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About Us

Background and Experience

In my previous roles as a full-time Family Violence and Homelessness counsellors I worked with referrals from the Department of Health and Human Services (Child Protection), Centre Against Violence, community health and family services, schools, kindergartens, pediatricians, psychologists, Family Court Order clients, and with self referrals.

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As of January 2022 I started my 10th consecutive year of full-time counselling. In this time I have :-

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  • exceeded 4,100 counselling sessions

  • designed several group work programs

  • facilitated over 40 groups (each group running an average of six weekly sessions)

  • outreached to 29 learning centres throughout Wodonga and surrounding regions including Benalla,

       Wangaratta, Yarrawonga, Chiltern, Wahgunyah, Mt. Beauty, Harrietville​ , Albury and Gerogery NSW.

  • consulted with countless parents, teachers and other professionals

  • consulted with Independent Children's Lawyers

  • provided advocacy, referrals, and support letters

  • provided recommendations to parents and teachers

  • and have always continued receiving consistent clinical supervision from specialists in their respective fields, and undertaken Professional Development. 

 

I am an accredited Mental Health Social Worker with Australian Association of Social Workers. 

I'm also working towards my clinical membership and registration as a Child-Centred Play Therapist, Interplay Therapist and Clinical Supervisor, and EMDRAA Accredited Practitioner.

For a comprehensive understanding of these accreditations, go to:-

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  • Obtained my Clinical Supervisors Certificate from the Bouverie Centre in April 2022. Currently registered with Australian Clinical Supervisors' Association, and also with the AASW Clinical Supervisors' Register. 

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  • Interplay Family Play Therapist with Interplay Play Therapy Australia completed in January 2022.

  • Interplay Clinical Level 5 (advanced therapist) and Level 6 (clinical supervisor) both trainings occuring in September 2022. 

  • Healing Trauma through Guided Drawing with Institute for Sensorimotor Art Therapy & School for Initiatic Art Therapy

  • Blowing Bubbles Parent-Child Attachment group work facilitator training with the Australian Childhood Foundation.

  • EMDR Levels 1 &  2 & Storytelling (Adult, Adolescent & Child) with Dr. Sarah Schubert/ Dr. Christopher Lee.

  • ACT Therapy for Trauma, for Grief and Loss, for Shame and Guilt with Dr. Russ Harris.

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  • As a registered service provider with Medicare, clients with a mental health plan from their GP can currently receive twenty subsidized sessions. In most instances there is a gap to pay. 

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  • As an independent trader I am able to provide NDIS counselling for clients who are self managed.

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  • Registered with five national Employee Assistance Program (EAP) agencies. 

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Medicare, EAP, NDIS
Recent Professional Development
Areas of Interest

  • Children & Tweens

 

My expertise is in working with children who experience anxiety, fear of storms, friendship issues, low self esteem, low social skills, nightmares, post separation, family violence, abuse and grief counselling.

 

With children I work around areas of developmental change, puberty, growing up, developing a secure sense of identity and working with family and other significant relationships. I often focus on building resilience and self-esteem as a way of tackling not only issues young people are currently facing, but also enabling them to manage tough times in the future.


Feedback from parents and children consistently comes back that I have outstanding  rapport building skills. Young people quickly become at ease and enjoy coming to counselling. 

 

I can make children's sessions fun AND effective. I help them to understand what’s happening and why they’re reacting to the situation that is causing them difficulty. I teach them practical coping skills for managing the things they can’t change. I ensure that parents know what’s happening in the counselling room (and more if consent is provided by the child) and also help parents with things they can do at home to help their child. A happier child is a happier parent.

Child%20and%20Adult%20Counsellor_edited.

Diana Rebuffo, bhs, msw, amhsw

aimee facebook pic.jpg
Ollie photo.jpg

Aimee Smith
Administration & Accounts Manager

Ollie
Emotional Support Assistant

Clinical Supervisor
  • Young Adults - 21 to 25 years
Areas of Special Interest

  • Advocacy

  • Anxiety

  • Depression

  • Difficulties with Self Esteem

  • Family Violence

  • Life Transitions

  • Pre Separation Contemplation

  • Post Separation  Adjustment

  • Coping through Family Court proceedings

  • Embarking on a new relationship 

  • Re-authoring Self Identity

  • Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

  • Professional/Career Issues

  • School Issues

  • Self Care and Relaxation 

  • Sexual Abuse

  • Struggling as an adult or sibling carer

  • Parenting support

  • ​Managing anger and other difficult emotions 

"Trauma victims cannot recover until they become familiar with and befriend the sensations in their bodies. I begin the process by helping my patients to first notice physical sensations - not emotions”. 

Dr. Bessel van der Kolk, psychiatrist

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