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Our passion is to facilitate improvement in the well-being of young people.
We use research-based strategies that facilitate positive gains across cognitive, emotional, social and behavioural domains. We encourage parental involvement as requested. Our focus is to help clients and those around them to develop greater capacity in being able to help themselves. You could say our job is to “help without getting in the way”.
We have considerable experience and understanding across a range of educational settings, knowing first-hand the sorts of challenges that sometimes pop up in these contexts. We can assist with ideas and strategies for behavioural, social or emotional concerns, learning issues and assessments, and questions relating to both assessments and diagnosis.
Peter has many years experience supporting children, adolescents and families across Brisbane and rural Queensland. Before practicing Psychology, Peter’s roles included Primary Teacher, Teaching Principal, Behaviour Support Teacher, Special Education Teacher and Developmental Guidance Officer.
Peter is registered with the Psychology Board of Australia (PBA), is an Associate Member of the Australian Psychological Society (APS) and is a fully registered Psychologist with the Australian Health Practitioners Regulation Agency (AHPRA). Peter is an endorsed provider of psychological services through Medicare, and provides psychological services to NDIS recipients.
Peter is passionate about helping children and families to develop resilience by learning to cope with and manage life challenges such as anxiety, emotional regulation, low self-esteem, relationship difficulties, bullying, grief, impulse control, school issues, life transitions, goal setting, and family change. His approach to intervention is tailored to the individual and is strengths based.
Peter utilises Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, Solution-Focused Therapy, The Method of Levels and Mindfulness techniques, depending on client age, needs and goals. When working with younger children, Peter uses play-based approaches to ensure a positive rapport is established and meaningful engagement is maintained. Children have fun as part of therapy.
Peter has an interest in sports, music, health, fitness and nutrition, comedy, nature, animals, history, travel, genealogy, live shows, listening to people’s stories and food from around the world.
We provide a relaxed, comfortable and supportive environment in which young people and their parents can safely navigate life challenges. Support ideas and strategies are devised in consultation with parents and young people. We take the view that you are the experts in your own life and that our role is to help you to help yourself.
We listen very carefully, providing individualised and negotiated intervention that has the capacity to evolve as the client does. We speak with the parent and the child/teen each session, ensuring there is regular feedback and clarity of needs and goals while still respecting the sensitivities and confidential nature of psychological intervention.
Having considerable experience across various roles in educational settings we know firsthand the types of challenges that tend to take place and how these can be supported. We are flexible in our approach, tailoring support to individual / family needs. We use play-based approaches for this age group, ensuring optimum engagement.
Typical concerns we help children this age include teasing / bullying, anxiety, self-esteem, self-regulation, confidence, peer issues, disengagement with learning, relationships with teachers and transitions between grades / schools.
Helping parents and clients navigate the bumpy terrain of the adolescent years is something we do regularly. This phase of the lifespan brings new challenges we can assist the teen and parent to navigate. Ares of concern tend to include, anxiety, low mood, resistance to boundaries / structure, device usage, social media, peer issues, conflict with and between parents, disengagement with learning, stress related to learning and assessment, time management and organisation, negative self-talk, self-harm, sleep, exercise and diet concerns, risk-taking behaviour and transition to life after school.
