About me
The long way around
Welcome
Hi, I’m Donald.
I came to Australia from Europe some years ago and found myself unexpectedly at home here. There’s something about this land - its vastness, its wild beauty, its quiet strength - that brings me back to what’s real. The smell of eucalyptus after rain, the sting of salt on my skin, the hum of cicadas at dusk - they all remind me how much our wellbeing is shaped by belonging and connection – with ourselves, with the people around us, and with the environments we’re part of.
That same spirit guides how I approach therapy. I believe that the real work of healing begins when we feel safe enough to show up honestly - to be met with care, curiosity, and understanding, without needing to perform or defend. My work is about creating that kind of conversation.
Finding my way here
I’ve always been curious about people - likely because I spent a lot of time early in life not quite understanding them. I asked “why” constantly, trying to make sense of the world and the fears that lived beneath it. For a while, that need to understand became my way of staying safe.
Years later, when I was working as a software developer, I realised that something essential was missing. I’d learned plenty about systems, but not much about hearts. I missed human connection, the kind that feels alive and real. By then, I’d experienced therapy myself and knew how profoundly life can shift when someone takes the time to really see you. That knowledge gave me the courage to change direction, even though it required starting over.
These days, what keeps me here is simple: the privilege of witnessing people’s courage. Every day, I meet people willing to risk honesty, to face what hurts, to grow. It’s not dramatic, but it’s profound: those quiet, often unseen moments when someone begins to feel more at home in themselves.
What I care about
What matters most to me in therapy is creating a space that feels safe enough for honest thoughts and feelings to come into the room so we can look at them together. I care about presence - being real and available - and about curiosity, because most of the time, the things that trouble us make sense once we understand where they came from.
I care about helping people reconnect with what’s already inside them: strength, courage, tenderness, humour, truth. Therapy isn’t about fixing; it’s about rediscovering what’s been hidden, and finding new ways of being that feel more honest and alive. Therapy is an act of courage, not because it’s dramatic, but because it asks us to stay open when part of us wants to close. I see meaning not in perfection, but in the willingness to stay in touch with what’s real.
A bit of my story
Outside of work, I’m most at ease when I’m moving: cycling, hiking, surfing, playing with my kids, anything that gets me into my body. I try to love the beauty of daily life: good coffee, a walk by the river, music that stops me mid-thought or a jump through a crashing wave.
I’m a family man, a bit clumsy, often covered in bruises from bumping into things. My kids think it’s hilarious. Those moments remind me that being human is rarely graceful, but it can be good.
Professional background
I’m a Registered Psychologist currently completing the Clinical Psychology Registrar Program. I hold a Master of Clinical Psychology (Distinction) and a First Class Honours degree in Psychology with Counselling, and I’m a Member of the Australian Psychological Society (MAPS).
If you’re considering therapy
If you’d like to know more about how I work and what therapy with me might be like, you can read about that here. And if something in what you’ve read here resonates, I’d be glad to hear from you.
I also offer sessions in German for those who feel more comfortable speaking in their first language.