Lena Johnston

Psychologist

Lena offers a warm, collaborative space where clients can be seen, listened to, and understood. Having lived in the Northern Rivers for over 20 years, she is known for her compassionate approach, creating a place where clients can land, be, and feel deeply valued — while building the skills and confidence to create meaningful change.

Her approach is tailored to each client’s needs, drawing on a range of evidence-based therapies, talking approaches, practical exercises, and somatic methods. She draws from Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Psychotherapy, Ego State Therapy, Clinical Hypnosis, and grief and loss counselling. Lena works alongside clients to build a strong therapeutic relationship and foster deeper connections with themselves and others. This process supports the integration of all parts of who they are, expands self-understanding, and strengthens resilience.

With a holistic, person-centred, and trauma-informed approach that honours the mind, body, and emotions, Lena partners with clients to reflect, gain clarity, build skills, and take purposeful steps toward their values, desires, and goals. She is committed to ongoing professional development, continually enhancing her skills to provide the highest standard of care. While therapy is supportive, it also offers space for clients to discover their own answers — helping them trust their inner wisdom and capacity for change.

Lena works with adults, helping with concerns such as anxiety, depression, mood-related challenges, trauma, eating disorders, relationship difficulties, low self-esteem, stress, and the impact of chronic pain.

A registered Psychologist with the Psychology Board of Australia (AHPRA) and member of the Australian Association of Psychologists Inc (AAPi), Lena offers sessions in English and German.

Dr. Christine Ellisdon

Consultant Clinical Psychologist

Christine works with older adolescents, adults and couples. She has special interests in treating anxiety disorders, mood disorders, trauma, relationship issues and self-worth/self-esteem issues. She also has extensive experience in treating grief and loss and adjustment issues and enjoys supporting people through life transitions and spiritual growth.

Christine believes that true psychological therapy is about healing not just symptom reduction. Her approach is collaborative and supportive and invites people to identify and explore the barriers effecting their daily functioning and preventing them from living a fulfilling life.  Christine’s approach aims to empower people through increased insight and understanding while also providing opportunities to develop alternative ways of responding to the difficulties they are experiencing and relating to themselves and others.

Christine uses an integrative approach to tailor therapy to the needs of the person in a manner that honours their inner wisdom and capacity for healing. She is respectful of individual differences while recognising the innate qualities each person possesses.  Christine is experienced and trained in Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, Schema Therapy, Internal Family Systems Therapy, Sensorimotor Psychotherapy, Somatic Therapy, Gestalt Therapy, Psychodynamic Therapy, and Emotion Focused Couples Therapy. She is registered as an endorsed Clinical Psychologist with the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA), a Medicare provider and holds full membership with the Australian Association of Psychologists (AAPi).

For further information please go to www.alignedpsychology.com.au

Dana Ben-Israel

Clinical Psychologist

Dana is a registered clinical psychologist with over 12 years of experience working across both public and private sectors.  Dana sees clients (18 years and over) with a range of emotional and psychological difficulties ranging from low mood, anxiety, stress, eating disorders, relationship difficulties and grief.

Dana specialises in perinatal psychology working with clients in the various stages of their journey to and through parenthood including planning, conception, pregnancy, postpartum and beyond. This can involve supporting bereaved parents experiencing grief and loss after miscarriage, stillbirth and neonatal death.

Dana uses a holistic approach based on a shared understanding of her client’s difficulties and their desire for change. Dana works from an attachment perspective that explores how client’s patterns of interacting and experiencing their world is rooted in their early childhood and repeated throughout their lives. She supports clients to flourish by cultivating a compassionate relationship with themselves and others and feel empowered to prevent their histories repeating in their current lives and relationships.

Dana is skilled and experienced in Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, Schema Therapy, Mindfulness-based practice, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, EMDR, and Dialectical Behaviour Therapy. She holds clinical psychologist registration with Australian Psychology Board and Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA) and is a member of the Centre for Perinatal Psychology.

To find out more or to contact Dana visit: www.dbipsychology.com.

Nathaniel De Heer

Psychologist

Nathaniel is a registered psychologist with a master’s degree in health psychology and over eight years of experience providing evidence-based psychological services across private practice, hospitals, and university settings. Prior to starting his journey as a psychologist, Nathaniel studied Philosophy and Anthropology at the University of Melbourne, and this continues to inform his reflective approach to understanding human behaviour and wellbeing.

Nathaniel has a strong interest in the intersection of physical and mental health, and works with adults experiencing anxiety, depression, stress, life transitions, trauma, and those seeking support with ADHD and neurodivergence. He takes a warm, open, and flexible approach, creating a safe and supportive space where clients can explore their thoughts and emotions, gain clarity, and take meaningful steps toward a more fulfilling life.

Nathaniel uses a variety of evidence-based therapies, including Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Motivational Interviewing, and Mindfulness.

Nathaniel has current availability to see clients in person on Wednesdays at In Health, Byron Bay, and offers flexible telehealth appointments throughout the week, providing accessible support for those balancing busy schedules or remote locations.

Reetta Makinen

Psychotherapist & Counsellor

Whether working with individuals or couples, at the heart of Reetta’s work is connection - to yourself, to your partner, and to the parts of you seeking greater calm and clarity. She supports people to break free from negative patterns, face life’s challenges with greater ease, and create more stable and fulfilling relationships - within themselves and with others.

Clients describe Reetta as bringing a unique blend of warmth, deep insight, practical tools and gentle healing into their lives. With individuals, she helps reduce anxiety and stress, rediscover joy, build self-belief, overcome addiction, and navigate life transitions and neurodiversity with greater clarity and confidence. With couples, her focus is on rebuilding trust, belief and connection, and creating relationships where both partners feel seen and valued.

Her therapeutic approach is integrative, drawing from Schema Therapy, Emotionally Focused Couples Therapy, DBT, ACT, CBT, the Gottman Method and somatic practices. But more than any method, she honours each client’s unique story and meets them where they are.

For Reetta, therapy is not about fixing something broken but understanding the patterns that shape us and creating space for new ways of being. She offers a warm, steady environment where growth, healing and reconnection feel both possible and sustainable.

Reetta holds a Master’s degree in Counselling, advanced training in multiple evidence-based psychotherapies and is a registered Counsellor with the Australian Counselling Association (ACA).

For more information, visit: www.inpeace.com.au

Jaclyn Cunningham

Accredited Mental Health Social Worker
Credentialed Eating Disorder Clinician (ANZAED)

With over a decade of experience, Jaclyn works with adolescents (13+) and adults presenting with eating disorders, anxiety, depression, trauma, self-harm, suicidality, and other mental health concerns. She provides a structured, thoughtful, and collaborative therapeutic space focused on depth, clarity, and sustainable change.

Her clinical work integrates narrative therapy with psychodynamic and attachment-informed approaches, trauma-informed practice, and recovery-oriented frameworks. In eating disorder treatment, she works within evidence-informed models and collaborates closely with GPs, dietitians, psychiatrists, and families where appropriate. Her approach balances careful risk assessment and formulation with respect for client agency and meaning-making.

Jaclyn’s background includes roles across schools, community mental health, adventure therapy, and rites of passage programs. This informs her understanding of developmental, relational, and cultural influences on identity, behaviour, and distress.

She holds a Master of Social Work and a Graduate Certificate in Child, Youth, and Family Counselling. She is an Accredited Mental Health Social Worker with the Australian Association of Social Workers and a Credentialed Eating Disorder Clinician with ANZAED. She offers individual therapy and, where clinically indicated, family involvement as part of treatment. Jaclyn is a registered Medicare provider and offers services under Mental Health Care Plans and Eating Disorder Treatment and Management Plans.

For further information, visit jaclyncunningham.com 

Dr. Jessica Wade

Sexologist and Somatic Therapist

Jessica is a Sexologist and Somatic therapist with a clinical background in medicine and advanced training in psychosexual therapy, counselling, and trauma-informed somatic psychotherapy. She supports women and couples seeking support with intimacy, sexual concerns, emotional disconnection, and nervous system regulation.

Jessica’s therapeutic approach is evidence-based, body-aware, and relational. Her sessions offer a space to explore the deeper causes of sexual concerns such as pain with sex, low libido, difficulties with orgasm, performance anxiety, trauma recovery, or changes in intimacy after childbirth or major life transitions. Clients often experience increased sexual confidence, deeper emotional and physical intimacy, improved communication, and a more fulfilling sex life.

Her work is especially valuable for those who feel stuck in survival mode and want to reconnect with their body, pleasure, and sense of self. At the heart of her practice is the belief that sexual wellbeing is essential to overall health — and that pleasure and safety in the body are powerful foundations for healing and relational connection.

Sessions are available in person and online via Zoom.

Jessica holds a Bachelor of Medicine (UNSW), a Master of Medicine in Psychosexual Therapy (University of Sydney), a Diploma of Counselling (AIPC), and has completed Level 1 training in Sensorimotor Psychotherapy (Trauma Themes).

To learn more or book an appointment, visit www.embodiedsexualtherapy.com.au