Welcome!

Watershed Counselling is located in the Hunter Valley, in the arty and food hub Maitland as well as in Cessnock working from the West Cessnock Medical Practice.


We work with you to tackle worries that are important to you and support you to overcome negative thoughts and feelings, anxieties, or whatever else might be impacting you feeling good. We work in partnership with you to address the issues, discovering new ways of thinking and acting that will lead to a fresh direction for your life.
We use evidence-based practice to guide our treatment.
 This approach integrates the best available
 research evidence with clinical expertise and client values.

Anxiety

Anxiety is the body’s physical response to a perceived threat. 

It can cause a pounding heart, rapid breathing, 

butterflies in the stomach, and a burst of energy

 and mental responses such as excessive fear, 

worries, or obsessive thinking. Everyone experiences anxiety but symptoms can vary. Anxiety often develops in relation to everyday concerns such as your health, loss, injury, shame, 

aggression, or guilt.

Relationships

While the need for human connection appears to be innate,

 the ability to form healthy, loving relationships is learned. 

Some evidence suggests that the ability to form a stable 

the relationship starts to form in infancy, in a child’s earliest

 experiences with a caregiver who reliably meets the 

infant’s need for food, care, warmth, protection, 

stimulation and social contact. 

These relationships are not destiny but the

 the theory states that establishing deeply ingrained 

patterns of relating to others. 

Relationships dynamics discussed in therapy could be: 

  • Couples counseling
  • Relationship issues
  • Separation/divorce
  • Family issues
  • Parenting difficulties
  • Improving

Mood Disorders

Mood disorders are conditions that disturb our mood to the point where

 it becomes difficult to function in relationships or at work.  

People’s lived experience with mood disorders varies greatly. 

Mood disorders can make a person withdraw from social contact 

or hide their real feelings from people close to them. 

These conditions are can be understood in therapy: 

  • Depression
  • Bipolar Disorder
  • Anger management
  • Sleep difficulties

Self-esteem and Body image

Body image is both the mental picture you have of your own body 

and how you see yourself when you look in the mirror. 

Body dissatisfaction occurs when you have persistent 

negative thoughts and feelings about your body. 

It is an internal emotional and cognitive process and is influenced by external factors such as pressures to meet a certain appearance ideal. Body dissatisfaction can drive people to engage in 

unhealthy weight-control behaviors, particularly disordered eating. 

This places them at heightened risk for developing an eating disorder.

 

Self-esteem dictates how you value and respect yourself as a person which can impact on every aspect of life and contribute to happiness and well-being. 

 

In the therapy setting, we discuss: 

  • Eating disorders
  • Body image and appearance-related concerns
  • Weight loss goals

Life Stressors

When one evaluates environmental demand as beyond

 his/her ability to cope successfully, he may feel stressed.

 This may include elements of unpredictability, uncontrollability,

 and feeling overloaded.  Life stressors will diminish 

when people learn how to manage adjustments to changes in life, 

both good and bad. Life stressors may appear in situations like:

  • Family major events
  • Workplace stress and burnout
  • Bullying

Grief and Loss

Grief is a natural response to loss. It’s the emotional 

suffering you feel when something or someone you love 

is taken away. The more major the loss the more intense the grief seems to be.

 

Grief can be expressed in many ways and it can 

affect every part of your life such as your emotions, 

thoughts and behaviors, beliefs, physical health, 

sense of self and identity, and your relationship

 with others. Grief can leave you feeling sad, angry, 

anxious, shocked, regretful, relieved, overwhelmed, isolated, irritable, or numb.

Trauma

Trauma could be defined as a physical injury, a wound, a hurt, 

a defeat, or/and an unpleasant experience that causes abnormal stress.

 

Bessel van der Kolk, M.D. defines trauma as “not the story of 

something that happened back then, but the current imprint 

of that pain, horror, and fear living inside.” Such events may leave us stuck in 

a state of helplessness and terror, and it results in a change in how 

we see the danger.

If you or your child are in a crisis or any other person may be in 

danger – don’t use this site. These resources can provide you 

with immediate help. When you don’t feel like talking, once you

log in, you can access free Ebooks, Videos, and other Learning 

resources on this website.

Teenagers are often confused and maybe overwhelmed 
with the situations, they experience in life.
We are working with children and teenagers to cope
 with stressors and anxieties such as school bullying, 
family conflicts, divorce, and transition difficulties.
The most common problems among adolescents relate 
to recent growth and development struggles.

Possible teenage issues that we deal with 

could be:


FAQ

  • Are you scared that your teenager is beyond help?
  • Do you wonder does teenager/children counseling works?
  • Do you find yourself caught up with behaviors you find 
  • unacceptable and you can’t stop them?
  • Is your teenager not showing up at the dinner table and 
  • ignoring your morning greeting?
  • Do you find you repeat the same requests all the time and there is no result?
  • Are there times when you just don’t know what else can you do?

In therapy we discuss:

  • The teenager is a part of the family system.
  • About endless arguing, blatant defiance, persistent lying, 
  • squabbling siblings, angry outbursts, no motivation, technology
  • About your family dynamics and what you think is targeting 
  • the present situation
  • About emotional difficulties related to schoolwork
  • About the conflicts at school and in the family
  • About making time to have connecting time with peers and family
  • About struggles with organizing the study, procrastination, 
  • sleep habits, stress, and anger management.

Tips on understanding teenagers:

  • What is it in for me? Because if your teen does 
  • not understand what the task has to do with them, 
  • or their well-being, then it will be a struggle for 
  • them to find the desire to carry it out.
  • Let them have a say. But give your teenager a say 
  • in what and how things are done. If your teenager 
  • has had a say in setting the agenda and the timetable they will be much more 
  • motivated to participate.
  • Let them learn from failure. Because no parent wants 
  • to see their kids fail, but it is through failure that we grow and learn to improve.
  • Help them remember. And, it is not always the case that 
  • teenagers don’t do things because they are not motivated,
  •  often they fail to follow through simply because they forget.
  •  The reality is teenagers, particularly younger ones, are 
  • hardwired to forget. Their brains are reforming and 
  • haven’t yet got all the bits joined up.

Psychosocial disorders are more common during 

adolescence than during childhood, and many unhealthy

 behaviors begin during childhood. Having an eating disorder, poor diet, 

obesity, smoking, using drugs, and violent behavior can 

lead to acute health problems, chronic disorders, or morbidity later in life.

If you or your child are in a crisis or any other person may be in 

danger – don’t use this site. These resources can provide you with 

immediate help. When you don’t feel like talking, once you log in,

 you can access free Ebooks, Videos, and other Learning resources on this website.

Get Help