Jane Macnaught

Counsellor PACFA Registered Clinical

Post Graduate Qualified Counsellor and Psychotherapist

Professional Registration with PACFA. Pyschotherapy and Counselling Federation of Australia.

I work with people that are experiencing grief, trauma and anxiety. I support adults that are overwhelmed with what is going on in their life and seeking holistic support.  I am experienced in healing and recovery from difficult childhood trauma and abuse.

I work holistically using somatic, and creative modalities that are person centred, intuitive, practical and strengths focused.

You will find that I am relaxed and easy going.  I love to be involved in projects that bring meaning & joy to my life, and I am enthusiastic about sharing with others.

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Work History

After growing up in Sydney I moved and lived in Adelaide for most of my adult life.  I worked mostly full time whilst raising my three sons. My youngest was 5 when my first marriage dissolved and I experienced the challenges of single parenting.  A difficult time with financial devastation coupled with several tragic losses of loved ones in an 18 month period. I trained as a chef, worked in the food industry, and really loved my work as a function and party caterer. A few years later I created a range of gourmet products. We marketed and sold these across Australia.  Actively involved in food industry networks, I set up the inaugural SA Food Industry Association.

To improve the lives of my boys I entered a short career in real estate, I didn’t know I could sell houses – it was fun, busy and financially successful for our little family. This was not a job that always matched my values, however I will always be grateful to my time selling as it was in this office that I met my husband. A few decades later I still feel truly fortunate I made that career shift.

I really do love to cook and am known for expressing love and gratitude with meals, recipe sharing and in the year after my mum died I created a food blog, “Simmering Memories”. This was central to my grieving journey – that was another sad year for our family with my sister dying in autumn and then mum in spring.  I spent hours with Mum’s handwritten recipes, cooking, updating, adjusting, photographing and remembering.

Becoming a Counsellor

Around 2008 I yearned to change my work life balance and I went back to study.  I spent several years working as a counsellor with newly settled migrants and refugees, asylum seekers, in Nauru, Adelaide area and South Western Sydney.

I loved my work immersed in the stories, challenges and sorrows of beautiful brave people.  The refugees exposed me to their stories of devastation, wars and horrors in their homelands and the journeys to safety. Their resilience, courage, dignity and struggles opened me up to a rich world of healing and recovery. I offered individual counselling and group work aided by interpreters, my work incorporated diverse cultures, skills, languages, (and food) of the many people I was privileged to work alongside. Read more about how I work.

Acknowledging the enormous need for support services for adult survivors of childhood abuse and trauma. (includes neglect, emotional, physical and sexual) I spent several  years at the Blue Knot Foundation in a counselling role and as editor of two newsletters, one for survivors and the other for health & legal professionals.

Moving Sydney/Adelaide

I founded Tranquillo Place in 2015 on the Northern Beaches making a commitment to helping others find peace and happiness. Since the demand increased during Covid I expanded the services to include additional counselling associates, plus naturopathy and massage services.

More recently I have relocated once again back to the Adelaide Hills to be closer to my children and grandchildren. I continue to serve the northern beaches community via online services with occasional visits back to Mona Vale. These days my work is mostly online with clients up and down the east coast Qld, western NSW, Sydney regions. I’m also seeing some local people in-person clients in Adelaide Hills.

Trauma Informed Practitioner Support

In 2017 I formed and facilitated the Trauma Informed Practitioner Support group.  The goal of this group is to strengthen practitioner skills, knowledge and competence in TRAUMA INFORMED PRACTICE. The focus is to support trauma aware practitioners.

The approach is collaborative and interactive. We delved into trauma theory and research with monthly group meetings and other supportive activities.  A variety of professional development opportunities have been provided and supported.

The group is suitable for practitioners who are working with clients that may have been impacted by trauma. We have included practitioners in:  Yoga, Massage, Movement, Counselling, Therapy, Naturopathy, Mediation and other health & well being professionals. Over the years our group included Dentists, Lawyer, Doctors, and Psychologists.

In 2019 the group harnessed great energy and formed a team to host an event. During the month of October 2019, the Arts for Wellness project was launched  in conjunction with mental health month on the Northern Beaches of Sydney, NSW.  Arts for Wellness, invited the community to explore and experience events, classes and educational workshops that help with stress reduction, relaxation and social connection.  We partnering with The Big Anxiety, the group aimed to bring awareness to creative arts and other therapeutic approaches for mental health wellness and self-care.

In January 2020, with Mandy Loveday, I accepted the Northern Beaches Council, Australia Day Award for 2020 Best Community Event. With over 40 practitioners who work with groups or individuals offering dance, yoga, breathing, mindfulness, meditation, arts, naturopathy, nutrition, soothing sessions, body mapping and other therapeutic services. Everyone was trained in trauma informed care and practice.

Peer Support, Supervision and Training

You may be interested to know that I

• support counsellors in supervision groups and individually
• deliver training to new yoga teachers to become ‘trauma aware’ practitioners
• deliver professional development to counsellors on applying trauma sensitive yoga, self regulation and embodiment skills
• coach groups of therapists to encourage steadiness in their work, offering support to build their private practice business to feel better and to be sustainable.
• created an app as a gift to my clients, colleagues and family – check it out here
• welcome ideas and projects where I can educate, inspire and support community groups to become more trauma aware to help make this world a place where kindness flourishes and we experience more peace and calm.

Welcome to my Tranquillo Place.

Qualifications

• Graduate Diploma of Counselling – Australian College of Applied Psychology
• Psychotherapy and Counselling Federation of Australia – PACFA Clinical Registered
• The Australian Register of Counsellors and Psychotherapists – ARCAP Registered
• Yoga Australia Registered Teacher – 350 hr training with Balanced Practice Yoga
• StandBy Support After Suicide – registered provider
• Trauma Support Provider – National Directory for redress and complex trauma survivors
• Psychology Today – Verified Listing

Selected Recent Professional Development

• Subtle Energetics of Dru Yoga – 30 hours
• BrainSpotting Phase 1 – 20 hours
• International Childhood Trauma Conference – 30 hours
• Wheel Of Supervision Training Part 1 – 36 hours
• Polyvagal Theory: Rhythms of Regulations with Deb Dana – 30 Hours
• Safe & Sound Protocol – Unyte Integrated Listening Systems, A Polyvagal application
• Trauma Awareness Trainer for community
• Balanced Practice Yoga Teacher Training – 350 hrs
• Internal Family Systems – Simon D’Orsogna
• Pat Ogden – Sensorimotor Psychotherapy – Master Class
• MBSR – Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction
• Cathy Maldiochi – Art Therapy – Master Class
• Bessel Van Der Kolk – The Body Keeps The Score Workshop
• Trauma Sensitive Yoga – Integrating trauma informed yoga practices into therapy, body focused somatic approach.
• Brenè Brown’s ‘The Daring Way for Wholehearted Practitioners’.  Brave Therapy Andi Szasz PACFA Clinical Supervisor
• Group Work For Adults Sexually Abused As Children – ECAV, NSW Health Education Centre Against Violence.
• Psychotherapy and Men, Creative & Engaging Responses – Blue Knot Foundation Professional Development
• Yoga and the Traumatised Body – Trauma Sensitive Yoga Australia – Integrating trauma informed yoga practices into therapy
• Trauma Informed Group: Professional Development. Presented by Shirley Hicks, PACFA Clinical Supervisor
• Grief Therapy Training – Death Loss and the Quest for meaning with Robert Neimeyer.  Presented by Centre for Existential Practice
• Working with Survivors of Childhood Trauma and Abuse – Blue Knot Foundation– Training in Practice Guidelines for Treatment of Complex Trauma and Trauma Informed Care and Service Delivery.
• Psycho-Spiritual Model – Dr Trisha Stratford Presented by CAPA Counselling and Psychotherapists Assoc. NSW
• Healing Trauma Across Cultures – Contextual and Developmental Approach – Dr Boris Drozdek Presented by STARTTS NSW Service for the Treatment & Rehabilitation of Torture & Trauma Survivors

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