Providing a comprehensive trauma treatment service on the Mornington Peninsula

"..trauma can result in growth…adversity and distress – beyond their capacity to disrupt and injure – often push people to develop in positive ways. This may involve new levels of psychological resilience, additional survival skills, greater self-knowledge and self -appreciation, increased empathy, and a more broad and complex view of life in general."

John Briere Ph.D.
Principles of Trauma Therapy
"The goal of treatment of PTSD [Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder] is to help people live in the present, without feeling or behaving according to irrelevant demands belonging to the past."

DirectorBessel A. Van Der Kolk, M.D.
The Body Keeps the Score
"By integrating many domains of our experience within a receptive form of awareness, we develop a more connected and harmonious flow in our lives. Our minds have an innate movement toward integration and healing that may often be blocked after trauma."

Daniel J. Siegel, M.D.
Trauma and the Body
"For human beings the best predictor of something becoming traumatic seems to be a situation in which they no longer can imagine a way out; when fighting [or escaping] no longer is an option and they feel overpowered and helpless."

Bessel A. Van Der Kolk, M.D.
Trauma and the Body
"It can be a very empowering experience for trauma survivors to find new tools to regulate their physiological or affective experiences."

David Emerson & Elizabeth Hopper Ph.D.
authors of Overcoming Trauma through Yoga
"Supporting a client who has experienced any trauma over the course of their lifetime in simply noticing that they have a body, befriending their body, and incorporating exercises to develop healthy relationships with their body into therapy is integral to the treatment of trauma"

Therapist integrating yoga-based interventions into therapeutic work
Overcoming Trauma through Yoga
"I have found that, when introduced in a safe and comfortable space, clients tend to be willing to acknowledge and nurture the mind-body connection. As a clinician, it can be a very rewarding and exciting experience to be present with a client who is ready to and engages in taking care of the body as well as the mind following experiences with trauma."

Therapist integrating yoga-based interventions into therapeutic work
Overcoming Trauma through Yoga

Responding to COVID-19 together

Dear Clients and Referrers, In these unprecedented times I wanted to reach out to all of you to let you know how the Psychology, Trauma, & Mindfulness Centre will be supporting you, our team, and our community during this time of uncertainty.

To our dear Clients,
It is a priority for us here at PTMC to do whatever it takes to continue to provide you with the ongoing support, contact and treatment you may need throughout this period. For the health and safety of the whole PTMC community we have temporarily transitioned to providing all sessions by telehealth and telephone. We are committed to protecting our more vulnerable clients from unnecessary exposure to COVID-19, and to keep our team as well as possible so we can continue to be there for you. Within the Centre we are all working to reduce exposure through social distancing and increased hygiene measures.

Our Admin and reception staff are still available as always to address your enquiries, arrange appointments and help out with any questions you might have about how to access and use telephone and telehealth sessions. All our Psychologists are still able to attend the Centre to talk to you from their rooms as usual - many of you will recognise the pictures and trinkets you have become so familiar with in the background. In the event that any of our Psychologists are required to self-isolate for a time, we are well prepared to support them to continue to provide telehealth/telephone sessions from their home offices.

To our Referrers,
We recognise that as a front-line health provider the COVID-19 pandemic is likely to be a challenging time for your practice, and that your workload may have increased significantly. We want to assure you that we are here to assist any patients you have referred to us for treatment - whether recently, or in the past – and who have already attended treatment sessions with us. Due to our temporary transition to telehealth during the COVID-19 pandemic we are currently unable to accept any new referrals however this position may change. We are reviewing the situation on a daily basis.

We understand that this is an uncertain, challenging and anxiety-provoking time for many of us - but don’t forget that our PTMC community is an exceptional one – and we will get through this together.

With warmth and solidarity,
Margaret

Dr Margaret Walker Director

What is trauma?

Many people associate the word trauma with exposure to a violent, dramatic or overwhelming event, but it is also possible for trauma to develop in response to gradual or unrelenting painful emotional and psychological experiences as well.

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Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is a condition that can develop following exposure to a traumatic event during which there was threat of serious injury or death to oneself or others, and intense fear, horror, or helplessness was experienced in response to the event.

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Enquire Today

At the Psychology, Trauma, & Mindfulness Centre we specialize in assessing and treating different types of depression, including depression related to past trauma. To enquire further, or to make an appointment please contact us.

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