With a focus on individual counselling, relationship therapy and EMDR, our counselling team draws on evidence-based tools to help you work through life’s many challenges. Led by counsellor and psychotherapist, Tracy Lynch, our qualified and experienced team take a heartfelt, client-centred approach to create a safe space for healing.
Appointment Type: Face to face and Online
Works with: Couples and Families
Working Days: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday
Appointment Type: Face to face and Online
Works with: Individuals and Couples
Working Days: Monday, Tuesday, Thursday Friday
Appointment Type: Face to face and Online
Works with: Individuals and Couples
Working Days: Thursday and Saturday (by request only)
Appointment Type: Face to face and Online
Works with: Teens and Adults
Working Days: Tuesday
Appointment Type: Face to face and Online
Works with: Individuals, Couples, Teens
Working Days: Monday to Saturday
Appointment Type: Face to face and Online
Works with: Teens and Adults
Working Days: Monday, Wednesday and Friday
No, you don’t need a referral to make an appointment. Fill in the contact form below to make a booking. We’ll get back to you within 24 hours. Or call our Hub on (02) 4031 4241.
Yes, we currently offer telehealth appointments. Let us know your preference when making your booking so we can provide a link to the online appointment.
Our waiting period for new clients is only one week. As we have a growing team of counsellors, we’re able to fit in more clients, helping you access support sooner.
Individual counselling costs $145 per session. This is comparable to the Medicare gap you’d pay with most clinical psychologists.
Couples counselling costs $170 per session. This applies when couples see a therapist together or as individuals in the context of the relationship.
There is no cancellation fee if you notify us more than 24 hours before your appointment. If less than 24 hours’ notice is provided, you’ll be charged 50% of the appointment fee (unless it’s an emergency). Read our cancellation policy [link] for more information.
Give us a call on (02) 4031 4241 or email us to discover how our holistic approach to health and wellbeing can help you navigate whatever life throws at you.
ADDRESS: 9 Robert Street, Wickham
PHONE: (02) 4031 4241
We recognise Aboriginal people as the traditional custodians of the land. We pay our respects to all Aboriginal people and Elders past, present and emerging and acknowledge that sovereignty was never ceded.
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Melanie Zammit is a qualified and experienced Counsellor / Psychotherapist, Mediator and Facilitator.
Melanie holds the following qualifications:
With over 14 years experience in the helping industry, Melanie is the lead therapist at The Beginnings Institute specialising in the journey of relationships through counselling, coaching, mediation and facilitation. As a level 2 Gottman trained therapist Melanie brings expertise and commitment to couples who are maybe stuck, confused, searching for new ways of being together and looking for support on their journey.
With a passion for helping others Melanie sees the world through a relational lense and believes we learn the most about ourselves when we experience ourselves in relationship with others whether that be friendship, family, associate, intimate partner. Melanie is able to hold the space for couples, families and groups to explore behaviours and patterns that may no longer be working for them and to create healthier connections.
Melanie’s warmth and highly approachable manner sets her apart. First impressions will always reveal a relatable, broad life experience (professional and personal) and an instantly engaging approach to conversation.
Her professional therapy skills are complemented with a strong natural empathy and a passion for supporting understanding and communication.
Melanie provides a non-judgmental space for clients to explore and to challenge themselves to reveal all of the resources, talents, gifts and opportunities existing within them and how to put these into practice in their everyday life.
As former General Manager of a communications agency, Melanie also brings 20 years of experience in the business sector with a strong background in marketing and management at a senior executive level. This assists her in understanding that many of her clients lead busy lives with many burning priorities and ensures that the environment is relaxed but that your time together is efficient, relevant, and beneficial.
Melanie is passionate about helping people and about the industry she represents. Melanie brings up to date qualifications, industry membership, diligent supervision and continuing professional development to her practice. Melanie is a member of PACFA and adheres to the Code of Conduct and Code of Ethics.
Melanie is a mother, a family member, a friend, an active member of her community. She enjoys time outdoors and at the beach, meals with friends and family and any chance she can to get away for a short break and a new perspective.
James completed his Master of Counselling in two areas: Relationships and Crisis & Trauma. He is a registered counsellor with the ACA and CCAA.
In his career James has trained in a number of fields however his focus has always been on serving others. As a Rescue Paramedic he experienced the joy of delivering babies, the reward of saving lives, and the honour of sitting with people as they breathed their last. James left the Ambulance Service to train as an Exercise Physiologist and worked with children, athletes and the elderly. He especially enjoyed his opportunity to work with the Australian Olympic Swim Team. James then moved into the field of personal injury which found him supporting people who had experienced serious workplace injuries. He observed that the greatest injury was often to the person’s emotional well-being. Physical wounds usually heal but the emotional scars run deep and have lasting impacts upon their closest relationships.
James and his wife, of more than 30 years, are marriage coaches which has seen them working with couples to prepare them for marriage as well as running weekend seminars to invigorate tired marriages and help good marriages become even stronger. The area of love and relationships is a particular passion for James, and he is constantly researching and adding to his skills in this area.
Overall, James has found that the key to being effective in each of his roles has been to listen and to remain present with each person in moments of joy as well as in their deepest pain. James often says “I won’t ask what is wrong with you. I desire to know what hurt you and then journey with you to find your healing.”
I am an experienced and qualified Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT) Couples Counsellor. Most of us experiences mutual attraction and closeness early on in the relationship however as time goes by we get ‘caught’ in what feels like an endless spiral of hurt, misunderstandings and resentment. We then get stuck in our pattern of negative interactions and it is hard to get out without help from an unbiased professional. My methods offer couples the tools to know what to do when things get difficult. Repairing a relationship takes time and endurance and so for relationships to repair both people need to be on board.
My role is to uncover a way to repair your relationship; your role is to keep practicing the new ways of dealing with difficulties until you able to work things out between you without the help of a therapist. Eventually these learnt skills become automatic and integrated into your new way of thinking and relationship competency.
Qualifications and training: Post Graduate in Counselling, Qualified EFT Couples Therapist, Accredited PACFA member
Mimi Bloom is an experienced counsellor and psychotherapist who works with both adults and adolescents in a wide range of issues including depression, anxiety, anger, depression, ADHD, interpersonal and relational issues, self-harm, suicidal thoughts, social anxiety, bereavement, PTSD and trauma, domestic violence, addiction, OCD, and sexual abuse. She trained in the UK, completing a Postgraduate Diploma in Counselling and Psychotherapy, and a Postgraduate Certificate in Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT), later following this with a Postgraduate Diploma in Hypnotherapy from the Manchester Institute for Psychotherapy and Counselling. She has an interest in meditation and yoga, recognising how important the mind-body connection is to wellbeing and emotional health, and in this way likes to work holistically with clients. She is currently completing yoga-instructor training, and looks forward to being able to offer one-to-one yoga sessions, with a focus on the use of yoga for mental health and wellbeing, later this year.
Mimi Bloom grew up in Melbourne, Australia, but relocated to the UK to continue studies in opera and vocal performance. Having worked for a while as an opera singer, she retrained as a counsellor and undertook studies at the Manchester Counselling Training Centre and later at The University of Salford. Mimi moved to Newcastle at the beginning of 2022 from Manchester where she owned a successful private practice. She is excited to now be a part of Thrive Wellbeing.
At the heart of Mimi’s practice is the warm and genuine therapeutic relationship she achieves with her clients, which develops from the therapeutic conditions she offers; warmth and acceptance, a willingness to understand her clients from their point of view, and a commitment to be genuine and honest in all of her interactions. Although person-centred therapy is at the core of her practice, she also offers clients other modalities including CBT, Internal Family Systems (parts work), EFT (tapping), and hypnotherapy, often combining these to tailor a unique and individual way of working with each client.
Qualifications and training:
Catherine is a highly skilled and experienced counsellor and clinical supervisor. Her natural warmth, rapport and empathy along with her non-judgemental approach support her passion for helping people through change and difficult situations…. “I will work with you at your pace on your terms.”
Catherine provides treatment for trauma, stress management, anxiety, depression, panic attacks, grief and loss, adverse childhood experiences, eating disorders, drug and alcohol dependency, gambling, compulsive shopping, relationship difficulties, anger management, low self worth, lack of self confidence, trust issues.
The initial session with Catherine will focus on getting to know you, understand your situation and explore how you got to be the way you are…. « Let’s find out what has happened to you. »
In subsequent sessions Catherine will focus on underlying negative beliefs and experiences that are causing you distress. When you feel ready she will guide you very safely through proven therapeutic processes to clear, heal and restore your sense of confidence and wellbeing.
“Trauma, distress and imbalance sit in the body as well as the mind and brain. It is essential to work on all levels simultaneously to change thought patterns, neural pathways and behaviours.”
Catherine uses Resource Therapy and EMDR, two psychodynamic therapies that support the mind/brain in activating its natural healing process. All Catherine’s work is supported with mindfulness, relaxation practices and positive resourcing.
« If you want to make changes in your life, if you are sick of feeling anxious, depressed, uncertain, dissatisfied, addicted – if life feels overwhelming – come and talk about it and together we will explore what you really want, what is stopping you, and how to make progress towards your needs and goals. What are you ready to change today?”
Catherine is a mother, grandmother, artist, teacher, yogi, lover of nature, loyal friend.
Appointment type: face to face and online
Works with: individuals, couples, teenagers
Working days: Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday
Qualifications and training: Bachelor Communications, Grad Dip Education, Grad Dip Counselling, Clinical supervision, Clinical Resource Therapy, Advanced EMDR, Attachment Focussed EMDR, Imago Couples Therapy, Emotional Freedom Therapy, Hatha Yoga and Meditation Instructor.
Registered member: ACA Level 2, EMDRAA
Kylie Gallaher is the owner and principal therapist of Newcastle Clinical Hypnotherapy.
Kylie is a Clinical Hypnotherapist, Strategic Psychotherapist, Gordian Pillars Strategic Psychotherapist, and certified NLP practitioner.
Kylie is passionate about supporting a person’s journey to achieving real freedom from anxiety and anxiety related issues by offering truly empowering cognitive skill development and compassionate support along your journey.
She is motivated by the practical, effective and empowering nature of how Strategic Psychotherapy and Clinical Hypnosis support real life changes rapidly. She believes the combination of a personalised strategic treatment plan and evidence-based knowledge are a strong partnership for an effective therapy experience.
Kylie has experience working with teens and young adults who experience social and general anxiety, supporting them to be better versions of themselves as they move into adulthood, empowering them to make better decisions and experience the life they strive for.
Kylie has a special interest in the treatment of Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID). She has a lived experience with ARFID, which is at the heart of her special interest in the treatment of ARFID and other eating disorders and helping people improve their relationship and experiences with food and eating.
To support this, Kylie also has clinical training in eating disorder treatment in Australia and specialised treatment training in 4Rs Protocol, developed by UK Chartered Psychologist, Felix Economakis, who is acknowledged as one of the world’s most proficient SED/ARFID practitioners. She is also trained in Specialist Supportive Clinical Management (SSCM) for Anorexia Nervosa (AN), Bulimia Nervosa (BN) and Binge Eating Disorder (BED).
Appointment type: Face to Face and Online
Works with: Individuals, Teenagers
Working days: Monday, Wednesday and Friday
Qualifications and training: Diploma in Clinical Hypnosis and Strategic Psychotherapy, NLP Practitioner Certificate, 4Rs Protocol, Peter Mabbutt’s Psychoneuroimmunology (PNI), Coaching Resilience with Robert Dilts, Re-thinking Depression and Process-Oriented Hypnosis with Dr Michael Yapko, Specialist Supportive Clinical Management (SSCM) (March 2023), Masters of Business Administration (MBA)
