FRANZCP, Cert. in Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, EMDR Therapy Advanced Trainings, Neurosequential Model of Therapeutics and Education Level II, Cert. in Traumatic Stress

CHILD AND ADOLESCENT PSYCHIATRIST

Dr Dennisa Davidson has extensive training in managing various manifestations of traumatic stress, including the Neurosequential Model of Therapeutics, Certificate in Traumatic Stress, and EMDR Therapy. She will make an assessment and along with her team will work with you and your family to help overcome the effects of traumatic stress to reboot your life back on track.

She is also able to offer specific trauma focussed interventions for adults.

Dr Davidson has Christian beliefs and understands the influence of religion, spirituality and culture in people’s lives. If you wish to seek advice about how you have been affected positively or negatively by these, this is a safe space for you to come to.

FRANZCUC, NMT Training Certification through Phase 1 Level, BCN Board Certified in Neurofeedback

Yuvaraj is an Urgent Care Physician with a special interest in mental health. He has been a medical doctor for about 30 years, with many years as a surgical specialist. He has always been interested in how life experiences affect people. This made him interested in exploring the neuroscientific model of mental health. He is certified in the Neurosequential Model of Therapeutics and is currently one of three people in New Zealand who is certified in Neurofeedback Therapy.

Yuvaraj applies his medical knowledge and clinical experience to the way he approaches Neurofeedback therapy, so that the treatment is continuously tailored to the individual’s changing needs. When needed, he is able to offer QEEG assessments to further tailor neurofeedback protocols.

Yuvaraj has a wide range of interests. He loves to teach people and runs seminars about the impact of life experiences on the brain. He enjoys music and played the violin at his church for many years.

BS Honours (Psychology), MS Clinical Psychology, PhD in Psychology

CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGIST

Dr Sahrish Ahmad began her clinical practise in 2014. She has extensive training in different modalities of therapy including CBT, REBT, EFT and family therapy. She has worked with young people and adults helping them understand and cope with generalised anxiety, social anxiety, panic attacks, specific phobias, depression, mood dysregulation, trauma and other stress related difficulties. She takes keen interest in understanding the influence of family dynamics on mental health, helping client gain closure and develop supportive networks.

Dr Ahmad has expertise in assessment and diagnosis of the neurodevelopmental disorders of ADHD, ASD and Intellectual Disability. Currently, she is working with Counties Manukau as a Clinical Psychologist for Child & Adolescent Mental Health Services.

MA CAT (clinical) (Hons), MSc Human Nutrition

CREATIVE ARTS THERAPIST

Norma is a registered Creative Arts Therapist MA CAT (clinical) (Hons) and mental well-being facilitator. Norma uses creative and expressive processes like art, movement, creative writing, sculpting, ecotherapy, symbol-work and imaginative play to support exploring and expressing inner experiences (feelings, emotions, perceptions, thoughts) that may be hard to put into words. This is delivered in a gentle, safe and supportive way.

Her practice is holistic, compassion-oriented and person-centred. She includes mindfulness practices, Sandplay therapy, Polyvagal theory and trauma-informed expressive arts therapy which uses mind-body, somatic, sensory integration and neurobiology-informed interventions to support trauma integration, reparation and recovery.

Creative Arts Therapy helps people to reduce anxiety, find regulation, clarity, growth, and new perspectives and recover the sense of aliveness, creativity and playfulness that might have been lost or diminished by distress or anxiety.

Norma has fifteen years of experience as an educator, mental well-being facilitator and nutritionist (MSc Human Nutrition). She has been a mindfulness and presence practitioner for the last 10 years and a facilitator of a mindfulness inquiry-based stress reduction process called The Work, which supports people to identify, question and dissolve limiting thoughts and beliefs. She has experience working with children, teenagers and adults.

Master of Arts (Honors), Creative Arts Therapy, (Clinical)

CREATIVE ARTS THERAPIST

Miriam is a New Zealand trained Creative Arts Therapist with a passion to use creative processes such as visual arts, writing, sculpture, dance/movement, play, Lego therapy and nature-based arts making. The focus is on the process of engaging with materials and modalities. Messiness and imperfections are welcome, where difficult emotions are attended to.

Throughout her Creative Arts Therapy training Miriam has worked with adults in a drug and alcohol rehabilitation setting, adults with intellectual disabilities, and children with learning needs and neurodivergent disorders. Miriam has experience with group work for women who have experienced trauma and is interested in the impact of unexpected events and life experiences, such as the Covid Pandemic

Miriam is also a Practice Nurse, having worked both in New Zealand and the U.K. She has also served in Nepal (Leprosy Hospital) and Togo (Hospital of Hope) on a voluntary basis. It was her nursing work that alerted her to the need to attend to mental wellbeing. Miriam has many interests outside of her work, including tramping, paddle boarding, playing games with friends, and reading and craft.

Cert. of Proficiency – Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, Postgraduate Cert. in Health Sciences - Child and Adolescent Mental Health, BHSc (Occupational Therapy)
(Le Va scholarship recipient)
(Wharaurau scholarship recipient)

OCCUPATIONAL THERAPIST

Pela is a New Zealand trained and registered Occupational Therapist. She has practiced in mental health for more than 8 years. She has extensive training and experience in mental health assessments, cognitive behavioural therapy and combines these with Occupational Therapy which makes for a unique skillset. She works with young people, families, and adults, who struggle with a range of mental health difficulties. These include depression, anxiety, behavioural issues and trauma. Pela is very passionate about supporting people and their families with mental health and wellbeing. Her faith and family are what motivate her in all that she does. Pela also works with Counties Manukau as an Advanced Occupational Therapist for Child & Adolescent Mental Health Services.

OCCUPATIONAL THERAPIST

Emma is a registered Occupational Therapist who has been practicing since 2017. The Occupational Therapy approach includes finding what is meaningful and important for people to do across the domains of self-care, leisure and productivity and working collaboratively to overcome barriers that may be getting in the way. Emma specialises in working with young people in their mental health recovery and working with their families in how they can best support them. She has worked with a variety of different mental health presentations including anxiety, school refusal, emotional dysregulation, neurodiversity and sensory processing difficulties. She enjoys using both individual sessions and group settings to help people learn skills and reach their goals. Currently she is also working with Counties Manukau as a Senior Occupational Therapist for Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services.

BSW(Hons)

REGISTERED SOCIAL WORKER

Preetika is a Registered Social worker who graduated with a BSW(Hons) from the University of Auckland. She has a specialist background in addictions and Child and Adolescent Mental Health services (CAMHS), and has experience working in primary care settings. Her expertise spans across age groups, from children to older adults, addressing a wide spectrum of mental health presentations. These include anxiety, depression, neurodevelopment disorders, obsessive compulsive disorders, mood disorders, personality disorders, trauma, grief, emotional dysregulation, self-harm/suicide and behavioural issues. Extensive training and years of work experience alongside personal lived experiences allows Preetika to work in a holistic and caring way to walk alongside and help those affected by trauma. Preetika currently also works in the primary care setting, where she offers brief intervention support as a proactive measure to enhance client well-being.