What funding types do you accept?
We accept the following funding types:
Private funding
Medicare
NDIS
PHN
Bupa
Medibank
Victims Assist
WorkCover Queensland
Employee Assistance Programs
Free funding is also available for eligible clients
What are the fees?
Free funding is available for eligible clients residing in Caloundra, Buderim or the Sunshine Coast Hinterland. If you are at risk of or have a mental health diagnosis and are struggling to access sessions through Medicare gap payments or private funding, please contact us to be assessed for eligibility for this funding.
Medicare requires full fee payment up front with a rebate then is then processed and sent through to your bank account directly. Please contact us for the current gap fee rate.
Parenting programs for couples generally require a double session to allow time for discussions, however we do offer a reduced rate double session for the completion of our parenting programs to help make this more affordable and accessible for individuals and couples who do not wish to attend a group program. Please contact us for current rates.
NDIS funding is accepted whether you are plan managed or self-managed and is offered at the recommended NDIS rates.
Call or message for a quote on the exact cost of your session.
What types of therapy are offered?
Ocean Grace therapists are trained and experienced in many different modalities of therapy, to enable us to offer tailored services, and not a “one size fits all” approach. Your therapist can discuss with you during your initial session which therapy or therapies might be the best for your unique situation and needs. We currently offer:
EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing)
Trauma Informed Therapy
Narrative Therapy
Expressive Therapies (music, movement, symbol and art therapy)
Play Therapy (integrating directive and non directive)
ACT (Acceptance and Commitment Therapy)
DBT (Dialectical Behaviour Therapy)
CBT (Cognitive Behaviour Therapy)
Neuroscience
Complex Behaviour Support
Relationship Support
Parening Support/Programs
Mindfullness
Skills Training
How often do I need to attend?
There is no minimum or fixed number of sessions that you need to attend. We make your initial booking, and you can then choose how often you would like to attend. Most clients attend weekly or fortnightly and will often drop down to monthly sessions when they feel they are ready.
You may also take a break from therapy at any time to work on strategies provided and return when you are ready or when you feel you are needing further support.
How many sessions do I need to attend?
It depends on the issues you are bringing to counselling, and what benefit you feel you are gaining from the sessions.
Individuals should expect to attend for a minimum of 6 sessions, as it is difficult to achieve results in less time. However, if, for example, you have an individual issue that you want help resolving, you might find that you only need 1 or 2 sessions to come to a resolution. On average couples attend between 4-12 sessions.
Sometimes clients find that they get ongoing benefits from the sessions, and they might attend for a longer period. In general, people continue counselling whilst they feel they are gaining benefit from it. There is no minimum or maximum number of sessions required, and you are free to book from session to session.
My partner/friend/relative needs counselling. Can I book an appointment for them?
We are not able to book an appointment on behalf of a third party. We are able to provide you with general information about our service, but the individual seeking counselling will need to call us directly to make the booking.
Is my counselling session confidential?
The information discussed in your counselling session is entirely confidential and will not be released to anyone except with your express permission.
The only time a practitioner may release information to authorities without your permission is:
if they feel your life or someone else’s life is in immediate danger,
if they are mandated to report the abuse of a child under 16yrs,
or the records fall under legal subpoena from a court of law.
What are the parenting programs about?
Circle of Security® Parenting™ is a parent-reflection program offering the core components of the evidence-based and internationally acclaimed COS protocol.
The program presents video examples of secure and problematic parent/child interaction, healthy options in care giving, and animated graphics designed to clarify principles central to COS. Circle of Security Parenting implements decades of attachment research in an accessible step-by-step process for use in group settings, home visitation, or individual counselling.
Bringing Up Great Kids Parenting Program (developed by the Australian Childhood Foundation) uses the metaphor of ‘Messages’, to encourage parents to explore and reflect upon the evolution of their parenting style and resources them to examine the messages they pass onto their children through their behaviour, interactions and emotional reactions.
Parents learn about the brain development of their children and understand how to meet their children’s growing needs. Through the program, they are supported to build attentive communication with children. Parents also reflect on and explore the meaning behind their children’s behaviour and develop an awareness of the cues that trigger off unhelpful or ineffective responses.
Both programs are based on attachment theory, parent self-reflection and support parents to:
Develop emotional intelligence and resilience in your children
Understand the underlying cause of behaviour and reduce, rather than contain it
Understand what your unconscious parenting style is
Know how to change cyclical family parenting styles
Help your children sleep independently and gently at their pace
Improve your relationship with your partner and get on the same page with parenting your children.
Survive the early years of childhood without losing your own self identity
What is play therapy?
Play therapy is an evidence based approach primarily used to help children ages 4 to 12 explore their lives and freely express repressed thoughts and emotions through play. Therapeutic play takes place in a safe, comfortable playroom, where very few rules or limits are imposed on the child, encouraging free expression and allowing the therapist to observe the child’s choices, decisions, and play style. The goal is to help children learn to express themselves in healthier ways, become more respectful and empathetic, and discover new and more positive ways to solve problems.
We provide integrative play therapy, allowing us to move sessions at a pace that is right for your child and enabling us to direct activities when they are ready onto learning skills about emotional regulation, social skills and other topics that are relevant to their needs.
When is play therapy helpful?
Therapeutic play is used to help children with social or emotional difficulties learn to communicate better, change their behaviour, develop problem-solving skills, and relate to others in positive ways. It is appropriate for children undergoing or witnessing stressful events in their lives, such as a serious illness or hospitalization, domestic violence, abuse, trauma, a family crisis, or an upsetting change in their environment. Play therapy can help children with academic and social problems, learning disabilities, behavioural disorders, anxiety, depression, grief, or anger, as well as those with attention deficit disorders or those who are on the autism spectrum.
What can I expect from play therapy?
We will conduct an initial intake interview with the parent, to collect information about the child, and make an assessment prior to beginning treatment. In the playroom, the child is encouraged to play with very specific types of toys that encourage self-expression and facilitate the learning of positive behaviours.
Play therapy is best delivered through weekly sessions (research shows that longer gaps in between sessions are less effective in young children) that last 50 minutes individually with the child, allowing up to 10 minutes with the parents to join the child in session either prior to or directly after the session for a check in (please allow a full hour for session attendance).
A follow up 10-minute phone call (at a time suitable to the parent) or email is then conducted after the session to give feedback about the session and provide suggestions for adjustments to support within the home environment (this increases the benefits of the progress the child is making during sessions). This feedback can also be provided to your child’s school or other supports to help everyone approach the child’s needs in the same way.
Our family has NDIS funding, can we use this to access services with Ocean Grace?
Ocean Grace is able to accept NDIS funding for therapy. This means that whether you are self-managed or plan managed you can use your funding to access our services. Ocean Grace offers the following supports through NDIS:
Therapeutic Counselling support – one on one counselling for children and adults.
Therapeutic Behaviour support for the purposes of improved daily living skills (including assessing behaviour, training family and professionals and working therapeutically with the individual to assist in reducing the difficult behaviours).
Can we access couples counselling if we are not married?
Yes. Couples counselling is for all sorts of couples, including de facto couples, couples living apart, same sex couples, parent/child, siblings, friends or work colleagues.
Couples counselling works to improve your relationship, regardless of the nature of that relationship. Counselling can also benefit non-romantic couples who are in conflict.
We are interested in couples counselling, but first we would each like to talk to the therapist privately. Is this possible?
If you are wanting to work together on your relationship then we usually recommend that you meet the counsellor together for your first session, so that you commence counselling on an even playing field. However, it is possible for us to provide this if it is agreed upon by both parties.
If you commence counselling alone, and subsequently decide to invite your partner to join you, your counsellor may suggest that you see another therapist at Ocean Grace for couple’s counselling to ensure there is no perceived imbalance for your partner.
Will the couple’s therapy save my relationship or marriage?
Couples counselling will help you and your partner develop better communication skills and rekindle lost intimacy. However, couples counselling does not necessarily ‘save’ your relationship. Sometimes couples counselling helps couples to realise that they should not be together, in which case it can greatly aid the process of separation.
My partner doesn’t want couples counselling though I do, what are my options?
We would not encourage people to come along to sessions against their will. There may, however, be a benefit in you attending individual sessions yourself and sharing information with your partner.
What areas do you cover?
We cover the Sunshine Coast Region including:
Caloundra:
Aroona
Battery Hill
Bells Creek
Birtinya
Bokarina
Buddina
Caloundra
Caloundra West
Currimundi
Dicky Beach
Glass House Mountains
Glenview
Golden Beach
Kings Beach
Landsborough
Little Mountain
Meridan Plains
Minyama
Moffat Beach
Nirimba
Pelican Waters
Shelly Beach
Warana
Wurtulla
Maroochy area:
Alexandra Headland
Bli Bli
Buderim
Burnside
Chevallum
Coes Creek
Cotton Tree
Diddillibah
Forest Glen
Highworth
Hunchy
Image Flat
Kuluin
Kunda Park
Maroochy River
Maroochydore
Mons
Mooloolaba
Mountain Creek
Nambour
Palmwoods
Perwillowen
Point Arkwright
Sippy Downs
Tanawha
Twin Waters
Woombye
Buderim:
Alexandra Headland
Forest Glen, Kuluin
Kunda Park
Maroochydore
Mons
Mooloolaba
Mountain Creek
Sippy Downs
Tanawha
Sunshine Coast Hinterland:
Nambour
Mapleton
Montville
Eumundi
Yandina
Woombye
Palmwoods
What is the difference between a Mental Health Social Worker and a Psychologist?
As Mental Health Social Workers we are trained to provide Focused Psychological Strategies and support through therapy sessions.
Social Workers work holistically with clients, looking at all the different elements that are impacting on your life, not just your diagnosis. We are trained to work from a systems and client centred approach - meaning we look at how the informal supports (friends, family etc) and formal supports (government services, non government organisations, funding etc) are working in your life and what goals you are wishing to work towards.
As Social Workers, we trust that you are the expert in your life and we will support and empower you to make decisions, access supports that you may be unaware of and take steps to work towards the life you wish to lead. As Mental Health Social Workers we are additionally trained to recognise and assess potential mental health diagnosis and symptoms in our clients and provide the appropriate therapy to manage those conditions.
Psychologists are trained to assess and diagnose problems in people's thinking, emotions and behaviour. Throughout our therapy we will use recommended tools to assess for anxiety, depression and other potential issues, to monitor risk, measure the improvements through therapy and to identify the potential need for a referral for any formal diagnosis. Referral may then be required for you to go to a Psychologist, Occupational Therapist, Speech Therapist, Pediatrician, or Psychiatrist for your assessment and formal diagnosis, depending upon the symptoms identified through therapy.