before going further.

It's common to draw on more than one approach over time, or to combine elements within a single course of therapy. If something isn't working, that's useful information, not a failure, and we'll say so and adjust.

Questions

Questions people ask about our approach.

Do I get to choose the approach?

You get a say. We'll recommend based on what you bring, explain the reasoning, and adjust if it's not fitting.

Is EMDR only for trauma?

It's most established for trauma and distressing memories, but it can be useful for other specific, memory-linked difficulties too, and we'll tell you if it's a fit.

What if I've tried CBT before and it didn't help?

That's useful information, not a dead end. We'll ask what specifically didn't land and consider a different approach rather than repeating it.

Will therapy always follow a strict manual?

No. Approaches give us structure and evidence, not a script. Sessions still respond to what's actually happening for you.

Do you offer schema therapy in Melbourne?

Yes. Schema therapy is one of the approaches we use, in person at our Prahran clinic in Melbourne and online anywhere in Australia. It suits patterns that have been running for years.