Sometimes people feel ashamed about seeing a clinical psychologist and worry they are "crazy", "weak" or "unsuccessful". They may believe they "should be able to handle their concerns without the help of another". This is not true at all! Mental illness appears to affect 1 in every 4 people at some point in their lifetime regardless of one's gender, age, race and socioeconomic status. Struggling with a mental illness alone, without proper support or treatment is damaging to an individual not to mention their relationships and career.

At Kristy Attwooll & Associates we acknowledge that individuals can be nervous about seeing a therapist but we believe that a person who seeks help when they are struggling is extremely brave and is taking their first necessary step to recovery and a more satisfying life.

Therapy would be suggested for individuals who find that their feelings, thoughts, urges and behaviour are persistently causing a negative disruption to their functioning in relationships and/or at work.

However, many individuals find that even if they are not experiencing a mental illness they can learn a lot about oneself in therapy and become more capable of acting in ways that bring about greater satisfaction and meaning in their lives.

This is entirely dependent on the individual's preference, their circumstances, and his/her psychological needs.

The support of friends, family and partners is often essential in coping with life's challenges yet many people find it also useful to talk to someone who is not part of their social network. This can be because the issues they are dealing with also affect those closest to them and they may need their own space to explore these issues and experience their own feelings. People can also worry about burdening their loved ones. Further, some family and friends may not always have a great understanding of the mental health problems the individual is struggling with or how to manage and treat them.

In addition, individuals can feel safe in knowing that what they do disclose in sessions with a psychologist is confidential as psychologists are bound by a professional code of ethics that mandates client confidentiality (see the Are Therapy Session Confidential? section for further information).

The aim of the first appointment is to gain a thorough understanding of the difficulties that have led an individual to seek therapy. Typically time is spent discussing in detail an individual's concerns as well as disclosing information about their history, family background, key relationships, interests and study/work history. In some cases, assessment of the problems and gathering relevant background information about the client may require more than one session.

This first session also provides the individual with an opportunity to raise any questions regarding therapy and to discuss their treatment goals and expectations about treatment. While it is important that the therapist conducts an assessment to determine how they might be able to help the client it is equally important for the client to determine if they feel comfortable with the therapist and if the therapist is someone they could talk to openly and honestly.

The number of sessions that may be required will be dependent on each individual's problem and goals for treatment. This will usually be discussed in the initial appointments, and the structure of the sessions will be adapted accordingly.

Factors that do affect the number of treatment sessions are the severity, chronicity and complexity of an individual's symptoms, what the client and therapist agree to target as goals in treatment, as well as how open and willing a client is to engage and participate in treatment and thereby make relevant changes to bring about improvement and life satisfaction.

Psychologists are bound by a professional code of ethics outlined by the state Registration Board and the APS. These governing bodies ensure that all registered and APS psychologists must maintain client confidentiality. Accordingly, all personal information disclosed by a client to a psychologist at Kristy Attwooll & Associates will remain strictly confidential and such personal information will be stored in a way that the client's privacy is maintained.

Without your consent, information disclosed by a client will not be discussed with any third party including partners, family members, GP's or other health professionals.

However, there are a few exceptions in which a psychologist can and must breach client confidentiality and these are if subpoenaed by court, where failure to disclose would place the client or another person at risk, and when such information is required to be legally reported by a psychologist.

Kristy Attwooll & Associates also reserve the right, in the case of non-payment for a service which the client is responsible for to provide the contact details of a client to a third party for collection of monies owed.

Please note that Kristy Attwooll & Associates do not provide reports for medico-legal purposes.

In person therapy is the normal practice at Kristy Attwooll & Associates. However, there can be instances when a client is unable to attend appointments in person due to certain circumstances and in these instances the client may be offered either over the phone or Skype consultations to accommodate their situation.

Kristy Attwooll is a registered provider for WorkCover. She is also a regiestered provider for the GP Sydney North Health Network and does on occasion see clients under the Access To Allied Psychological Services (ATAPS) scheme.

If you should feel at risk of self harm and/or at risk of harm to others it is important that you immediately contact your local Community Mental Health Crisis Team which has 24 hour emergency numbers (see www.health.nsw.gov.au/mhdao/contact_service.asp).

Otherwise, in the event of this kind of emergency, telephone the police on 000 as they can refer you to a mental health service or present in person at the closest hospital emergency department.