Trauma Counselling in Perth

Trauma is the physical, emotional and psychological response that is triggered within us when we experience heightened fear or extreme anxiety with no opportunity to remove ourselves from the situation.

When an animal comes under threat in the wild, for example, they will “fight or flee”. Once the danger has passed, animals will often “shake off” the experience. However, for some people, this stress response may continue and the experience will tend to stay with the person and remain unresolved – as if the danger never went away. When there are multiple and/or long-term experiences of trauma this can develop into a problem of Complex Trauma. In complex trauma the heightened experience of threat can, for some people, result in a lifestyle of coping with symptoms.

This is how we develop post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), which can

present itself in a number of ways, including:

  • Flashbacks and/or nightmares of the traumatic event
  • Heightened levels of fear and anxiety
  • Disconnection from our emotions (general feeling of “numbness”)
  • Lowered self-esteem or sense of self worth
  • Feelings of shame
  • Strong urge to avoid the location of the traumatic event
  • Physical issues stemming from the stress and anxiety of the trauma
  • Suicidal thoughts

Would you benefit from trauma therapy at the Ashcliffe clinic?

The renowned trauma and addiction specialist Dr Gabor Maté said almost everyone experiences trauma at some point in their life.

However, the long-term effects can often emerge in people who were not taught how to regulate their emotions or reassured after fearful situations during childhood.

As a result, risky behaviours such as alcohol, substance abuse or self-harm can become an effective method for temporarily suppressing the trauma and regulating emotions that feel too overwhelming to confront. These are essentially “Band-Aid” solutions that do not address the root cause of the problem, and can spiral into bigger mood disorders, drug like addiction and alcoholism.

With personalised PTSD counselling and treatment from our highly experienced psychologists and therapists, we can provide you with evidenced based trauma therapy to help process the past and develop a new way of living with the future.

The treatment of mood and anxiety disorders and anger management issues.

Ashcliffe psychologists provide a range of focused psychological strategies and clinical interventions including cognitive behaviour therapy for the treatment of mood and anxiety disorders and anger management issues. Additionally, Ashcliffe Psychology offers the Matrix Intensive Outpatient addictions treatment program for those people wishing to seek support for problematic substance use. See Matrix Page for further information.


There are eight guiding principles behind the Matrix Program:

  1. Establishing positive and respectful relationships
  2. Creating a client-centred therapeutic structure
  3. Providing clinically relevant and evidence-based information and education
  4. Incorporating a variety of evidence-based treatment approaches to meet each client’s individual needs
  5. Ensuring positive reinforcement and encouragement
  6. Supporting engagement and education for families and friends
  7. Encouraging participants to engage in self-help and community-based programs for a more fulfilling life
  8. Random and periodic drug testing

Ashcliffe Psychology's complex PTSD treatment can help

At Ashcliffe Psychology, we provide you with a safe, nurturing environment where you can begin to address past events that resulted in your trauma and work through them alongside a qualified professional.

We’ll provide you with useful resources, and equip you with various grounding techniques, awareness exercises and other emotional regulationl tools for treating symptoms of PTSD.

The Ashcliffe team has extensive training in a diverse range of evidence-based treatment modalities that allow us to deliver a highly personalised approach to trauma counselling and therapy in West Perth. Together, we’ll support you to achieve your therapy goals.

Contact an Ashcliffe trauma psychologist today

To learn more about treatment for PTSD, please don’t hesitate to contact us. If you are ready to get started, book a consultation with us online.