Counselling service

Accessing Counselling

Where:

Nina works from a beautiful space at The Abbotsford Convent Wellbeing Wing.

Abbotsford Convent is is an arts and community precinct just a short walk from Victoria Park Train Station and an easy stroll to the river and wildlife at Yarra Bend Park.

The word “Convent” in the precinct name refers to the historical use of the buildings and grounds. These days Abbotsford Convent is not a religious destination, but a collection of creative studios, performance and visual arts venues, restaurants, bars, cafes, a radio station, creative arts schools, wellbeing practitioners (and regular workshops), community organisations, a regular farmers market, and Victoria’s oldest continually farmed land – the Collingwood Children’s Farm. Abbotsford Convent is community owned and its extensive gardens are free and open every day of the year for picnics or just taking time out. You can find more information here.

Can I do my sessions via Telehealth?

I’m happy to offer Telehealth to clients who prefer the accessibility and convenience of video consultation.

How much does a session cost?

The fee for both Telehealth and Face to Face services is $154 (GST inclusive). You can schedule sessions fortnightly, monthly or on an ‘as needed’ basis. I’m a Registered Provider with AHM and Bupa – Members may be able to claim a rebate for Counselling from their Health Fund.

The Australian Government doesn’t generally offer Medicare rebates for counselling. The Australian Counselling Association (ACA) is advocating very strongly for this to change – and we’re hoping that mental health support will be more accessible and inclusive in the future.

How can I book an appointment?

You can book an appointment by using the “Book a Counselling Appointment” button below, or get in touch by emailing hello@ninagreencounselling.com

It may take a little time to get back to messages or emails in a busy week, so I really appreciate your patience. Here’s a link to my Contact page.

Can you help me with my specific needs?

To find out more about my experience and approach to counselling, please click here.

What happens in a session?

A counselling session is 60 minutes, and we generally use this time in a mixture of activities, some examples might include:

• Focused exploration of the issue you would like to work on. In the beginning this usually includes some time of figuring out exactly what IS going on and what might be the most important focus. Unpacking your situation is a collaborative process that the counsellor and client go through together: The client brings knowledge about their own life, values, hopes and worries, and the counsellor uses their professional skills to help structure the conversation so we can organise all this information in a way that starts to make sense.
• “Psycho-education” – This just means getting the information and tools you need to make sense of your experience. This might be something like learning a simple ‘grounding technique’ to help regulate an overwhelming emotion, or it might be a discussion of what anxiety is, and some techniques that can help change your experience of anxiety over time.
• Learning and practicing therapeutic techniques that can be used in real life. This might be learning a particular style of meditation, or it might involve using Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) style ‘homework’ sheets.
• Working through simple ‘testing’ tools that can help direct where we put our energy and give us some feedback about whether we’re going in the right direction.
• Working together on finding motivation that feels right for you. Finding a really meaningful ‘why’ can make the ‘how’ of behaviour change much more achievable.

who do you work with?

It’s important to note that I specialise in working with women of all kinds as this is where my personal experience, skills, training and values are best expressed. If you’re male or male identified and looking for a counsellor please try a browse of the ACA’s “find a counsellor” page, or try a search using the excellent filters on Psychology Today.

What if I need to cancel or reschedule?

When you book an appointment that time is reserved especially for you. Cancelling or rescheduling with 48 hours notice (or more) is absolutely fine – I know that plans change and life gets in the way!

But because I can see only a limited number of clients per day, appointments that are cancelled or rescheduled with less than 48 hours notice will be charged a fee, as follows:

• Cancellation or rescheduling less than 48 hours before your appointment time will attract a 50% fee. 
• Cancellation, non-attendance, or rescheduling on the day will be charged the full session fee.
• For appointments before 10am – cancelling or rescheduling with less than 12 hours notice will incur the full fee. For example – cancellation of an 8am appointment later than 8pm the evening before your session (or non-attendance on the day) will incur the full fee.
• Repeated cancellations or failure to pay the cancellation fee will result in discontinuation of service.  
• Keep in mind that changing an appointment from Face to Face to Telehealth (video platform) is welcome!

Counselling appointments are in high demand, and a late cancellation or no-show impacts both your counsellor and other clients who might have utilised the appointment time. 

You can email hello@ninagreencounselling.com to reschedule or cancel your appointment.