Anita Shimmins

Psychologist


Master of Clinical Psychology, University of Sydney

Bachelor of Psychology (Honours I),
Macquarie University

I am a passionate and dedicated therapist with a deep love for psychology and a genuine interest in people’s unique life stories. My approach to therapy is rooted in compassion and empathy, as I believe in treating all clients with the utmost respect and understanding.

My primary focus is on creating a safe and non-judgmental space where clients can openly explore their thoughts and feelings. I take a collaborative and relationship-focused approach, valuing the client‘s input and perspective throughout the therapeutic journey.

Ultimately, my goal is to empower clients to create the life they desire by helping them unlock their own internal tools necessary for their personal growth.

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Clinical approach

• CBT, Schema, DBT, ACT, Post-Milan Family Therapy, Mindfulness

• Works primarily with adults and adolescents, but also has experience working with children and families

• Empathy, compassion, and non-judgement are at the heart of her practice

• Trauma informed and holistic approach

• Individualised treatments catered to the specific circumstances of the client

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Experience:

• Delivery of psychological interventions to children, adolescents, adults, and families in the university clinic setting, seeing various presentations (e.g., depression, social anxiety, worry, trauma, relationship difficulties, chronic health issues, disordered eating, OCD, procrastination and perfectionism).

• Delivery of exposure-based interventions for children with social anxiety.

• Experience working with older adult clients (65+) in the context of a clinical trial for treatment of low mood, anxiety, chronic pain, grief, and interpersonal difficulties.

• Experience working with clients with a variety of presentations (intellectual disability, physical disability, and mental health difficulties).

• Conducted research on the impact of attachment orientation on disgust sensitivity (pathogens, moral disgust, sexual disgust).

• Conducted research on creating a scale to assess behavioural disturbances in children in post-traumatic amnesia following a traumatic brain injury

• Experience administering cognitive assessments to assess for Specific Learning Disorders, Intellectual Disability, Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, Intellectual Disability, and Autism (adolescents and adults only).

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Presentations

• Anxiety, panic, phobias, stress, OCD, and worry

• Depression, low mood, apathy

• Relationship and interpersonal difficulties

• Friendship, social issues, and bullying

• Trauma and processing difficult experiences

• Confidence issues

• Unhelpful and catastrophic thinking

• Personality Disorders

• Body image and eating issues

• Chronic illness

• Sleep difficulties

• Grief & loss

• Emotion regulation difficulties

• Anger management

• Work and academic difficulties

• Perfectionism, motivation, time-management

• ASD (high functioning)

• ADHD - treatment, not assessment

• Sexual and intimacy difficulties

• LGBTQIA+

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Blog Posts

• Q&A with Anita

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