Nina is a seasoned counsellor and mental health practitioner with over a decade of experience in the field, and PACFA and ACA recognise her. Renowned for her warm, empathetic, and caring demeanour, Nina has consistently received outstanding client feedback, highlighting her effectiveness and compassionate approach. Currently, she serves as a counsellor at the Melbourne Sexual Health Centre, where she applies her deep understanding of mental health issues to support and guide her clients effectively. In addition to her current roles, Nina is actively pursuing her professional qualifications as a psychologist, demonstrating her commitment to expanding her expertise and enhancing her ability to provide top-tier psychological support. Her dedication to professional development is paralleled only by her commitment to clients, making her a valued practitioner.
Nina combines maturity, extensive life experience, knowledge, and understanding in her practice, engaging with her clients collaboratively. With 18 years of experience in the Finance/Accounting sector, she brings a broad professional background to her counselling work, allowing her to connect effectively with individuals from diverse professions, backgrounds, and levels. Additionally, Nina has substantial experience in addressing traumatic life events and chronic ongoing trauma, including domestic violence, physical or sexual abuse, and crisis management. She emphasises the importance of creating a secure therapeutic environment, which she believes is essential for clients to process traumatic experiences and embark on their healing journey safely.
Nina harbours a deep passion for working with couples and employs a blend of the Gottman method and the Johnson Model of attachment in her couples’ therapy. This integrated approach enhances connection and communication within relationships, enabling couples to effectively address conflict and learn vital skills for repairing and recovering from disputes. Her practice is further enriched by her extensive knowledge of attachment science and schema therapy, which she leverages to help couples navigate their interactions more effectively.
As a couple’s counsellor, Nina helps couples navigate the challenging separation process. She offers amicable mediation services, helps couples plan effective co-parenting strategies, and addresses the grief and loss associated with a relationship’s dissolution. Her goal is to help resolve differences and facilitate a smooth transition to separate lives. Nina’s empathetic approach ensures that both parties feel supported and can move forward with respect and understanding.
Additionally, Nina specialises in assisting couples working through past hurts or infidelities. She facilitates the process of forgiveness and helps couples manage their pain, ensuring they can move forward constructively. Nina also supports relationship stress, assists in setting and achieving future relationship goals, and offers tailored solutions for improving communication. Her expertise is particularly beneficial in relationships where one partner is on the autism spectrum, helping to bridge communication gaps and foster a more profound understanding between partners.
Nina also provides specialised counselling for couples experiencing sexual difficulties, offering practical solutions and support for those facing sexual challenges. Her expertise extends to assisting couples in enhancing their intimacy and achieving a more fulfilling sexual experience. Through tailored strategies and compassionate guidance, Nina helps couples navigate the complexities of their sexual relationships, fostering improved communication and deeper connection. This aspect of her counselling services is integral to her holistic approach to relationship therapy, ensuring that all dimensions of a couple’s partnership are addressed.
Nina brings a profound knowledge and a wealth of experience to her work with the LGBTIQ community, particularly demonstrating a dedicated passion for supporting transgender and gender-diverse individuals. Her expertise spans a range of issues related to gender identity and sexuality. Nina provides essential support and guidance through her empathetic and informed approach, helping individuals navigate their unique challenges and embrace their true selves with confidence and dignity.
Nina excels in short-term family therapy, skilfully addressing acute family issues within a condensed timeframe. Her approach is highly focused and efficient, aimed at quickly identifying core family dynamics and conflicts. By implementing targeted interventions, Nina helps families develop effective communication strategies, resolve disputes, and strengthen their relationships. This form of therapy is particularly beneficial for families needing immediate assistance to navigate crises or adjust to life transitions, providing them with the tools and insights needed to foster a healthier, more cohesive family unit in a relatively short period.
Nina is adept at working with NDIS adult clients, focusing on enhancing their living capacity and independence. Her tailored support helps individuals with disabilities improve their daily lives, from personal care to community engagement. Additionally, Nina’s expertise extends to assisting neurodiverse families and guiding them through their complexities and challenges. By providing specialised strategies and understanding, she enables these families to manage their unique situations better, promoting a supportive and adaptive environment that nurtures all family members. Nina’s compassionate and knowledgeable approach ensures that her clients and their families receive the guidance they need to thrive.
Nina has demonstrated exceptional proficiency in working with clients from VOCAT, particularly those dealing with domestic violence, trauma, grief, and loss. Her deep understanding of the complexities associated with these experiences allows her to offer compassionate and targeted support. Nina’s approach is empathetic and empowering, helping individuals navigate their healing process and rebuild their lives. By integrating her expertise in trauma-informed care and her extensive experience in dealing with severe emotional distress, Nina creates a safe and supportive environment for her clients, facilitating their recovery and fostering resilience.
Nina is deeply committed to empowering women by enhancing their self-esteem and self-confidence, focusing mainly on perinatal mental health and parental competence. Her work extends to advocating for women’s rights and providing vital support and guidance. Nina employs a holistic approach that encompasses emotional, psychological, and social aspects to help women navigate the challenges of motherhood and personal growth. By offering tailored strategies and continuous support, Nina helps women build resilience and gain the skills necessary for effective parenting and self-advocacy. Her dedication to these areas aims to create a supportive environment where women feel empowered to assert their rights and achieve a balanced and fulfilling life.
Finally, Nina brings a profound commitment, care, kindness, sensitivity, and awareness to her practice, deeply respecting each client’s individuality, cultural needs, ethnicity, culture, religious beliefs, and sexual orientation. Her dedication to a person-centred approach is evident in her intuitive ability to forge authentic connections with her clients. This connection enables her to deeply understand their concerns and therapeutic goals, allowing her to develop highly individualised treatment plans tailored specifically to each client’s unique circumstances and needs. Nina’s approach not only acknowledges but actively incorporates the diverse backgrounds of her clients into the therapeutic process, ensuring that each person feels genuinely seen and supported in their journey towards healing.
Nina’s therapeutic approach is primarily rooted in Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, Schema Therapy, and Trauma-Focused Therapy, showcasing her commitment to using effective, evidence-based methods. In addition to these core therapies, Nina skilfully incorporates a variety of other evidence-based approaches to cater specifically to the individual needs of her clients. These include Rational Emotive Behaviour Therapy (REBT), Mindfulness, Sex Positivity, Narrative Therapy, and Solution-Focused approaches. This diverse array of techniques equips her to provide personalised and nuanced support, enabling her clients to make meaningful progress and feel empowered in their journeys towards personal growth and healing.