Pukekohe Counselling: About Pukekohe Counselling Service

About Pukekohe Counselling Service

Putting the pieces back together

What is counselling?

What issues we address

History of Pukekohe Counselling

About Therapist

Contact Pukekohe Counselling

Putting the pieces back together

Many people have had life shattering experiences through verbal, physical or sexual abuse or neglect. I specialise in putting the pieces back together, in taking the shattered pieces and making a beautiful mosaic.

I am caring, supportive, accepting, encouraging, offer unconditional positive respect. My service is professional and confidential.

Many find the pain of what they have been through overwhelming, and hard to cope with. I help reduce the pain and teach you new ways to self soothe and reduce the pain.

Many people have been diagnosed with a mental illness, for example Anxiety Disorder, Clinical Depression, Borderline Personality Disorder, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, Bi-Polar, to name a few. I believe that diagnosis is helpful, as is the medication, but I work with helping to reduce the symptoms and the underlying pain and cause of the problem, rather than focusing on the diagnosis, or accepting the label.

I do not see people as their diagnosis. I see people as human beings with symptoms that can be healed. The diagnosis does not have to be set in concrete. I encourage you to work on the cause of the problem rather than hide it in even more medication. It is important to feel the pain in order to heal from the pain.

What is counselling?

Firstly, counselling is NOT advice giving. As stated above, counselling is a confidential caring supportive listening ear, enabling a person to become self empowered.

It is more than just listening. It is exploring the problems, healing your pain, helping you find your answers and building your resources to strengthen you and enable you to make the changes you desire for a positive future.

It is finding solutions. It is removing the blocks and helping to create a successful future.

Change is always possible. Even if the external cannot be change, internal change IS possible.

We cannot change past events BUT WE CAN CHANGE THE IMPACT THEY HAVE ON US.

We all have feelings and we can learn to cope with them. They need not rule us. We can embrace them, process them, and know we are still OK.

What are the issues we address?

Whatever you come with - anxiety, phobias (e.g. fear of flying, fear of spiders, fear of dogs, fear of shopping, fear of men, etc.); depression, eating disorders, self harming, confusion, rejection, criticism, grief, anger, stress, sleep disturbance, healing past trauma, dissociation, physical, mental, emotional and sexual abuse, domestic violence, relationship issues (e.g. communication, resolving conflict), spiritual abuse, - addressing hurt caused within church environments; exploring your life history to gather the learnings and resources gained in order to move forward into the future with confidence and a belief in yourself.

I focus on success outcomes and therefore offer change in the following areas:

Addictions
Agoraphobia
Allergies
Anxiety
Anger Management
Anorexia Nervosa
Asperger Syndrome
Bed Wetting
Behavioural Problems
Binge Eating
Breaking Old Patterns
Breathing
Bulimia
Childhood Trauma
Chocolate Addiction
Chronic Fatigue
Claustrophobia
Communication
Confidence
Confusion
Criticism
Depression
Dissociation
Domestic Violence
Eating Disorders
Emotional Abuse
Exam Nerves
Fear of: Dogs, cats, spiders, insects, germs, blood, needles, flying, men, women/girls, pain, the dark, fear itself, public speaking, loneliness, losing control, financial loss, getting old, death.
Flashbacks
Grief
Goal setting
Hay Fever
Indecision
Insomnia
Integration
Internal conflict
Irritable Bowel
Limiting Beliefs
Motivation
Nail Biting
Negative Thinking
Obsessive Compulsive Behaviours
Past Issues
Performance Anxiety
Personal Problems
Phobias of all kinds
Physical Abuse
Rejection
Relationships
Relaxation
Self Esteem
Self Harming
Self Sabotage
Sexual Abuse
Sexual Problems
Sexuality
Shopping Addiction
Shyness
Sleep Problems
Smoking
Spiritual Abuse Trauma
Stress
Stuttering
Time Management
Trauma
Triggers - desensitising
Values Elicitation
Verbal Abuse
Weight Control

Relationship Issues:

Communication
Financial Management
Exploring your differences
Getting the Love you want
Exploring the Love Languages
Power and control issues
Sexual dysfunction

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History of Pukekohe Counselling

Pukekohe Counselling Service started in October 1989. In the early days Pukekohe Counselling service offered Stress Management, Conflict Resolution, and Communication seminars to retail businesses; Self Esteem, and Assertiveness courses to the Community, as well as general counselling to the Community. We are happy to continue to offer these services to businesses.

In 1993 I became registered with ACC. This enabled those who have been sexually abused to access counselling with the majority of the fee being paid by ACC. Currently, I am the only ACC approved counsellor in the Franklin District.

ACC counselling focuses on healing the mental injury of sexual abuse. With the recent changes to ACC, even though you may have experienced the trauma of sexual abuse, there is now no guarantee that ACC will cover the cost of counselling.

(NB: As stated, ACC has recently changed their criteria regarding approval for counselling. There is now no guarantee that ACC will approve counselling for those who have been sexually abused. They will only cover the counselling if the person has a mental injury diagnosis which is proven to have a direct link to the Sexual Abuse. So once application and an assessment is made by a Clinical Psychologist, you will have to wait for approval before counselling can begin. It is likely you will be referred by ACC to a clinical Psychologist for your therapy, as this is now their preferred style of therapy. If you are wanting longer term, in depth therapy for healing from the trauma of sexual abuse, you may have to find other means of payment to access this.)

Over the last 20 years I have focused on offering therapy to the people of Franklin, South Auckland and North Waikato. It gives me great pleasure to help people heal from their pain, and enable them to move on to a resourceful and productive life.

6 years ago I instigated the set up of Hope Unlimited Trust, who shares the building I operate from. Hope Unlimited is an extention of the service of Pukekohe Counselling Service, and is able to offer counselling at a subsidised rate, which I am unable to do. They also have taken up the mantle of offering personal development courses for the community. They have a support worker who offers support and advocacy to individuals and families beyond the counselling session, if required. PCS is able to access that support should any of my clients require it.

Pukekohe Counselling Service

14 Harrington Avenue
Pukekohe 2120
Auckland
Phone: 09 238 3133
Mobile: 0274 811 693

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