This guide clarifies differences between ADHD and anxiety in children, highlighting symptoms, impacts, and the importance of early professional assessment for accurate diagnosis and effective support.
This guide outlines anxiety signs, daily impact, and practical management techniques like relaxation, cognitive restructuring, and gradual exposure, emphasizing professional support via counseling and workplace programs.
In today’s busy world, accessing support has become easier with online services. A Telehealth psychologist offers the same professional, evidence-based care you would receive in person, but with the convenience of connecting from home, work, or anywhere with internet access.
Not sure if Telehealth psychology is right for you? Here are five signs you might benefit from working with a psychologist online.
For many Australians, local psychology services may be limited. A Telehealth psychologist in Australia makes it possible to access professional support without travelling long distances. This ensures you can receive consistent care, no matter where you live.
Balancing work, study, or family life can make it difficult to attend in-person sessions. Telehealth appointments save time by cutting out travel, making it easier to fit therapy into your week.
Some people find it easier to open up in a familiar environment. Meeting with a psychologist via Telehealth can provide a greater sense of comfort and reduce the anxiety that may come with attending a clinic.
Telehealth can be combined with face-to-face sessions, giving you choice and flexibility. This means you can still see a psychologist in person if you prefer, but switch to online sessions when needed — such as during busy times, illness, or travel.
Whether you are seeking an ADHD assessment online or counselling for trauma, anxiety, or relationships, Telehealth gives you access to psychologists who may not be based in your local area. This expands your options and helps you find the right professional fit.
A Telehealth psychologist provides the same standard of professional care as in-person sessions, with the added convenience of flexibility and accessibility. If you are considering support for your mental health, Telehealth might be a helpful option.
At Your Mind Matters Psychology Services, our Melbourne-based team also offers Telehealth psychology across Australia, including assessments and therapy.
📞 Get in touch today to book a Telehealth psychologist appointment.
People can be scared of many different things, such as dogs, airplanes, needles or insects. And the degree to which we’re fearful of these things can also vary. For example, I personally am scared of birds (this is also known and ornithophobia). Yes, I know…terrifying. However, it’s a mild fear, as this does not stop me from walking through a park where I know birds will be present, or walking down the sidewalk when I see them on the footpath in front of me. I may not like it, but it doesn’t interfere with my life. Unfortunately, this may not be the case for everyone, because, as mentioned above, the degrees of fear can vary. Many individuals will go out of their way to avoid that which causes fear. Some may never go on a desired holiday, or see family interstate due to being frightened of flying. Others may avoid going outside in spring and summer due to their fear of bugs. In these circumstances, seeing a psychologist can be helpful, in order to help tackle this issue.
One way to do this, and my preferred way, is through systematic desensitisation. This involves gradual exposure to that which causes fear and discomfort. To start off, I work with my clients to develop a hierarchy, starting with what causes the least amount of fear, or anxiety, and building up to that which causes the most fear. It’s important that clients follow these steps in an environment that is safe and predictable. Let’s use fear of dogs as an example. Depending on the severity, step one may be just talking about dogs. Believe it or not, this alone can be enough to cause uneasy feelings for some. I ask my client to rate their anxiety level for step one (1-10). The idea is that the more the client is exposed to this step, they will become desensitised, leading to their self-rating to drop over time. Once the client is comfortable and essentially bored with this step, we then move onto step two. Step two may involve looking at pictures of dogs. For example, I would advise against going to a dog park to observe dogs there, as this is an unpredictable environment, as we cannot control or stop a dog from running up to the client, which could lead to more distress. Moving, on, step three may involve looking at videos of dogs. Once again, the client would continue to rate their level of discomfort, and eventually, once this drops to an extremely comfortable level, we move on to the next step. Eventually, the aim and goal would be to have the client comfortably sitting in a room with the dog, and even interact with a dog.
In addition to a hierarchy, it is beneficial to work on breathing strategies in sessions as well. These help ease some of the discomfort within each step. Learning to challenge unhelpful and unrealistic thoughts via CBT (Cognitive Behavioural Therapy) is also very helpful, as often, we overestimate the level of threat, and are more fearful of certain things than necessary.
If an individual has an animal-related fear, such as the above, it can be beneficial if the psychologist they are working with utilises animal-assisted therapy. Therapy dogs are generally quite well-trained and love people. Exposure to therapy animals is done in a safe and predictable environment, and it’s reassuring to know that the specific dog is friendly, and that the handler (in this case, the therapist), has an understanding of the client’s fear, and can work with the client in a manner in which they are comfortable. As opposed to attempting to interact with a dog at a dog park, or on the street, which is less predictable. However, it is important to ensure that the psychologist and therapy animal you choose to work with are suitable for your own level of fear, as some dogs can be more excitable than others and may not be suitable for someone who has trouble even being in the same room as a dog.
*blog featured image: <a href=”https://www.vecteezy.com/free-vector/phobia”>Phobia Vectors by Vecteezy</a>
If you think working with a psychologist would help you tackle your fear, give us a call to find a psychologist that is suitable for you. Please note that Johana is able to assist with clients who have a moderate fear of dogs, as Luna is an excitable dog.
Image source: helpguide.org
What is Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD)?
Maybe you’ve heard someone refer to themselves as having “OCD” or being “OCD” about certain things like cleanliness or orderliness. In reality, OCD is a mental illness that can dramatically impact someone’s life. OCD is characterised by the presence of intrusive and unwanted thoughts, ideas or images (obsessions) that lead to increased anxiety and repetitive, intentional rituals (compulsions) that are used to remove the anxiety. For more information relating to the understanding of OCD, check out our earlier blog here: https://yourmindmatters.net.au/understanding-obsessive-compulsive-disorder-ocd/
Why does OCD occur?
OCD tends to gradually build in severity due to the relationship that exists between the two factors, obsessions and compulsions. We are hardwired to attempt to solve problems with behavioural solutions, which for a long time in history that was integral! Thousands of years ago, we needed to effectively identify and avoid threats. If we didn’t feel the need to run away from a tiger hurdling towards us, we probably wouldn’t survive very long. In OCD, there is a miscalculation of a threat, where our obsessive, intrusive thought causes us undue anxiety. Often, we’re aware that these obsessions are irrational, yet we still have an urge to escape the “threat”. For example, someone with OCD may find themselves frequently thinking “If I forgot to turn the stove off, my house will burn down!” (obsession) feeling more and more anxious about it until they check to confirm they indeed have turned the stove off (compulsion). By checking, they have addressed the anxiety and the worry goes away until the obsession returns, which in some cases may be in a matter of minutes. In OCD, the person’s brain has LEARNT that the COMPULSION relieves ANXIETY and therefore wants to do it more!
How is OCD treated?
OCD can be a challenging condition to treat. Prolonged practice of challenging obsessions and confronting compulsions can assist in minimising the severity of OCD and can significantly improve wellbeing. When dealing with OCD, we want to focus on addressing both Obsessions and Compulsions, if we can find ways to disrupt both elements, we have two points of attack in challenging the OCD cycle.
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) is a first-line recommended treatment for OCD. In CBT, we attempt to understand why the obsessions are occurring and why our brain has labelled them as “threatening”. During this process we also explore strategies that help us to minimise the use of compulsions, which are often the most impactful element of OCD. Often, this is done through something called exposure therapy.
Graded Exposure and Response Prevention Therapy for OCD
When entering a cold body of water, you might find it uncomfortable or difficult to stay in the water. However, after some time submerged, your body becomes used to the cold sensation and the water becomes much easier to tolerate. Much like cold water, the longer we can sit in the discomfort of anxiety without using compulsions to escape (i.e., get out of the water), the easier it gradually becomes.
(Image source: CBT4Panic.org)
Graded Exposure and Response Prevention Therapy (ERP) is a process frequently used in addressing the compulsions of OCD. In this process, the client and the therapist work together to develop an exposure hierarchy, which is like a ladder of different experiences that are gradually more anxiety-provoking. After this, the client is exposed to each level of the ladder over a handful of sessions until each level feels manageable, gradually reaching the top of the ladder. In each instance, the job is to sit in the anxiety without using the compulsion to “escape” (or get out of the pool).
It’s a bit like weightlifting! If we want to lift 100kg and we’ve never touched a weight, it’s going to be very hard because we aren’t strong enough. But if we gradually increase the weight as we build up our strength, eventually we can lift the 100kg! The best thing about this process is that the task in front of us isn’t getting any harder because we are getting stronger. Similarly, our exposure hierarchy doesn’t tend to get much harder because we are building our tolerance to different situations.
ERP is super helpful in addressing compulsions but also facilitates challenging our anxious obsessions. Our anxious voice tells us that we have to use our compulsions in these situations, which we are able to challenge by showing ourselves that we can get through the discomfort without them.
(Example exposure hierarchy source: TherapistAid.com)
If you would like assistance addressing personal challenges in your own life related to OCD, why not give us a call? Our team of highly skilled and well-experienced Psychologists are here to help. Call us now and take that first step towards obtaining the life you deserve!
References
Abramowitz, J. S., Deacon, B. J., & Whiteside, S. P. H. (2010). Exposure therapy for anxiety : Principles and practice. ProQuest Ebook Central https://ebookcentral.proquest.com
Abramowitz, J. S. (2006). The psychological treatment of obsessive—compulsive disorder. The Canadian Journal of Psychiatry, 51(7), 407-416. doi: 10.1177/070674370605100702.
Hezel, D. M., & Simpson, H. B. (2019). Exposure and response prevention for obsessive- compulsive disorder: A review and new directions. Indian Journal of Psychiatry, 61(1), S85. doi:10.4103/psychiatry.IndianJPsychiatry_516_18
