About

My name is Sandy

About Sandy – Experience & Background

My work as a trauma-focused psychotherapist is shaped by a wide range of clinical training, frontline service, lived experience and long-standing spiritual practice. I bring together evidence-based modalities, deep relational presence, and a grounded understanding of how trauma shapes the body, mind and spirit.

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Academic Training

·       Bachelor of Health Science (Human Movement)

·       Graduate Diploma in Education (Secondary)

·       Advanced Diploma of Paramedicine

·       Master of Counselling and Applied Psychotherapy

My academic background gives me a solid foundation in human physiology, psychology, teaching, clinical practice and trauma-informed care.

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Professional & Clinical Experience

·       25 years operational frontline work as a paramedic
Working in high-intensity settings across metropolitan, rural and remote environments.

·       International disaster relief deployments
Hands-on experience in crisis response, trauma exposure, and cross-cultural care.

·       Internal Family Systems (IFS) – Level 2 trained

·       Janina Fisher’s TIST – Level 1 trained

·       Somatic trauma work informed by Peter Levine’s training
(nervous system regulation, body-based trauma patterns)

·       Retreat facilitator – Australia and internationally
Blending therapeutic, reflective and embodied practices.

·       Meditation group facilitator – 15 years
Guiding groups in mindfulness, grounding and contemplative practices.

·       Energetic and spiritual healing – 15 years
A long-term practice integrated carefully and ethically within a trauma-informed framework.

·       Addiction recovery – 22 years lived experience
A deep understanding of compulsive patterns, shame cycles and recovery.

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Lived & Personal Foundations

My therapeutic style is shaped not only by professional training but by meaningful personal experiences:

·       Mother of two daughters

·       Over twenty five years frontline work as a Paramedic

·       Navigating postnatal complexity and recovery

·       Married (happily!) for nine years

·       Eternal student — continuously learning, evolving and refining my craft

·       Fluent in metaphor — using imagery, symbolism and inner language to deepen insight

·       Active in dream work

·       Spiritual seeker with a long-standing contemplative practice

·       Lover of nature — the landscape of the Blue Mountains is central to my life

·       Mountain bike rider

·       Ice bath enthusiast

·       A tonne of inner work including years of personal depth psychotherapy, 12-step recovery, many spiritual retreats, regular clinical supervision, peer consultation/ supervision, four years in a “Yalom-style” group therapy practice group.

·       Navigating my own healing of complex trauma.

These aspects of my life keep me grounded, embodied and connected to the wider rhythms that shape human experience.

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What This Means for My Work

Everything I’ve lived and studied informs the way I sit with people:

·       a strong trauma focus

·       deep respect for the nervous system

·       clarity around safety and pacing

·       relational honesty

·       a capacity to hold intensity without overwhelm

·       intuition grounded in clinical skill

·       the ability to integrate mind, body, emotion and meaning

My aim is to meet each person with presence, steadiness and genuine care — and to support them in reconnecting with the parts of themselves that have been silenced, wounded or forgotten.