About
Johnny (He/They) is a qualified Cognitive Analytic Therapy (CAT) Practitioner. CAT focuses on how people think, feel, and act, as well as the underlying events and relationships shaping their experiences.
Through training in CAT, Johnny helps clients establish connections between their past relationships (including systems) and their sense of self.
In addition to CAT, Johnny has training in the following:
Eye Movement Desensitisation Reprocessing (EMDR)
Polyvagal Theory
Group Schema Therapy
Dialectic Behavioural Therapy (DBT)
Open Dialogue
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT).
Johnny offers something different from standardised Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) alone and tailors the above therapies to suit an individual's needs. He believes each relationship between himself and his clients is unique, and he holds great value in practicing in a trauma-informed, anti-oppressive, and sex-positive way.
He has been grateful and privileged to learn so much from his clients over the years; Johnny is now very experienced in working with survivors of trauma, grief and loss, alcohol and substance problems, various forms of self-harm, and relationship difficulties.
An Accredited Clinical and Mental Health Social Worker, Johnny has worked in public and private psychiatric hospital settings for over 24 years. This experience means he has developed astute assessment skills and knowledge in identifying and treating various mental health issues, including Complex PTSD, Gender Dysphoria, Depression, Anxiety, Personality, Psychotic and Bipolar Spectrum, and Eating Disorders. He has worked in private practice since 2012, initially part-time and now full-time.
Having grown up in Scotland, moving to Australia in 2008, and being a member of the LGBTQIA+ community, Johnny is attuned from personal experience to how it can feel to be considered 'different.' He understands how hard it can be to talk about traumatic experiences and strives to bring warmth, partnership, acceptance, and compassion to all his work.