Hawthorn

We offer a nurturing therapeutic space to develop healthy minds and support emotional wellbeing.

  • Alice Nucifora | Educational and Developmental Psychology Registrar

    BSocWrk/Psych (Hons) MPsych (Ed&Dev), MAPS

    I offer a therapeutic space where we can gently uncover patterns that developed as ways to adapt—or even survive—in a particular time and place. My approach involves exploring these patterns with curiosity and compassion, making room to cultivate new, more supportive ways of being so you can live a more fulfilled life.

  • Vista Bhopti | Clinical Psychologist

    BA GradDipPsych MPsych (Clinical), MAPS

    Whether you are grappling with worries, sadness or feeling stuck and unsettled, your inner world will be welcome within the therapeutic space. Together we will work to make sense of your struggles and to discover more helpful patterns of thinking, feeling and relating.

  • Dr Sarah-Jane Dempsey | Clinical Psychologist

    BA (Hons) GradDipPsych MPsych (Clinical) PhD

    Using evidence-based therapeutic conversation we will pursue ways forward, approaching uncomfortable feelings along the way that may come with growth and development, whilst being careful to move gently at your own pace.

  • Nicole D'Souza | Clinical Psychologist

    BA (Hons) MPsych (Clinical), MAPS

    My approach to therapy is integrated, sensitive, and committed to meeting your therapeutic needs in the present moment. We will work toward building a collaborative therapeutic relationship that inspires curiosity and creates space for honest communication.

  • Dr Poppy Edwards | Founder + Practice Director | Clinical + Forensic Psychologist

    BA(Hons) MPsych (Clinical) DPsych (Forensic), MAPS

    My focus is on therapy that deepens understanding, makes sense of the past and brings to awareness unhelpful patterns of thought and behaviour. Together we will work toward redefining the relationship you have with yourself, others and the world.

  • Jacinta Anderson | Clinical Psychology Registrar

    BSoc.Sc GradDipPsychAdv MPsych (Clinical)

    Therapy involves exploring your thoughts and feelings from a place of sensitivity, curiosity, warmth and playfulness. As your self-awareness grows, often connections form that clarify and illuminate historical patterns of being and relationships.

  • Renée Gagliardi

    Clinical Administrative Assistant

  • BSocWrk/Psych (Hons) MPsych (Ed&Dev), MAPS

    I am a registered psychologist and an educational and developmental psychology registrar, experienced in both crisis and long-term support across diverse settings and age groups. My clinical framework draws from attachment theory and neuroception, which recognises the powerful influence of early experiences in shaping how we perceive and respond to the world around us. My non-pathologising approach to therapy views problems compassionately with an understanding that what may be problematic now, has originated from the necessity of adapting to—or even surviving—past experience. You are invited to explore these patterns with me, with curiosity and understanding, and to work toward developing new, more supportive ways of being that allow you to engage more fully in life.

  • BA GradDipPsych MPsych (Clinical), MAPS

    I am a registered clinical psychologist with extensive experience working within inpatient and outpatient settings of the public mental health service. Whether you are grappling with worries, sadness or feeling stuck and unsettled, your inner world is welcome within the therapeutic space. My approach to therapy is one of sincere curiosity and collaboration, where you will be encouraged to speak openly and freely. Together we will explore how your life experiences have shaped your development, including your view of yourself. Through the process of understanding established patterns of thinking, feeling and relating, you will be provided with new opportunities to make considered choices in how you interact with yourself, others and the world around you. With thoughtful examination, we will work through the concerns which have brought you to therapy, striving to empower you to make meaningful and lasting change.

  • Founder + Practice Director
    BA(Hons) MPsych (Clinical) DPsych (Forensic), MAPS

    I am a registered clinical and forensic psychologist, as well as psychoanalytic psychotherapist with diverse experience across private mental health and forensic public sectors. Therapy begins by building a collaborative and affirming relationship that provides the foundation for meaningful life change by supporting open, explorative and relational processes. My focus is on therapy that deepens understanding, connects with inner experiences, makes sense of the past and brings to awareness unhelpful patterns of thought and behaviour. Together we will enhance your strengths and celebrate your courageous moments as you become empowered to assert mastery over problems, and redefine the relationship you have with yourself, others and the world.

  • BA (Hons) GradDipPsych MPsych (Clinical) PhD

    I am a registered clinical psychologist with experience supporting adolescents and adults from diverse backgrounds and with a variety of mental health concerns. Establishing connection and a safe therapeutic relationship is an important focus of therapy that enables us to build upon your strengths, create space for working through problems, and progress towards meaningful change. Using evidence-based therapeutic conversation we will pursue ways forward, approaching uncomfortable feelings along the way that may come with growth and development, whilst being careful to move gently at your own pace. Working collaboratively together, we will explore with sensitivity your inner world, deepen self-knowledge, and establish new patterns of living guided by considered thought and deliberate choices.

  • BSoc.Sc GradDipPsychAdv MPsych (Clinical)

    I am a registered psychologist with experience working with individuals across the lifespan in a diverse range of mental health settings. Therapy offers a safe and collaborative space that is completely for you where we come together to deeply explore and work through your inner experiences, some of which may be troubling and painful. To arrive at a helpful understanding of you, the therapeutic process may involve exploring your thoughts and feelings from a place of sensitivity, curiosity, warmth and playfulness. As your self-awareness grows, often connections form that clarify and illuminate historical patterns of being and relationships. Establishing a more authentic self-expression empowers change by creating the potential to shape your life according to your values, meet needs and desires, be more adaptive and aspire to new achievements.

  • BA (Hons) MPsych (Clinical), MAPS

    I am a registered clinical psychologist with a depth of experience gained through working in private practice, as well as providing intensive support within outpatient mental health services. My approach to therapy is integrated, sensitive, and committed to meeting your therapeutic needs in the present moment. We will work toward building a collaborative therapeutic relationship that inspires curiosity and creates space for honest communication. Becoming empowered to create change is an important aim of therapy that involves exploring and making sense of your individual history, including observing how problems have grown in your life. Over time we will develop a shared understanding of the way your experience informs your relationships and self-concept as we work together to form new perspectives, nurture self-compassion and establish more helpful patterns of thinking and being.