Sam Cristini
Clinical Psychologist
BPsych(Hons), GDipPsych, MPsych(Clinical)
Location & Availability:
Accepting new clients
Miami: Friday — In-person & Telehealth
Mudgeeraba: Saturday — In-person & Telehealth
Ages: 16years+
Private, Medicare, DVA, & Workcover
About Sam
Working with a wide range of people, I often hear the common misconception that if you need therapy, something must be wrong with you. Therapy isn’t about fixing something that is broken. There are several reasons why someone might seek out therapy - some common examples include wanting to improve mood from feeling down or anxious, struggling with loneliness, feeling stuck or confused in life, wanting to improve communication skills or relationships, and unpacking negative experiences, among many others.
If you’ve ever wanted to learn more about your mind or emotions, been curious about yourself and your behaviour, or needed a little more support towards making a change, therapy is for you.
Together, we will work on strategies that address the root causes of your difficulties, build your self-esteem and independence, and help you move towards the version of yourself you’re seeking. I am particularly interested in helping you build a sense of purpose and identity through becoming aware of subconscious and automatic reactions that are getting in the way, unlearning unhelpful behaviours that may be keeping you stuck, and improving the relationship with yourself and others.
Working together will involve using a range of therapeutic techniques while providing other important experiences such as consideration, care, learning, curiosity, questioning, confronting and challenging, and humour. This could be a brief engagement, or one that requires a longer commitment, depending on what we require to reach your goals. I work across different services and settings in both public health and private practice, which allows me to meet a variety of people with diverse and different needs.
Whether you’re at the beginning, the middle, or the maintenance stage of your mental health journey, my ultimate goal is to support you to become your own therapist, for you to move forward independently with confidence.
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Training & Qualifications
Bachelor of Psychological Science
Graduate Diploma of Psychology
Master of Psychology (Clinical)
Member of the Australian Psychological Society (MAPS)
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Areas of Interest
Anxiety
Personality disorders
Self-esteem and self-image difficulties
Young adult mental health and life stage transition into adulthood
Developing assertiveness and decision-making skills
Interpersonal difficulties and communication
Empowerment
Getting ‘unstuck’
Reconnecting with meaning and purpose
Unlearning unhelpful and/or subconscious behavioural patterns
Increasing flexible thinking
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Therapeutic Approaches
Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT)
Attachment Theory
Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT)
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
Psychodynamic theory
Somatic Therapy
Emotion-Focused Coping
Motivational Interviewing