B.Sc. (HONS) Occupational Therapy & Endorsed Mental Health Practitioner.
Working with NDIS plan and self-managed participants
Australian Health Practitioner Regulation (Ahpra) OCC0002166799
Medicare rebates are available on mental health care plans.
Focus Areas
Mel works with children, teens, parents and families across neurodevelopmental, emotional, sensory and relational areas of support.
Neurodivergence and related concerns
Support for children, teens and adults with ADHD, ASD and AuDHD, with strategies that fit how they think, process and work.
Support for children whose emotions or behaviour feel difficult to understand or manage, and for the parents supporting them.
Emotional Regulation and Behaviour
Sensory Processing
Understanding how sensory processing shapes behaviour and learning and what helps at home, at school and day to day.
Anxiety and Stress
Support for children and adolescents experiencing anxiety, stress and pressure at school, socially or at home.
Family Conflict and Communication
Support for families caught in cycles of conflict, disconnection or miscommunication, working towards steadier, clearer connection.
Parenting Support and Strategies
Practical strategies for parents who are trying hard and want a clearer direction they can use in real life.
Support for children and young people navigating change, transitions and the adjustments that come with them.
Adjustment and Life Transitions
Children, Teens and Parent Support
Mel supports children, young people, parents and families when behaviour, big emotions, neurodivergence or family conflict is affecting wellbeing, connection or communication.
Support for children whose behaviour or emotions feel difficult to understand or manage.
Support for teenagers navigating anxiety, identity, and social or academic pressure.
Support for parents who are trying hard but are losing confidence in how to respond.
A Family-Focused Approach
For children, the first session is a parent-focused conversation creating space to understand what is happening for your child and within your family and to begin building practical strategies you can start using at home straight away.
From there, sessions typically involve working directly with your child with parent catch-ups to ensure parents are supported throughout their child's therapeutic journey.
Teenage years bring real pressure. School, friendships, identity, social media and big emotions can leave a young person feeling anxious, shut down or misunderstood, and leave parents unsure how to reach them. Mel offers warm, practical support for teenagers navigating anxiety, stress, low mood, identity and the pressure that builds at school and socially.
Sessions help your teenager understand what they are feeling, build steadier ways to cope, and put simple well-being plans in place they can actually use day to day. For neurodivergent teens, including those with ADHD, ASD or AuDHD, the support fits how they think, process and regulate.
Most families arrive feeling stuck. The aim is to help a young person feel heard and a household that feels calmer and more connected.
Support that considers the whole picture, the individual and the family around them
A little more about Mel
Mel brings warmth, honesty and steadiness to her work with children, young people, parents and families. She is especially interested in helping families feel understood, less alone, and more able to make sense of what has been happening beneath the surface.
My most meaningful achievements
Some of my most meaningful achievements have come from taking brave steps during complex seasons of life.
Relocating internationally with a young family and returning to university at 35 to complete a Bachelor of Science in Occupational Therapy are significant achievements.
I have led child advocacy initiatives and developed mental health programmes for children living with chronic illness.
These experiences continue to shape the way I work with children, young people and families.
I value practical support, gentle persistence and helping families build confidence in real life, not just in the therapy room.
What makes me unique
I work in a way that balances genuine understanding with practical, real-world direction.
Every child and family is different, and I take time to understand both the individual and the system around them before building a plan.
My background in occupational therapy means I look at the whole picture: how your child moves through the world, how they process and regulate, and how the environment around them either supports or adds to the difficulty.
My focus is on helping families move from reactive and overwhelmed to steadier, clearer and more confident, day to day, not just in the session room.
One quirky fact about me
I regularly attend adult ballet classes at the WA Ballet, something I started purely for the joy of it and stayed with for what it does for my own regulation and mental health. Movement and rhythm have a way of resetting the nervous system that no amount of talking quite replicates, which is something I bring into my work with children and families too.
Find your starting point
We’ll help you make sense of what’s going on and find a clear way forward.
NDIS Participants Welcome
Discovery Family Therapy supports NDIS participants on self-managed and plan-managed plans. We are not a registered NDIS provider, which means funding must be managed by you or your plan manager — not the NDIA directly. If you are using your NDIS plan for counselling or therapeutic support, contact us to discuss whether we are the right fit.
If appointments are limited, we can still help you find the right support.
Therapeutic
/aproaches
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Play-based
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person-centred
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trauma-informed
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Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT)
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motivational interviewing
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attachment-based family therapy
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mentalisation-based therapy.
In practice since 2018, working with children and adolescents across Perth and Australia-wide online.
Find your starting point
Our team includes practitioners from different professional backgrounds. Each practitioner works within their own qualifications, professional memberships, registrations, and scope of practice.