ADHD Therapy with a Brisbane Psychologist.
For fast, non-linear thinkers tired of making a brain built for novelty fit a world built for routine.
I’m a Brisbane-based psychologist in Stafford working with ADHD adults and teens (12+). Some of my clients are recently diagnosed; many were diagnosed years ago but never got past the medication stage. I am also open to seeing self-diagnosed clients, as assessments can be cost prohibitive. I don’t conduct assessments — therapy only.
Book an ADHD Therapy SessionADHD in adults.
Adult ADHD often looks nothing like the stereotype. The clients I work with tend to be fast, non-linear thinkers with tangential thought patterns and deep enthusiasms across a surprisingly wide range of topics. Not so much the stereotypical “boy at school who wouldn’t sit still”. Many are self-employed or sitting on colourful, interesting CVs — pivots, side projects.
What almost all of them share is a long history of negative feedback — about being too much, too distracted, too late, too disorganised, too intense, not living up to potential. This often leads to rejection sensitivity, perfectionism, chronic shame, or the general tiredness of people.
High masking and the hidden cost of adult ADHD.
The phrase high functioning gets used a lot in ADHD spaces. It's usually more accurate to say high masking — the conscious or unconscious effort of holding a presentable version of yourself together in environments that weren't designed for your nervous system. The cost of that masking doesn't show up at work. It shows up in the weekends spent in recovery, the dishes, the email you keep meaning to write, the medical appointment you keep meaning to book, the friend you keep meaning to text back.
Adult ADHD often looks less like a hyperactive child and more like chronic overwhelm, time blindness, rejection sensitivity, and a pattern of starting things and not finishing them — including, sometimes, the things you actually wanted to start.
Does this sound like you?
ADHD in adults rarely looks like the restless kid in the textbook. More often:
- Time — things feel urgent or don't exist at all. You might run late to appointments and family events, or over-correct and turn up far too early to make up for a history of being late.
- Attention — runs on interest. Something grips you and you lose hours or days to it, only to fall out of love shortly after.
- Restless mind — worry, rumination and endless what-ifs. It can be anxiety, but it can also be hyperactivity turned inward.
- Tasks — starting is hard; finishing is harder. Anything anxiety-provoking — a uni assignment, replying to a group text, planning a birthday — gets put off until the last-minute rush. Projects get abandoned mid-way, so hobbies, study and careers can end up unfinished.
- Impulsivity — trouble waiting your turn to speak in meetings, impulse purchases online and in person, and sometimes a history of risk-taking: dangerous driving, drink or drug misuse, being around people who weren't safe.
- Sensitivity to rejection — feedback can sting. It might show up as getting defensive when someone questions your work or asks you to change how you do things — probably built on a lifetime of criticism and hard social interactions.
A few of these — or all of them — isn't a diagnosis, and none of them landing doesn't rule it out, especially if you've spent years masking.
If you want a validated screener, the Adult ADHD Self-Report Scale (ASRS) is free, takes two minutes, and is a useful thing to bring to your GP — the usual first step toward assessment.
Practical strategies first.
Early sessions focus on stabilising the day-to-day — DBT skills, somatic and nervous-system work, the practical scaffolding underneath the cognitive strategies. Once those foundations are steadier, we move into the deeper work — Schema Therapy for long-standing patterns and the inner critic; EMDR (including EMDR 2.0 and ND-informed adaptations) for the cumulative trauma of years of sensory overwhelm and rejection.
EMDR
Neurodivergent-informed EMDR for the cumulative trauma of years of sensory overwhelm and rejection that functions like trauma even when it doesn't look like it.
Read more →Schema Therapy
For long-standing relational patterns and the inner critic that's been running at full volume since primary school.
Read more →DBT
Distress tolerance, emotion regulation, interpersonal effectiveness — the practical foundations that come first.
Read more →ADHD and Autism together (AuDHD).
Research suggests around a third of autistic adults also meet criteria for ADHD, with studies finding rates between 25% and 65%. The combination — sometimes called AuDHD — often produces a particular set of internal contradictions: wanting routine and getting bored of it, craving novelty and being overwhelmed by it, deep focus and extreme distractibility in the same hour.
ADHD assessments in Brisbane — where to go.
I do not offer ADHD assessments. A formal diagnosis in Australia is typically made by a psychiatrist (who can also prescribe medication where indicated), and in some cases by a psychologist who conducts adult ADHD assessments, or a GP with additional training in ADHD. Your usual GP is the right starting point — they can refer you to a psychiatrist for assessment and, if relevant, ongoing medical management.
I offer therapy only — for adults and teens who have been already diagnosed with ADHD (inattentive, hyperactive-impulsive, or combined types), are in the process of being assessed, or are self-diagnosed (because formal assessments may be too cost prohibitive at this point).
Already have a psychiatrist? I work collaboratively alongside psychiatry, GP care, and other clinicians involved in your treatment, with your consent.
Who this work suits.
Some honest framing about whether this is the right fit. If you're not sure, your GP can help you decide.
If you're in active suicidal crisis or need acute crisis stabilisation, those situations are better held by services with more resources. In Queensland: Lifeline 13 11 14 (24/7), MH CALL 1300 642 255, or 000 in an emergency.
- You can attend sessions consistently and are looking for ongoing therapy rather than a one-off session.
- You seek practical, ND-affirming therapy — not an assessment or crisis-only support.
- You're an adult or a parent of a teen (12+), able to attend in person at the Stafford clinic in Brisbane, or via Telehealth.
- You strongly suspect ADHD or have been diagnosed, or are in the process of being assessed for ADHD.
Therapy for ADHD teens 12+.
When the diagnosis came but the tools didn't.
I work with teens from age 12. Many of the adolescents I see have already been through assessment, sometimes through a medication trial, and are still struggling with the day-to-day of school — because the assessment and the prescription, while often essential, don't on their own teach a teenager how to start the assignment, finish the assignment, sit the exam without spiralling, or get through the social and family terrain that ADHD makes harder.
Sessions with teens follow the same practical-first strategies philosophy as the adult work, tailored to school and work needs. This may include executive function strategies for homework, study, and getting started; working with procrastination; anxiety management, especially around exams and social situations; emotional regulation; and the gradual building of self-knowledge, self-confidence and autonomy.
Parents are involved at the consent and intake level, and welcome in occasional sessions — but the therapy itself is the teen’s space.
ADHD therapy in Brisbane — common questions.
Do you do ADHD assessments or prescribe medication?
I haven't been formally diagnosed yet — can I still book?
Can ADHD therapy sessions be claimed under Medicare?
How long are sessions, and how often?
Do you offer Telehealth ADHD therapy?
What if both ADHD and autism apply to me?
ADHD Psychologist Brisbane — Stafford clinic.
Organic Psychology
Soul Shine Collective
239 Stafford Rd
Stafford QLD 4053
Tel: (07) 3521 8590
A short drive from Stafford Heights, Kedron, Everton Park, Gordon Park, Grange, Alderley, Chermside, Nundah, Clayfield. Street parking available.
Evening sessions: Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday. Telehealth: Mondays.
Book your appointment.
Online booking through Zanda. Standard (50 minute) and longer (80 minute) sessions are available, including evening appointments Tuesday to Thursday. Longer sessions often suit EMDR work and clients who benefit from the extra regulation time.
