Are we treating everyone with respect?
A sunrise casts a new light on a day, allowing us to choose to embrace the many shades of different stories that exist in our diverse society. Despite all the advocacy that seeks to enhance and facilitate accessibility in Australia, I believe those in a minority, including those living with a disability, are still in […]
Window of Tolerance & Disability
A balanced window of tolerance, developed by psychiatrist Dr Dan Siegel, helps us to effectively function and to promote our wellbeing. The window of tolerance helps us to tolerate mild fluctuations in mood, neural activity, and energy levels to ensure our nervous system (sympathetic and parasympathetic) are in a calm activation mode and we can […]
Disability & Workplace Challenges
Australia prides itself as a free and democratic country, treating all persons equally and respecting others. Sadly, however, people with a disability experience systemic, even organisational discrimination throughout society and in particular, in the workplace. In 2020, the Australian Government estimated that over 45% (nearly half) of employed persons with a disability experienced unfair treatment, […]
Deaf and Hearing Impaired Challenges
The deaf and hard of hearing (DHH) are more common in Australia than many of us realise. The Deafness Forum Australia estimates that approximately one in six Australians has a significant hearing loss. This can, depending on the severity of the hearing loss, create significant issues for the individuals and more broadly, for society. A […]
National Carers Week Awareness
It is National Carers Week, and these many unsung and often silent heroes deserve our support and recognition. In 2022, the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) Survey of Disability, Ageing and Carers, estimated that Australia had 3 million people (12% of the population) in an informal and unpaid role, often aged over 50 years and […]
Thoughts and thinking in Counselling
Last weekend, while re-reading Joseph Nguyen’s insightful book, Don’t Believe Everything you Think, I started to ponder on the cognitive processes that occur when clients have thoughts and keep thinking about them, particularly when they are experiencing negative, challenging emotions and feelings. Lao Tzu once observed that: “stop thinking and end your problems”. However, neurological […]
Hearing loss, accessibility and inclusion
In 2025, just under 4 million Australians (or 1 in 6 people) experience a significant degree of hearing loss, with up to 1.5 million Australians experiencing moderate to severe hearing loss or deafness. In turn, this can often create a significant ongoing and developing mental health challenge throughout the lifespan, which may include stress, anxiety, […]
The challenge of Inclusivity: Everyone Matters
People living with a disability are as much a part of our community as people living without a disability. In Australia, in 2022, the Australian Bureau of Statistics identified more than one in five people (21.4%) living with a disability. Dr Dan Siegel developed an important framework, integrating neuroscience knowledge with counselling techniques, known as […]
Disability, Deafness and Dementia
Dementia is a cruel and often heartbreaking condition that impacts the sufferer and all those around them. It is regarded as a disability because it causes a decline in cognitive abilities, such as impairments to memory, reasoning, thinking, and behaviours that interfere with daily life, leading to a decline in the ability to care for […]
Resilience Through Trauma
Tragedy, loss, and grief strike us individually and collectively, in unexpected and often harsh ways. The tragic and horrific scenes from Bondi Beach last Sunday are a sad reminder that intolerance and hatred exist, and when they collide with ordinary people practising their faith with friends and family, the consequences are too terrible to contemplate. […]