Welcome to Mind with Mik
Mikayla is an accredited Counsellor working with women across Australia, additionally, she is a Provisional Psychologist while completing her Master of Clinical Psychology. Mik has over 5 years experience working in mental health and is passionate about supporting women to build genuine self-worth, improve their relationships with others and most importantly, with themselves.
Mik has struggled personally with many mental health challenges, which led her to ask questions about human behaviour and psychology, she is most interested in how we build enduring self-worth, and focused her post-graduate research on diving into this topic. Now she helps women build lives that actually support them to value who they are and to lighten the weight that mental health challenges can bear down on them.
Mik blends compassion, curiosity and understanding, a dry sense of humour, and evidence-based strategies, to help you work through whatever you’re navigating.
Our Services
Mik’s Approach
The relationship you have with your therapist is one of the most important contributors to the success of therapy. It’s so important to find someone you click with, someone you feel safe talking to about your toughest moments, but also someone you respect and want cheering you on when you’re succeeding too.
Mik aims to approach therapy with curiosity, kindness, a bit of humour, and tough love when you need someone to challenge you. The goal isn’t to tell you what to do, but to walk alongside you and figure it out together.
Therapy starts by gaining an in-depth understanding of what you need support with, and then drawing from evidence-based modalities such as CBT, Schema Therapy, DBT, ACT and more to tailor a plan specifically for you. If you’re looking for someone who’ll be real with you, who can tell it like it is, challenge you when needed, and be in your corner through it all, then you’re in the right place!
Mik’s Values
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Of course, a professional approach to therapy is important… but so is having a laugh! I guarantee I’ll be stirring you up along the way and aim to make therapy a safe space for both the tears and the laughs as needed too!
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Valuing my own education has shaped me into a completely different person, more compassionate, kind & understanding.
One of my favourite quotes is “there aren’t many people you wouldn’t like, if only you knew their full story”. Education allows us to understand people in a way that opens us up to compassion.
If I don’t understand something, I’ll apply the same skills that got me this far & I’ll dive into it, ensuring we work together to figure out what’s going on and how to best support you moving forward. We can create the space to work things out together!
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I aim to approach everything with curiosity, rather than reacting. It’s not judging someone and asking ‘Why would you do that?!’ It's about looking deeper and asking, ‘Wait, actually, why would someone do that?’ . The goal os to develop a deeper understanding of human behaviour without the shame.
I don’t care what you bring to the table… if you’ve done something you regret, if you’ve made mistakes, if you’re not your best self right now, that’s okay! We’ve all been there. That’s the whole point of getting support, so we can approach where you’re at right now with compassion, understanding and kindness, and make a plan to get things back on track. -
The word holistic can sometimes generate some eye-rolls, I know… but hear me out!
What it means to me is looking at all the moving parts of your life and knowing that nothing exists in isolation. It’s an understanding that an hour of talking on its own won’t change your life, but if we actually consider how different areas (e.g., physical health, nutrition, habits, childhood, education, etc), influence each other to impact your progress, we have the best chance at making positive change & achieving goals!
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You cannot improve your mental health without considering your physical health too; they are deeply intertwined. It doesn’t have to be complicated or hard, it’s about taking small steps in the right direction to help you build momentum!
Are you getting enough sunlight? Are you sleeping well? Are you moving your body? Do you see a doctor when needed? etc etc.
The version of me who isolated and stayed in bed all day couldn’t have just talked her way into better mental health, I had to work on my other habits too.
Benefits of Counselling
Personal Growth
Identify, goals and values, improve emotional intelligence and self-awareness, accessing supports, self care, and resilience building. Enhance overall quality of life.
Positive Habits
Sleep, nutrition, movement, sunshine and water create the foundation of good health and mental health. Work on establishing good habits to improve the different areas of your life.
Personal Values
Gain clarity on your personal values to build authenticity, self-respect and improve your self-worth. Unpack why you value certain things and how this impacts your decision making.
Stress & Time Management
Improve stress management, burnout, mindfulness, time management and work life balance, by building your emotion regulation skills and prioritising tasks.
Communication
Develop the skills and mindset necessary to communicate effectively and approach conversations from a productive space.
Support Others
Building the skills to support people around you who are navigating mental health and other challenges, by offering yourself a safe space to share and gain support.
FAQs
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Counseling is a safe and supportive space where you can explore your thoughts, emotions, and challenges with a professional. It can help you gain clarity, develop coping strategies, and improve your overall well-being. I help women navigating the madness of our 20s & 30s, who want to build self-worth, overcome depression, and improve their overall lives and mental health.
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Counselling can be helpful for anyone! It’s useful for individuals struggling with mental health issues like anxiety, depression, trauma, grief, or stress, those seeking to process emotional difficulties, or struggling with decisions, just to name a few. Counselling provides a safe space to explore emotions and develop strategies for improving mental well-being.
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Right now, Mik is only working as a Counsellor. Technically, she is also a Provisional Psychologist while studying at university, but she is not taking clients as a provisional psychologist, other than in supervised practice on placement.
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It’s up to you! But here’s some important stuff to consider…
Whether it’s a counsellor, psych, social worker, mental health nurse, coach, whatever! The most important thing is you feel safe and comfortable to share what you’ve been struggling with!
However, each individual is trained in different things, and some of the super complex mental health stuff is best considered with a psych, as they usually have a bit more training specific to complex mental health issues.
Importantly, if you’re seeking a mental health diagnosis, you’re going to need a psychologist, and if you’re seeking medications to support your mental health, you might even need a psychiatrist too!
If you’re unsure, start by talking to your GP about what’s been going on, or feel free to reach out to me and I can point you in the right direction.
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No, you don’t need a referral for counselling, you are able to self-refer via the booking link provided.
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Medicare rebates are not available for counselling services. If you are seeking a psychologist, it’s a good idea to speak to your GP and get some advice.
