Therapy in Melbourne when life happens
Life happens to us while making other plans. I see people rather than diagnoses. People who’ve experienced life happening to them, around them, and with them, folding them into the mixture without restraint.
I see the anxious, the depressed, the sad, the languishing, the questioning, the adjusting, the traumatised and the changing. You can experience all parts at once, or something completely different.
You do not need a referral to start, or the right words, that’s what therapy is for.
The Anxious
We want to feel ready for a fire alarm that never rings.
The Depressed
Our concentration goes, and so do the parts of our lives that brought some warmth.
The Saddened
Others do not need to understand your grief for your loss to be true.
The Traumatised
Trauma is not measured by the size of the event.
The Questioning
Who am I when nobody is asking me to be anything in particular.
The Adjusting
Sometimes it feels like we got lost on a familiar path.
The Languishing
You are working, answering messages, turning up, and none of it lands.
Werner Briedenhann, psychologist in West Melbourne
I’m a clinical psychologist based in Melbourne, offering therapy in person in West Melbourne and online across Victoria.
With more than 13 years of experience, I draw on CBT, Gestalt, IFS and Person-Centred therapy. My focus is on building awareness of how you think, feel, and act, and finding practical ways to create change.
Before private practice I worked in psychiatric hospitals, community mental health and substance rehabilitation, across the full spectrum from psychosis and severe depression to PTSD and trauma recovery.
CBT, Gestalt, IFS and Person-Centred therapy
I am a multimodal, integrative psychologist. I blend approaches rather than using a single method, which means whatever is in your foreground gets the attention it deserves. Our lives are complex and our environment impacts us too. Using an integrative approach helps with viewing our lives from different perspectives.
In person in West Melbourne, and online across Victoria
When we meet in person it’s at 101/393 Spencer Street in West Melbourne. The practice sits between North Melbourne and the CBD. It’s a few minutes from Southern Cross or North Melbourne Station. Trams stop on Spencer and La Trobe Streets and there is signed street parking nearby.
Online sessions across Victoria are available and for some of us it is the only way therapy can start at all.
Flexibility to switch between in person and online is there. It’s about having the conversation and finding what works.
Fees and rebates
A session is 50 minutes and costs $220.
With a Mental Health Care Plan from your GP, the Medicare rebate is $149.05, leaving a gap fee of $70.95. You can access up to 10 Medicare rebated sessions in a calendar year.
You can also use private health insurance where applicable.
Private paying clients are welcome and can make a booking without a referral.
What happens when you get in touch
01
You contact me
You do not need a referral to make contact, and you do not need to have it worked out before sending a message.
02
I reply
I’ll send you a message where we figure out a time to meet and what you would like to talk about.
03
The first session
We meet in person or online. We start the conversation about what you want to change.
When we meet, you will do most of the talking while I listen, observe and process. In the room there will be water, coffee or tea. There might be tears, and I have tissues for that.
Things people ask
Questions about starting therapy
How do I know if seeing a psychologist is right for me?
If something is affecting how you think, feel, or function, that is enough reason. If you are feeling stuck, overwhelmed, or want to understand yourself better, therapy provides a place to talk.
I have never been to therapy
Most people I see have not. You do not need to know what to say or what kind of therapy you want. Working that out is part of the first session.
Do I have to know what kind of therapy I want?
No. Choosing between CBT, Gestalt and the rest is my job, not yours. You bring what is going on, and I work out what fits.
How many sessions will I need?
It depends on what you are working on. We review how things are going as we go, and you can stop whenever you want.
Is what I say confidential?
Yes, with a few legal limits. The main ones are a serious risk to your safety or someone else’s, and a court ordering records. I go through this with you at the start.
Not sure where to start or if therapy is for you? I always say, rather ask, otherwise the answer is always no. You are welcome to send me a message if you have other questions that aren’t answered here.