People seek counselling for many reasons. Psychological counselling may be useful if you:

• Persistently feeling sad, down, or depressed
• Feeling anxious or stressed
• Having thoughts of harming yourself or feeling suicidal
• Having difficulty parenting babies/children/teenagers
• Experiencing relationship issues with friends/loved ones and/or family
• Needing to talk to someone during pregnancy/post-pregnancy or experiencing menopausal symptoms
• Feelings of grief after the death of a friend/family member
• Personal health issues or those of someone close to you
• Lacking self-confidence and wanting to be more assertive
• Needing to make a change in your life and not sure what direction to take.

You don’t need a referral to see a psychologist. Many people simply decide to make an appointment themselves, without visiting their GP or obtaining a referral from a health professional. However, if you wish to obtain the Medicare Rebate you will need to visit your GP, psychiatrist, or pediatrician to obtain a Mental Health Care Plan. For more information please email or call us on 0433 905 239.

Medicare

Under the Medicare ‘Better Access to Mental Health Care’ http://www.health.gov.au/mentalhealth-betteraccess scheme, you can obtain a rebate from Medicare for part of the session cost for up to 10 psychological therapy sessions in each calendar year. To access this rebate, you must visit your GP, Psychiatrist or Paediatrician and be assessed as eligible for a Mental Health Care Plan following which you can be referred to a psychologist. Once this Mental Health Care Plan has been completed by your doctor, you will be entitled to a Medicare rebate for up to 10 sessions per calendar year. You should bring your completed Mental Health Care Plan with your Medicare card to your first session with the psychologist.

Private Health Funds

Most private health funds provide rebates for psychological services depending on your level of cover. Please contact your health fund to find out more information.