“I had been married twice before and was in another relationship that was failing. Something was telling me that there is a theme here. So, I did what guys don’t usually do and I went to see a counsellor. After searching the net, I noticed that Kathy had an advanced study major in relationships and conflict resolution, so I thought I was in pretty good hands. At first I wondered if I should see a male counsellor, as a guy might understand a bloke’s point of view, but I thought if we don’t connect, I can always go elsewhere. The first session was great – we were off to a running start. We met once a week and soon my life turned around. It was that “light bulb moment” you hear about, sometimes making that first step is the hardest, the rest is simply empowering. Make an appointment today – your life awaits!!”

Male 38, Rowville

“When I went to see Kathy, I was going through a very difficult time in my life. I felt alone, misunderstood and questioned everything. My relationships had fallen apart, my self-esteem was low and I was floundering in life. In fact, when I first went to see Kathy I didn’t even know where to start – everything was a mess. I remember feeling really safe telling my story to her. I had been to lots of counsellors before over many years. I really connected with Kathy. I didn’t feel that they understood me like she did, so I was comfortable to meet with her each week and for her to go deeper into my issues. Soon, we covered all the layers of pain that I had been hiding for so long. Now I am free from the baggage of the past and in charge of my future.”

Female 32, Warragul

“I was overwhelmed with my role as a new mother and I was struggling to cope with a new baby who was difficult to settle. I also felt guilty that I was not feeling happy and contended in my role as a mother. I was in a bit of a dark place. After my session with Kathy I knew I was in good hands. She really seemed to “get me” and I looked forward to seeing her each week for a few weeks. I felt that I could talk honestly about how I was feeling, without fear of being judged. I couldn’t even do that with my friends that I had known for years. Not only did she help me during a really difficult time, but she also provided me with really useful strategies to help me settle my baby. I didn’t realize at the time of my first appointment that Kathy is not only a qualified counsellor, but that she is also qualified in pre and post natal family support. How could I have been so lucky to have found you! Thanks for everything. I now enjoy my role as a mum and have told lots of my friends to go and see Kathy if ever you are struggling with parenting.”

Female 28, Pakenham

“My partner and I went to see Kathy after years of conflict. We thought we could sort it out ourselves and were embarrassed to admit that we needed professional help. We disagreed and argued about nearly everything and soon it began to impact not only on us but our young children. We started to communicate less and began to withdraw from each other. We both thought that we had left it too long and that we should probably separate. We were both hurt and angry and hated feeling this way. We had never been able to resolve our longstanding issues, so we thought that we’d try counselling. Deep down I think we both believed that counselling may be just a process to go through and that no-one would really be able to assist us. We had so many issues to overcome and so many years of hurt. On the day of our first counselling session we both felt really anxious knowing that for the next hour we would both be expressing our sadness and resentment of the other and leave feeling worse that when we arrived. How could we look forward to this? Before the session concluded we both felt that we had been offered a life-life. Kathy listened to our story and gave us a homework activity to better manage our conflict. Within days we were doing something different and feeling optimistic. Each week we added new skills which brought us closer. Now we understand each other better and have a closer relationship. Not only did we keep our family together we modelled to our children that even grown-ups can learn new skills to better manage their life. If you are unhappy in your relationship go and see Kathy. She is amazing.”

Happy Couple, Narre Warren South

“I’m not a bad mum, but I sure felt that way. I had three children who were out of control. They were always fighting, would never go to bed on time, refusing house rules and I couldn’t get them to do a thing I asked. I was outnumbered, exhausted and longed to go to work each day and escape the bedlam at home. It soon got to the point that my friends did not want to get together with us, so I thought I needed help. I went to see Kathy by myself, and then introduced her to my kids and she spoke with them. Kathy changed everything. She is like the super nanny counsellor who comes out to your house and changes your life. Soon the kids had predictable boundaries and consequences that were age appropriate and I was the adult in control, not the other way around. My children are now respectful, doing better in school and we have harmony in the home. Someone should give this lady a grant so that she can help all families in need. There would be less troubled kids out there and happier homes if more families went to see her.”

Mother 36, Hallam

“I have a son who is autistic and was really struggling to cope with the difficulties of this disorder. My doctor organized a referral to see a psychologist who organized lots of tests. I felt that I was in good hands and every appointment that I was sent to I was hopeful that I would gain a greater insight into ways in which I could not only help my son but help his siblings understand him better. Soon there were lots of reports from various agencies with details of their assessments. I was excited that finally things would improve at home. What I was not prepared for was that once all the data was collated and the findings documented, that’s about all they could do to assist me. I was left to figure out how best to cope by myself. I was still stuck. A friend told me about Kathy Brennan – a qualified counsellor working in Beaconsfield who had qualifications in additional needs children and years of experience as an early childhood educator. I immediately made an appointment. She spoke with me first in her consulting room and then met with my son. Then she made a visit to my home and provided me with strategies that were specific to my family and my situation. I couldn’t believe how lucky I was to have found her. She gave me a range of ideas to de-stress my home environment, methods to assist my son to prepare him for each day and a variety of ideas to help me out when he is travelling in the car. Within a couple of weeks my home changed from a stressful battlefield to a calm and manageable space. She was even given my teacher some times to help her in the classroom.”

Mother of Autistic Child

“We have been married for decades and we have been to countless relationship counsellors without success. It seemed as though we presented with issues that were not typical of a regular relationship and the pain and heartache continued with no light at the end of the tunnel. After a short time listening to our stories, Kathy realized that we were dealing with issues pertaining to an asperger marriage and told us that that “regular” couple counselling would never deliver us the help we so desperately needed. I had waited all our married life for my partner to be a partner to me and I felt so incredibly hurt and angry that he had put me through so much anguish. Kathy enlightened us about the cluster of behaviours that pertained to the asperger spectrum, and the areas of deficiencies my partner struggled with. She understood how a woman without aspergers (neuro typical) felt in a marriage that left her devoid of the relationship behaviours that formed a typical loving relationship. Kathy had experience in this area and was most insightful in strategies to assist our failing relationship. I urge anyone in an asperger relationship to contact Kathy to gain the skills to assist merging these two worlds.”

NT & AS Marriage, Officer

“My child has been significantly impacted by my husband and me separating. I contacted Kathy for counselling for my son who became withdrawn and lacked enthusiasm. He didn’t want to participate in the activities he usually enjoyed such as music and sport and his lack of confidence impacted his school work. Kathy is skilled in children’s counselling and used strategies to reach him and allow him to find his voice. My son began to look forward to attending counselling, to connect to his thoughts and feelings and to move beyond his pain. Kathy had lots of ideas to help children talk and I was surprised how much information she could derive from each session.  Before too long he was happy and confident and able to manage the changing circumstances in his life.”

Concerned Mother, Cockatoo

“I have struggled with anxiety, depression, OCD and panic attacks for most of my adult life and I was at the point that life could not get any worse. I had been to psychologists and psychiatrists for so long and tried so many medications all without positive outcomes, so I thought I would give counselling a go.  Work colleagues recommended Kathy. She had been able to help them with their personal issues and they raved about the counselling and holistic strategies she combined in her sessions. Kathy pinpointed that my anxiety had stemmed from childhood. Kathy combined talk therapy with Inner Child Work and a variety of holistic techniques that I had never tried before. Kathy‘s intuition as to the areas that needed to be addressed and healed really made a difference. Finally, I am free from the past and ready to enjoy every moment of this wonderful life of mine.”

“Free from the Past” – Female 31 years

“My daughter has been bullied for years at school. Kids can be cruel, that’s for sure. My beautiful young girl who was once confident, happy, creative and full of joy became withdrawn, sad, lacked confidence, had poor self esteem and eventually became quite depressed. It was difficult to watch your child falling deeper and deeper in despair. The teachers and the school system seemed unable to help us, and even though we moved her to another school, the bulling continued. I considered home-schooling her; however, I wanted her to learn to be able to master the necessary life skills to enable her to be resilient and to cope with the difficult aspects of life. We tried reading books on self esteem and going on the Internet to offer us some ideas in how to handle it. We came across Kathy’s website and felt that someone with qualifications in counselling, child education and holistic strategies was a good place to start. As we lived in another state, we didn’t think that this would be a suitable option for us, however, we made contact with Kathy and soon we began Skype sessions with her.  Kathy gained our daughter’s trust from the very beginning and each week we noticed a significant improvement. Kathy concluded each session with a brief chat and tasks for us to do with our child before the next session. Before too long, our daughter was learning about interpersonal skills, assertiveness, working through tricky emotions and resilience training. Every week she gained a greater understanding about herself and life skills that will assist her for the rest of her life.  If your child is suffering from school bullying or issues of self esteem, don’t hope the situation will improve. Children hold onto negative messages about themselves whether it is true or not. We will always be grateful for the work Kathy did with our daughter.”

Parents of 8 year old – Queensland