Margaret River Counselling and Psychotherapy

About Blake 

Therapy Journey

Earlier in my career, I was trained as a trauma-informed social worker, working in acute mental health rehabilitation, statutory child protection, and psychosocial disability. I then advanced my training to an ‘accredited mental health social worker’, providing counselling and psycho-education in prisons and domestic violence organisations for men using violence. I learned modalities such as mindfulness, cognitive behavioural therapy, acceptance and commitment therapy, and narrative therapy.

Later, I began working as a therapist at drug and alcohol residential facilities with victims/survivors of abuse, where I sought specialist training in narrative therapy. Narrative therapy is a style of therapy that helps people to re-author their self-narrative (identity) to become their preferred Self. It has a strong focus on dignity and social justice, with the therapist being specially trained to help clients re-author themselves based on the client’s psychology, not the therapist’s psychology.

I then underwent further postgraduate qualifications and training to become a psychotherapist. There is considerable overlap between psychotherapy and mental health social work. However, to use gardening terms, psychotherapy has a little more focus on inner transformation to help the flower grow, whereas mental health social work focuses slightly more on the relationship with the soil and ecosystem. 

Private practice allowed me to diversify further into other modalities such as internal family systems therapy, schema therapy, family therapy, and particularly EMDR. However, my real education has come from working with clients in learning how people survive and overcome trauma, what dignity in therapy means to people, and client-therapist collaboration. 

Becoming a therapist has been one of the absolute biggest privileges and honours of my life, to walk alongside others on their journey who courageously share their experience of vulnerability, healing and recovery.

Professional accreditation

Personally, I chose Accredited Mental Health Social Worker (AMHSW) as my accreditation. I decided to go with AMHSW accreditation over counselling (ACA) or psychotherapy (PACFA) so I can offer clients better rebates and charge a smaller gap fee.  

Like psychologists, after AMHSWs complete their degrees in how problems affect people, therapists must go through two years of clinical supervision in mental health. This is why both psychologists and AMHSWs are eligible to provide psychological therapy under Medicare.

Down time

In my down time I love to travel, particularly discovering the world by motorbike and exploring far flung corners for waves.

Surfing, travel, mindfulness, and amazing friendships are what cultivates my growth, inspiration, and creativity.

Before becoming a therapist, I worked in Sumatra as a surf guide and on post-tsunami community development projects. 

Training and Education

Accredited training

• Cognitive Processing Therapy (Medical University of South Carolina)
• EMDR 2.0 Advanced Training in Clinical Practice (De Jongh)
• EMDR 2.0 Special Techniques (De Jongh)
• EMDR 2.0 Enhancing EMDR Therapy (De Jongh)
• EMDR for Panic Disorder, OCD, and Specific Phobias (De Jongh)
• Efficient Methods for EMDR Therapy (De Jongh)
• EMDR and Schema Therapy (Graham Taylor)
• Integrated EMDR and IFS Model (Kendal Hart)
• EMDR and Internal Family Systems Therapy (Frank Anderson)
• 4 Day DBT Intensive (Peter King /CMHE Academy)
• Dialectical Behaviour Therapy for Borderline Personality Disorder (Thomas Lynch)
• Screening for Dissociative Identity Disorder and Complex PTSD (Bessel van der Kolk)
• Somatic psychotherapy (Manuela Mischke-Reeds)
• 10 day Vipassana meditation (x3 Bodhi Tree, Lismore)
• Internal Family Systems Therapy [16 week intensive] (IFSCA)
• Family-Based Treatment for eating disorders (ANZAED)
• EMDR Level 1 & 2 (Graham Taylor [EMDRAA])
• Trauma, attachment and neuroscience (Bessel van der Kolk)
• Understanding and responding to complex trauma (Rape and Domestic Violence Services)
• Attachment-focused treatment for childhood trauma and abuse (Dan Hughes)
• Body wisdom therapy (Pat Ogden)
• Advanced cognitive behavioural therapy skills (Gold Coast University Hospital)
• Emotional regulation interventions (Carol Bright)
• Drug and alcohol recovery counselling (Gold Coast University Hospital)
• Acceptance and Commitment Therapy 2-day Workshop (Russ Harris)
• Advanced frameworks for domestic violence counselling (Education Centre Against Violence)
• Essential skills in male family violence (Education Centre Against Violence)