The Right Therapist

In this episode of The Right Therapist, Laura speaks with Tessa Priest, a narrative therapist who explores the powerful relationship between the story we tell and the person telling it. Tessa blends narrative therapy with expressive arts, somatic awareness, and mindfulness to help people reconnect with their preferred identities and reshape the stories that shape their lives. Together, they explore how stories are formed, how they can limit or expand us, and how therapy can create space to re-author our lives with intention, creativity, and compassion. The episode includes a live therapeutic moment, offering a rare and intimate look at how narrative and somatic practices intersect in real time. Episode Timestamps 00:00 — Slowing down and connecting to the body How therapy works in small, manageable moments rather than overwhelm. 01:26 — Introduction to Tessa Priest Narrative therapist integrating storytelling, expressive arts, and somatic work. 02:10 — Tessa’s background and journey into narrative therapy From performing arts to therapy and meaning-making. 05:49 — When stories don’t support us How dominant and inherited narratives shape identity. 06:07 — Deconstructing harmful narratives Understanding societal, cultural, and personal influences on our story. 10:33 — The role of creativity and play Why expression (drawing, writing, movement) is central to healing. 12:10 — Rewriting identity through lived experience How small shifts create new possibilities. 15:48 — How stories evolve over time The difference between past and present interpretations of the same event. 18:10 — Live therapy exploration begins Somatic awareness, emotion, and memory emerge in real time. 21:28 — Compassion for the younger self Rewriting internal narratives through care and understanding. 23:25 — The role of community and support How relationships shape healing. 27:31 — Writing back to your younger self A powerful narrative therapy technique. 31:07 — Trusting the body and therapy process Why safety and presence matter. 33:22 — Multiple versions of the self Understanding identity as layered and non-linear. 37:31 — Fear of revisiting the past How therapy avoids overwhelm through “titration.” 40:46 — The importance of therapist-client fit Why depth depends on relational safety. 43:41 — Therapy beyond the room Collaborative and community-based healing approaches. 48:00 — Therapy in unconventional spaces Nature, movement, and environment as part of healing. 50:52 — Story + body integration Why slowing down deepens meaning. 53:27 — Future self perspective How imagining your future self changes present decisions. 55:58 — Boundaries and “no” The importance of limits in identity and healing. 57:47 — Life is not linear Stories as loops, spirals, and evolving narratives. 59:09 — Embodied therapy vs cognitive insight Why the body reveals more than the mind alone. 1:00:04 — Power, culture, and identity How societal structures influence personal narratives. 1:05:01 — Consistency, identity, and purpose Following what feels deeply aligned.

Why do so many neurodivergent adults feel lazy or like failed adults?In this episode of The Right Therapist, counsellor and narrative therapist Dana Kabaila explores neurodivergence, burnout, masking, and the deeper systems that shape how people understand themselves.Drawing on lived experience, Dana challenges the idea of “laziness,” reframing it as a mismatch between neurodivergent ways of being and the demands of a productivity-driven world.The conversation explores how shame-based identities form, why burnout is so common, and how narrative therapy can help people separate themselves from problem-saturated stories.Dana also introduces the concept of neuro rewilding — reconnecting with natural rhythms, needs, and more sustainable ways of living beyond rigid societal expectations.

In this episode of The Right Therapist, Laura speaks with Celia Dunsmore, an accredited mental health social worker whose work is grounded in attachment theory and trauma-informed therapy. Celia draws from somatic experiencing, emotion-focused therapy and compassion-focused approaches to help people understand how early relationships shape the way they experience safety, connection and intimacy. Together they explore how attachment patterns develop in childhood, how they influence adult relationships, and how therapy can help people build new experiences of safety, regulation and connection. The episode includes a short therapy demonstration that offers a glimpse into how attachment wounds can be explored and integrated in the therapy room. Timestamps:00:00 — Childhood survival strategies How early environments shape protective responses like people-pleasing, fawning and becoming invisible to stay safe. 00:38 — Introduction to Celia Dunsmore 01:27 — Who Celia works with Supporting adolescents and adults navigating relational trauma, anxiety, depression and neurodivergence. 03:30 — When anxiety has no obvious cause 04:26 — How early experiences shape the nervous system 06:36 — Why therapy often revisits childhood 08:08 — Regulation and nervous system safety 09:51 — Introduction to attachment theory 11:40 — Therapy demonstration begins 13:34 — Exploring early attachment experiences 16:02 — How infants adapt for survival 18:27 — Family dynamics and emotional safety 20:30 — Grieving unmet childhood needs 23:02 — Meeting the younger self in therapy 25:05 — Reparenting and compassion 28:04 — The role of the therapist 31:03 — Why attunement matters 33:41 — Cognitive insight vs embodied healing 36:00 — The courage required for therapy 40:29 — Collaboration in the therapeutic relationship 44:04 — Repairing relational ruptures 48:07 — How healing changes everyday behaviour 50:40 — Parenting after doing personal therapy 54:41 — Secure attachment explained 57:21 — Avoidant attachment 1:01:00 — Disorganised attachment 1:04:34 — Are attachment styles problems? 1:06:32 — Can relationships work without secure attachment? 1:08:49 — Navigating relationships with avoidant partners 1:12:01 — From conflict to co-regulation 1:14:05 — Closing reflections

In this episode of The Right Therapist, couples counsellor Gillian Fernandes explores why relationships so often feel unsafe, confusing, or lonely — even when there is love present. Drawing on attachment theory, somatic therapy, and systems thinking, Gillian explains how couples often get stuck not because of communication skills, but because of unspoken attachment needs, nervous system responses, and unresolved relational history.

In this episode of The Right Therapist, Laura is joined by Gestalt psychotherapist and EMDR therapist Sheridan Green to explore relationships through a Gestalt lens. Together, they unpack a powerful framework: that every relationship contains three relationships — the relationship with self, the other’s relationship with self, and the shared relationship, the we.Drawing on Gestalt therapy, existential thought, and lived clinical experience, Sheridan reflects on how identity shifts, parenthood, neurodivergence, and unresolved childhood patterns shape intimacy. They explore why conflict is rarely just about what’s happening now, how defensiveness and withdrawal can signal unfinished inner work, and what it means to turn toward each other instead of away when things get hard.The conversation also includes a live Gestalt therapy segment, offering a rare, embodied look at vulnerability, self-protection, and the “armour” we build to survive — and how that armour can quietly limit closeness.This episode is for anyone curious about relationships as living systems, not static achievements — and for those wanting to relate with more awareness, responsibility, and choice.

Integrative psychotherapist Luke O’Higgins joins us to explore relational therapy, attachment, and parts work through a deeply human, present-moment approach. Drawing from Gestalt therapy, somatic-informed practice, Internal Family Systems (IFS), and attachment repair, Luke works with adults and young people to create new relational experiences — not just insight.

In this episode, Laura is joined by somatic therapist Fiona Bell to explore anger, rage, and what happens when these vital energies are suppressed. Through a nervous-system lens, they unpack how anxiety, chronic symptoms, and collapse often arise from unexpressed anger and how healing happens through safe connection, co-regulation, and embodied presence. Together they reframe rage as life force, boundary, and protection, revealing why being met, not fixed, restores wholeness and choice.

In this episode we explore what it means to truly grow up, wake up, and re-soul our world. Blending Eastern philosophy with Western psychotherapy, we unpack attachment repair, imagination as a healing force, eco-therapy, masculinity, leadership, and belonging. The episode features a live therapy demonstration of the Ideal Parent Figure Protocol, offering a felt sense of how embodied attachment work supports earned security, identity, and connection—to self, community, and the natural world.

In this episode of The Right Therapist, we dive into how trauma shapes the body and mind, why evidence-based approaches like EMDR and somatic therapy help clients heal, and how to find a psychologist or counsellor who’s the right fit through Source — Australia’s trusted platform for therapy, counselling, and mental health support.

Integrative psychotherapist Ange Cook joins The Right Therapist to explore what it means to work in a trauma-informed, embodied, and inclusive way. We discuss how curiosity, language, and body awareness shape therapy, and how integrative psychotherapy supports diverse clients—including LGBTQIA+ and neurodivergent individuals. Ange unpacks the connection between mind and body, parts work, somatic regulation, and curiosity as a healing stance, as well as the challenges of unmasking neurodivergence in a neurotypical world. We close with reflections on post-cult recovery, identity, and self-compassion, and how therapy helps people rediscover their authentic voice. Listeners will come away understanding how integrative and trauma-informed therapy can expand self-awareness, agency, and emotional safety.

A deeply human conversation with Louise, a compassionate Gestalt psychotherapist, on why change sticks when we stop fighting ourselves, how empty chair work unlocks insight, what “rupture & repair” feels like in the therapy room, and how to know if Gestalt therapy is right for you. We also demo a short session on “the shoulds” (professionalism, organisation, shame → creativity), showing how embodied awareness creates relief. If you’re looking for a therapist in Australia (online or in-person), Source helps you compare therapy types, budgets, locations and Medicare options.

Gestalt psychotherapist Angus Ferguson joins us to explore addiction through a trauma-informed, attachment-centred lens—why addictions develop, what lies underneath them, and why recovery requires connection, compassion, and support rather than shame.We unpack childhood trauma, ACE scores, attachment wounds, small-t trauma, the role of the reticular activating system, and why humans bond with substances and behaviours when they lack safe people to bond with. Angus explains why addiction is not a “choice,” why people often wait 12 years to seek help, and why healing is relational, not solitary.We also talk through groups, community, social prescribing, AA/NA/GA, self-exclusion tools, harm minimisation, and the emotional reality of relapse. Angus ends with practical steps anyone can take, including hotlines, therapy, and widening your support network—plus how to find the right addiction-informed therapist in Australia via Source.

Counsellor & psychotherapist Giorgia des Landes joins us to unpack complex trauma, how it shapes development and relationships, and why bottom-up somatic therapies (somatic experiencing, sensory-motor psychotherapy, EMDR) help the autonomic nervous system feel safe again. We explore the three-phase model of trauma therapy (safety & stabilization → processing → integration/post-traumatic growth), window of tolerance, attachment, rupture & repair, and practical ways therapy widens capacity for life. We close with how to find the right trauma-informed therapist in Australia via Source (filters for modality, fee, Medicare, online/in-person, location).

Gestalt therapist, writer, and faculty member Dr Rhys Price-Robertson joins The Right Therapist to explore how awareness, embodiment, and Zen-inspired non-doing can transform the therapeutic encounter. Rhys reflects on the paradoxical theory of change—that we change not by striving to be different, but by becoming more fully who we already are.This rich conversation traverses the meeting point between psychotherapy and spirituality, the tension between will and grace, and the counter-cultural invitation to stop improving and start being. Laura and Rhys also explore how therapy grounded in presence and inclusivity creates space for authentic contact, spontaneity, and aliveness.Listeners will leave with a deeper understanding of Gestalt therapy, mindfulness in psychotherapy, and the liberating power of awareness.