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Counselling offers a safe place to deal with concerns like:

Depression
Anxiety
Eating disorders and body image
Grief and loss
Relationship issues
Parenting / infertility
Life transitions and change
Work and career
Self-esteem
Meaninglessness, direction and purpose
Cross-cultural issues
Spirituality and religion
General personal development

We teach our clients among other things:

Assertiveness
Good communication
Personal boundaries
Emotional skills

Avigail Abarbanel (45)
Psychotherapist & Counsellor
BA(Hons), Grad. Dip. Psych/Couns, Cert. Gestalt Counselling
MCAPACAR, PACFA Reg.,
MBACP (Accred), MCOSCA (Accred)
UKRCP Reg. Ind. Counsellor/Psychotherapist
Contact: avigail@fullyhuman.co.uk

You can download my Curriculum Vitae (PDF 92KB).

About me

Professional background

I was born in Israel in 1964 and moved to Australia with my first husband in 1991 aged 27. In 1995 I graduated from Macquarie University in Sydney with a BA(Hons) in social science. When I decided to change direction and become a psychotherapist, I was fortunate to discover the Jansen Newman Institute (JNI) in Sydney where I felt immediately at home. In 1998 I completed my Graduate Diploma in Individual Psychotherapy and Relationship Therapy at JNI, and during 1999 continued to study for a certificate in Gestalt Counselling at the Illawarra Gestalt Centre. In the same year I moved to Canberra with my second husband Ian, and opened my private practice, Fully Human Psychotherapy and Counselling. I have now had more than 10 years experience working with hundreds of clients for over 5000 hours.

After arriving in Canberra I joined the local psychotherapy and counselling association Counselling and Psychotherapy Association Canberra and Region (CAPACAR - formerly ANNC, Australian National Network of Counsellors). I served as Secretary during 2000-2001 and as President in 2002. I have been on the Psychotherapy & Counselling Federation of Australia (PACFA) National Register since 2003 and in 2006 was accepted as a member of the British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP). In May this year I received my accreditation with the BACP. I then joined Counselling & Psychotherapy in Scotland (COSCA) and am also on the UK Register of Counsellors and Psychotherapists (UKRCP). Memberships of all these associations is important for clients because it means that among other things, I abide by these associations’ ethical standards and codes of practice. Information about ethics and standards of training and practice can be found on all professional associations’ websites.

What I love to do as a therapist

As a humanistic therapist I enjoy helping people grow and develop, so that they can reach their full potential and live a fuller and richer life. I prefer working as a generalist practitioner rather than specialising in one area because it makes my work more interesting and challenging. Over the past 9 years I have worked with many adult (male and female) survivors of childhood trauma and sexual abuse; an area I find immensely inspiring. I love working with couples. Cooperating with Ian as a husband-wife team has added a new dimension to my work with couples.

I enjoy the most working with motivated clients who are interested in getting to the bottom of their problems so that they can get rid of them once and for all. I am probably not the best therapist for people who wish to focus only on managing their symptoms. I believe that my job is to make myself redundant. Therefore I am passionate about passing on skills and knowledge to clients that they can use for the rest of their lives. My work combines skills from a large range of modalities and is tailored to the client's needs and goals for therapy.

My passion for working with people comes partly from my personal history as a victim of childhood abuse. It has taken many years to overcome my own trauma and in particular the discouraging messages I received, that I was not worthy and had nothing useful to contribute, and that I shouldn't expect too much out of life. It has not been easy. I believe that it is this particular aspect of my past that has made me passionate about helping people overcome obstacles to finding a meaningful existence.

In my family and my culture I was taught to never talk to strangers (or anyone really) about my personal life and my problems. To even admit to anyone that I had problems was seen as a sign of weakness and personal failure, and I was taught to ‘get on with things’ and not dwell or complain. So when I went to a therapist for the first time, it was a very uncomfortable and awkward experience. I felt ashamed because I saw myself as unable to cope with my problems on my own and I felt like I was betraying my family. It took me a long time to open up and to trust the therapist, and even longer for the shame to finally go away. I never want to forget how this felt. I imagine that for many it can be just as difficult and strange as it was for me, and so have the utmost respect for people who make the decision to speak to a counsellor. I think it is essential for therapists to know what it feels like to be in the client's seat.

I attribute my abilities and skills as a therapist just as much to my life experience as I do to my training and my ongoing professional development. I consider myself very fortunate and blessed that I am where I am in my life and that I am able to work in the area I am passionate about.

I think a big part of being well is accepting all of our emotions and learning to be trusting and supportive of our inner experience. Many people come to therapy in a state of war with themselves. I love helping people change their inner environment, from one that can be quite hostile and troubled to a loving and safe inner space. I do this by helping people work effectively and skilfully with their inner child and develop their ‘captain’. Bringing neuroscience into therapy is very exciting and I believe it has immense benefits for clients.

Over the years I have facilitated support and therapy groups as well as workshops and seminars on relationships, assertiveness and boundaries, grief and change, overcoming damaging habits like overeating, shopping etc, and my ‘starship captain’ theory. I love teaching and facilitating groups and workshops, and hope to be able to bring some of those to the Highlands.

I have also supervised therapists for a number of years and hope to be able to continue to offer supervision to colleagues in the Highlands.

Personal interests

My personal interests include reading, writing, cooking and baking, and singing. I am committed to my own journey and psychological and spiritual development, and make sure I always have time for myself to do the things I love. For those familiar with the Myers Briggs Type Indicator, my profile is INFP.

I have been an activist for Palestinian rights since 2001 and have a separate website for my political writings (www.avigailabarbanel.me.uk). I am deeply concerned about the state of the world, the environment and human society. My choice has been so far to try and contribute to what is healthy and positive through my work with clients and the way I interact with others. While I am aware of what isn't so good, just or fair in the world, I make sure this doesn't crush my spirit. I wrote my thoughts about this a few years ago in my paper ‘Engaging with the Dark Side’, which you can find in the Resources section of this website.

I love animals and have two cats (Fritz and Laura) who came with us from Australia. But I am by no means exclusively a ‘cat person’.

If you have any questions about what you read please contact us.