SHEILA WOOD
First and foremost I am a woman “of a certain age” who has accumulated a very rich body of life experience and it is my passion to make that meaningful by bringing it into the service of others as they try to walk through the many trials and tribulations we refer to as “Life”
I am from a mixed cultural background and I have known the migration experience twice in my life.
Firstly, in 1957 when my family migrated from Athens to London.
Then again in 1967 when I left London and brought myself to Sydney.
NSW, both metropolitan and rural, has been my home for almost half a century.
At various times, I have worked in Senior Management in the Corporate World and operated a successful, commercial farming enterprise.
I am a mother and grandmother; until recently also, a dedicated horsewoman and trainer.
My personal journey has known the joy of births, watching and nurturing babies develop into full grown, mature adults to find their own way through either more, or less complex routes.
Of course, there has also been the inevitable reality of aging and supporting loved ones
passing from the living experience into a place beyond our knowing and as yet undefined.
It was roughly at the peak of my corporate career that I started to question the direction I was heading in.
As a result, I have devoted the best part of the last 30 years immersed in formal and informal study, as well as private research into matters that underpin the work that I do today.
Initially, I followed pathways through naturopathy, comparative religion and spirituality. This led me to look further and find various counselling approaches and finally the depth psychologies and the practice of analytical psychotherapy.
I have been a practicing counsellor and psychotherapist for the last 30 years. My current clinical practice is located in the Hawkesbury servicing a varied community.
My client base includes adults of all ages in search of an authentic life, meaningful relationship and a sense of worthwhile purpose and contribution.
This demographic brings both individuals and couples to my consulting room.
Sometimes, my clients are facing difficult life circumstances and necessary developmental transitions.
In different situations, they may be challenged with the long term and or residual effects of trauma and the attendant injury to both personality and self.
My work is informed by many schools of thought and eminent teachers.
These include:
Transpersonal Psychology with reference to Stan Groff and Ken Wilbur
Process Oriented Psychology of Arnold Mindell
Analytical Psychology of Carl Jung and the Post-Jungians
The Conversational Model pioneered by Russell Meares and Robert Hobson.
My approach may best be described as integrative. The therapeutic conversation may be supported and illuminated through reference to mythological themes, dreams and fantasies, sandplay.
My ethos is aligned to deeply held knowing that no matter how chaotic or hopeless it may seem, given care, respect and safety, the human spirit will in time return to its natural tendency of harmony, and increasingly more beautiful expressions of the Self.
My work is supported by the professional memberships I maintain:
Clinical Member - The Australian Medicine Society
Clinical Member – Counsellors & Psychotherapists Assoc. NSW
Associate Member – ANZAP
I hold current Professional Indemnity and Public Liability Insurance
