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Our therapy programs focus on psychological skills building for children, and parent coaching and support.
Is Mapping Minds the right service for you?
Our services are designed for pre-school and primary-school aged children and their parents/carers. We are able to support children with mild to moderate challenges, and work from a short-term, goals focused framework that aims to build and consolidate socioemotional skills/functioning.
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Our services are not suited to:
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Families in the legal system, or involved in court proceedings (e.g., child custody, domestic violence), and we do not provide reports or attend to requests for such purposes.
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Parents in high conflict. Both/all parents with legal rights need to be supportive of (or not opposed to) therapy and are willing to communicate (where appropriate) in the best interests of the young person.
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We are unable to work with ​complex presentations e.g., abuse/neglect, complex trauma or disordered eating (as the main referral concern).
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Children who are:
- non-verbal
- have a severe developmental or intellectual delay
- have delinquent, aggressive or dangerous behaviors, or a history of these
- are considered at risk of abuse and/or neglect
- are currently experiencing suicidal ideation, or regular self-harming -
Clients that require wheelchair access. Our clinic does not currently provide lift or ramp access (access is by a flight of stairs).
Our Services are suited to:
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Children who are experiencing mild to moderate difficulties, or who want to proactively build or improve their psychological/socio-emotional skills within a therapeutic environment.
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Neurodivergent children (or parents of neurodivergent children) who want to explore and understand their neurotype.
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Parents/carers who need coaching/support and a safe space to explore, discuss and manage a child's challenges and family and/or school functioning.
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Families who are happy to:
- Fund therapy privately
- Utilise Medicare (e.g., Mental Health Care Plan), or
- Utilise self-managed or plan-managed NDIS.
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Parents/carers who are supportive of therapy and are able and willing to work together (where appropriate) in the best interests of the young person.
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Our model of care
Our therapy approach is to build, consolidate and nurture socioemotional skills within a therapeutic environment. Our therapy programs are designed to be a short-term, time-limited support option and are delivered in one to three 'blocks' of sessions. We work within a developmental/neurodevelopmental, child-centered and strengths-based framework. Our approach is neuro-affirming.
We work with children and their parents to proactively build, develop and support socioemotional skills and wellbeing:
- Emotion regulation
- Anxiety
- Aggression
- Social challenges, communication and interpersonal skills
- Exploration of Neurotype (e.g. neurodivergence such as ADHD, Autism, dyslexia) and development of self-concept
- Self-awareness, understanding and confidence
- Development of foundational psychological skills and resilience.
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How it works
Before Therapy - Intake form and Initial Interview
1. Prior to your first session, you'll be asked to complete an intake and consent form.
2. Then we'll meet (usually parents only) in an initial interview (also called an intake session). The purpose of the initial interview is to obtain background information, current concerns and to develop priorities for therapy. Copies of any recent reports should be provided prior (usually with the intake consent form as soon as possible e.g., School reports, speech therapy reports, occupational therapy reports, and hearing and vision reports).
3. During this session, we'll discuss your goals, your child's needs and collaborate on our approach for therapy.
Therapy Sessions
The therapy plan will be discussed and decided in your intake session (as outlined above).
Standard Session (40 mins): $235. This is our recommended session for most children. A child may spend 30-35 minutes alone in session with their psychologist, with 5-10 minutes of parent updates where appropriate.
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Payment
Sessions can be funded privately, Medicare rebated (with valid Mental Health Treatment Plan [MHTP] or via NDIS (self-managed).
All sessions are paid in full by clients, at or prior to each session, with a formal receipt provided for clients to self-claim for rebates (e.g., private health fund, Medicare, NDIS).
Our Therapy program offers therapy in one to three blocks per year. Sessions are run fortnightly for the majority of clients; however weekly sessions can be available. Many children benefit from 10 sessions annually and are welcome to come back for further support each year.
Recommended schedule is as below:
Standard session (40 mins) x fortnightly:
Block 1: 6 x sessions (part of Medicare rebated MHTP if applicable) + 1 x review session with parent
Block 2: 4 x child sessions (part of Medicare rebated MHTP if applicable) + 1 x review session with parent
Optional
Block 3: Not covered by Medicare due to limitations of MHTP if applicable: A further 4 to 8 child sessions + 1-2 parent update sessions.
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Parent coaching/support sessions are also an option.
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