Choosing a Therapist

Probably one of the best ways to feel confident about your choice of therapist or counsellor is to check if they are a member of a relevant professional association. This provides reassurance for you that the therapist has voluntarily put forward their qualifications and professional experience to be audited and approved as being relevant and of a high enough standard to be listed on the member register of the association. This  process also demonstrates to the public that the therapist agrees to  comply with all membership requirements and to abide by a specific  professional code of conduct and ethics set by the association. Most  professional associations publish a list of their members on their websites so that you can check if a particular therapist is on their  member register.

It can also be useful to find out more about a therapist's background. Most practitioners didn't start out as therapists and their qualifications and experience in other fields may  help you to get a better feel for whether their approach is likely to  suit you. There is a wide range of therapists to choose from with diverse professional interests and what they have to offer you will be a unique blend of the personal interpretation they bring to their formal  learning combined with self-education, experimentation and experience. 

A  good way to gain an impression of the "blend" a particular therapist  has to offer is to read any material they may have produced… things like  brochures, newsletters or website material. As you are reading what they have to say, you will get an insight into whether it makes sense and feels right for you. If there isn't much in the way of published  information to go on (and even if there is), why not give them a call  and hear if what they say "speaks" to you?

Like many practitioners, Belinda didn't start out as a therapist. After graduating from Oxford  University (where she also completed post graduate study in education), she spent the best part of 15 years in various teaching, curriculum  development and counselling and mentoring roles in adult and secondary education and also spent a couple of years in the corporate world along the way. The move she made out of education in 1998 and into the therapy  profession surprised many people but for Belinda it wasn't astonishing at all: having spent many years focusing on how students, families and colleagues perceive, process and relate to their environment, to make the move into counselling and hypnotherapy as a career felt like a natural progression. 

The  past few years have seen Belinda back in the corporate world working as an EAP counsellor and also a trainer in the workplace well-being space.   

Belinda is keen to continually update her skills and to network with other therapists, both in Australia and overseas, and she is a Fellow and  Professional Clinical Member of The Australian Association of Clinical  Hypnotherapy & Psychotherapy and a Member of The Australian  Counselling Association. To join these professional organisations requires strict adherence to a professional code of ethics and practice and ongoing commitment to professional supervision and annual professional development via seminars and training courses. 

Belinda is  also an experienced conference presenter and workshop facilitator and  acts as a Supervisor for many of her colleagues in the counselling and  hypnotherapy professions.

Australian Association of Clinical Hypnotherapy & Psychotherapy  (Fellow, Professional Clinical Member & Current President)

Australian Counselling Association (Registered Member & Clinical Supervisor)

Australian Counselling Association College of Counselling Supervisors (Member) 

Association for Contextual Behavioural Science (Professional Member)