The Red Couch
Counselling & Psychology Clinic
The Red Couch Counselling & Psychology Clinic offers therapy for depression, anxiety, trauma, grief, loss, anger, stress management, relationship issues, clinical hypnosis and professional supervision in Melbourne and is dedicated to providing high quality counselling services that combine traditional treatment approaches with cutting edge treatment strategies aimed at improving therapy outcomes using the latest therapy research findings.
Why The Red Couch Counselling & Psychology Clinic?
Red is commonly associated with emotions and has cultural significance for many cultures. It also stands for brightness, freshness, and the new.
As we are dedicated to incorporating the latest treatments and research findings into our clinical practice this is a very significant symbol for us.
A couch provides comfort and support after the tiring challenges of the day.
It is a traditional symbol for therapy work.
It provides a space to reflect and recharge, to shift perspective and try on new ideas.
Our services- Personal counselling for any life issue.
- Depression.
- Anxiety.
- Relationship Issues.
- Trauma.
- Life Direction & Coaching.
- Parenting Issues.
- Grief & Loss.
- Anger Management.
- Stress Management.
- Clinical Hypnosis.
- Professional Supervision & Secondary Consultation.
Clients are provided with a complimentary audio recording of their session which allows them to review the session in their private time as often as they like, which has been found to improve therapy outcomes dramatically.
What is Counselling and Psychology Therapy as practised at The Red Couch Counselling & Psychology Clinic?
Counselling is a space where we can give attention to what really matters to us. It is a process of exploration, a means to new insights, direction, and most importantly strategies on how to get there!
Counselling is a process of addressing life's issues and challenges. It involves giving attention to the things we are saying to ourselves about a given situation, exploring our perceptions and their impact on our feelings, thoughts, and behaviours. Counselling involves exploring our feelings and thoughts on a deeper level, allowing us to see a given situation, and, at times, ourselves in a new light!
At The Red Couch Counselling & Psychology Clinic, we assist clients to explore how they are being in their relationships to others and to life, and, most importantly, how they would like to be.
Counselling includes a psycho-educational component which provides you with information about what we know about human behaviour and human nature, drawing on a vast range of research findings and clinical observations, as well as putting into context your life experience. It draws on all of what we know about psychology and what over a hundred years of psychology research has taught us about human behaviour and being human.
Counselling allows you to learn new strategies to deal with feelings, thoughts, behaviours and relationships differently, to feel more empowered, accepting, in control, and allowing you to get more enjoyment from life.
At The Red Couch Counselling & Psychology Clinic, our mission is to not only relieve distressing symptoms and treat their underlying causes but ultimately to assist you, with all of our knowledge, expertise and professional experience in counselling and psychology, to allow to reconnect with life and live a life you absolutely love.
Everyone struggles with certain situations, feelings, transitions, and life challenges.
Counselling is for normal people with normal, everyday issues and mental health concerns. Counselling provides a means of dealing with life's issues more effectively, often in less time; freeing you up to get on with what is truly important to you and preventing further struggles in future.
An example I often use to describe this is one of a heavy box...
If you had to carry a heavy box, you could struggle with it on your own and with persistence and a rest or two you may be able to carry it just fine. But, if you asked someone to lend a hand or used a trolley, you would struggle less, get the box to where you need to move it to in half the time and prevent a back injury or strain. You might also connect with another person and learn something from that person and open up the possibility of a meaningful relationship. Counselling at The Red Couch Counselling & Psychology Clinic allows you to do just that: struggle less, get to where you want to go quicker and prevent further strain.Now, counselling is not a "magic pill" and it does require effort and can, at times, be very confronting and challenging. You may look at feelings, thoughts, and emotions that you have spent a long time pushing aside. Where a person has been through a personal trauma, abuse or violence, this process can be painful at first before the healing can begin. I liken this a bit like pouring antiseptic solution on a physical wound. It cleans and disinfects which stings and causes more pain but then allows the healing process to take place properly without the risk of infection and minimising scarring.
Counselling usually involves looking at the ugly side of life and of who we are so that we can make positive changes. But it can also be very effective for people who simply want to get more out of life or get better at something.
Psychology research is continuously giving us greater insight into the human mind and behaviour. Positive psychology gives us strategies to get the most out of life, build happiness, deal with destructive emotions, leading to happier more fulfilling lives.
You may be pretty happy with how life is going but get more intimacy and closeness from your partner. Or you may want to work on motivation to achieve a particular goal or challenge. At the Red Couch, we combine the traditional, tried and tested, with the new and innovative in psychology to assist you to get the most out of your life and your relationships. We believe counselling is for smart people who know that things can be different and who want to bring out the best in themselves.
A bit like personal training but for your soul.
People who come to counselling, or use any of the psychology services for that matter, are incredibly brave and committed to doing whatever they can to address a certain issue in their lives. We see working with our clients as a great privilege and precious partnership. We value the trust our clients place in us and the privilege of joining them in their journey through life for a while. Our biggest reward is seeing our clients succeed, connect with life and loved ones and living a life they love.
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What outcomes can I expect from counselling? How can counselling and psychology help?
Counselling outcomes vary from person to person, depending on a range of factors such as client's motivation, openness to change, how hard the client is willing to work, the counsellor's knowledge, skills, and experience, how well the counsellor's and client's philosophies and theories about the issue are aligned, goodness of fit between counsellor and client, as well as current circumstances in the client's life which may either assist or hinder changes the client is trying to make. Having said this, counselling can be immensely beneficial. Counselling and psychology can help by allowing you to gain:
Many people report immense benefits and personal rewards from having attended counselling and having developed a better understanding of the psychology underlying an issue. These benefits often include:
And many more... |
Issues people commonly bring to counselling Our clients bring all sorts of issues to counselling and there really is no limit to what you can choose to focus on. If the issue is concerned with a human emotion or behaviour, psychology has insight and strategies to offer. Here are some common issues people address in counselling:
And many more...
To book a consultation, please call 1800 232 152. |
How to get the most out of counselling?
Counselling is a process. As such, the more you put in, the more you are likely to get out.
Here are some tips on how to get the most out of counselling:
1. Do some research...
- Develop a good understanding of what counselling is and what it can and cannot do.
- There are many different schools of thought, psychology theories, and counselling modalities. Find out a bit about them and see which one resonates and speaks to you the most.
- There are lots of places where you can find good information. Start by looking at some of the websites listed below:
2. Check out some counsellors and psychologists to find one that is the best fit for you...
- Not all counsellors and psychologists work in the same way. Before committing to work with a counsellor or psychologist check them out to see if you can work with them and if the fit is right for you.
- Ask some questions about their training and experience, their philosophy, their knowledge of psychology and recent research as well as their ways of working with people so that you can determine if their way of working will suit you.
3. Do some preparation before your first session...
- It is good to give some thought to what you want to take away from your sessions and what outcomes you are hoping to achieve.
- Your chosen counsellor or psychologist may assist you in this. Preparation may include
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- writing down what you want to cover in your session,
- issues you want to address,
- symptoms you have experienced including their frequency and intensity, when they have started,
- what you have noticed about your situation and any particular goals you want to achieve from your counselling work.
4. Review your goals regularly with your counsellor / psychologist...
- As you work through things in counselling, you may find that you discover new things about yourself and your experience, and your relationships with others. Your goals and desired outcomes may change over time as a result of this.
- It is important to review where you are at regularly. When we have achieved a desired goal, we feel a sense of accomplishment and pride. It may also motivate us to tackle other issues which we never thought possible and give us new confidence. Reviewing your goals will allow you to stay on track and get the most out of your counselling work.
5. Keep an open mind!
- Counselling can be very confronting and challenging at times.
- You may find yourself exploring issues and seeing yourself, others and certain situations in a new light. This will allow you to address them differently.
- By keeping an open mind, you open up new possibilities for looking at and dealing with a challenging situation or issue differently and more effectively.
6. Do your homework exercises & take every opportunity to practice what you are learning...
- Your counsellor / psychologist will guide you and provide different strategies and tools for you. It is up to you to make the most of these. Try them out and see how they work. You may need to do this more than once as taking on new things and learning new skills takes time and practice.
- If something doesn't work for you, don't get discouraged. Different strategies and tools work for different people and situations. Sometimes we need to practice a new skill before we master it.
- By committing to complete homework and practice exercises you will get the most out of your counselling work and be in a better position to make adjustments where necessary.
7. Provide feedback to your counsellor / psychologist - both positive and negative...
- Feedback allows us to review, adjust, and improve what we do. Counselling is no different. By providing feedback to your counsellor, you can fine tune the work you do together and get the best out of this work.
- If something is not working, raise it with your counsellor so that adjustments and changes can be made.
- If something is working really well, it may be a great opportunity to build on a particular strength in a positive way.
- Feedback is an important part of counselling.
8. Ask lots of questions!
- Asking questions allows you to develop greater understanding and insight.
- Your counsellor will guide you and assist you to ask good quality questions about what is going on for you and your problem issue, and the psychology underlying these issues.
- Asking questions about counselling theory or a particular counselling intervention allows you to put strategies and practice exercises into context, as well as the psychology underlying these issues and strategies, allowing you to get the most out of your counselling work.
9. Be creative about how you hang on to what you have learned and gained from counselling and psychology for the future...
- Consolidating and maintaining what you have gained and accomplished in your counselling work is an important part of the therapeutic process.
- Your counsellor / psychologist will provide you with guidance about how you can maintain these gains over time and how you can continue to receive benefit from your counselling work and accomplishments into the future.
To book a consultation, please call 1800 232 152.
What should I expect from my first counselling session?
The first session of counselling can be very daunting. You are meeting a complete stranger with the explicit purpose to discuss very personal and intimate details about your life. The counsellor knows how hard this is and will assist you in taking this first big step. During your first session, you can expect the counsellor / psychologist to:
- Introduce themselves, how they work, their training and experience
- Provide information about the counselling process
- Answer any questions you may have
- Invite you to discuss what issues you would like to work on in counselling
- Ask you some questions to better assess these issues
- Provide you with a summary of their professional opinion so far
- Provide you with information about treatment options
- Work with you to formulate specific goals for your work together
- Offer you a regular appointment time to work on these goals and issues
- Ask for your feedback on how the session went
- Ask for your commitment to the counselling process
During your first session, the counsellor / psychologist will also provide you with information about crisis management, confidentiality, cancellation policy and any other "house-keeping" issues. Feel free to ask as many questions as you like. You are also welcome to take notes during your session. At The Red Couch Counselling & Psychology Clinic, you will receive an audio-recording of your session since we believe that this will assist you to get the most out of your session. A lot will be covered during your counselling sessions and it will be hard to remember it all. The recording allows you to review the session as often as you like in your own time which has been found to enhance therapy outcomes. You may be surprised to find how much more you will get out of the second time of listening to your counselling session.
To read The Australian Psychological Society charter for clients click here.
About Our Principal Counsellor - Elke Kellis
Elke has been counselling for over 15 years. She is a registered psychologist and has been working as a psychologist counselling adolescents, adults and couples for close to 10 years. She has a double degree in Psychology, a Graduate Diploma in Counselling Psychology and a Masters degree in Counselling Psychology. She has done extensive training in clinical hypnosis and is an associate member of the Australian Society of Hypnosis (ASH Vic.). She has also done extensive training in the area of critical incident stress management and trauma and is a member of the Critical Incident Stress Management Foundation of Australia (CISMFA).
Elke has a passion for people, counselling and psychology. She loves assisting people to bring the best out of them and enhancing their enjoyment of life. Drawing on a vast range of psychological theory and practice, including clinical hypnosis, she aims to customise the counselling work to suit your individual issues and needs.
Her professional interests include depression, anxiety, relationship issues, life direction and satisfaction, transition, grief, post traumatic growth and positive psychology.
The Red Couch Counselling & Psychology Clinic offers therapy for depression, anxiety, trauma, grief, loss, anger, stress management, relationship issues, clinical hypnosis and professional supervision in Melbourne. we are dedicated to providing high quality counselling services that combine traditional treatment approaches with cutting edge treatment strategies aimed at improving therapy outcomes using the latest therapy research findings.
To book a consultation, please call 1800 232 152.
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