top of page
Rebecca Hannan PhD Psychologist Martinsville NSW Telehealth Provider Australia wide

My approach is integrative, grounded, and informed by both psychological science and depth-oriented practice.

I work from a relational, attachment-informed framework, offering therapy that is thoughtful, collaborative and paced to support genuine understanding and deeper awareness over time. As a trauma-informed practitioner, psychological safety, respect and clear professional boundaries are central to my work.

Many clients are navigating complex responsibilities or significant life transitions and value a calm, confidential space to pause, reflect, and gain perspective. This practice is for adults seeking depth-oriented therapy who are able to engage consistently over time and are not in immediate crisis.

"If the path before you is clear,
you're probably on someone else's."
– Joseph Campbell 

I keep this quote close because no two people arrive here the same way. The work is not to find the right path but to find yours. My therapeutic style combines compassionate curiosity with a focus on building capacity, not only awareness. Much of our inner world is shaped by long-standing patterns, beliefs and habits that influence how we think, feel and act, sometimes in ways that no longer serve us. Together we look at those patterns with openness and clarity. But understanding a pattern is only the first half of the work. Plenty of people can describe their patterns in considerable detail and still find themselves living inside them.

 

The second half is capacity: the ability to stay present when something is difficult, to tolerate discomfort without being run by it, to make a different choice in the moment. Capacity is built rather than realised, which is why the work is active: attention, the body, and practice between sessions as well as within them.

Everyone experiences seasons of challenge, uncertainty or emotional strain. Therapy offers a space to move through those times with support, and to strengthen qualities such as courage, resilience and psychological flexibility. Insight matters, and it is not the finish line. What I am most interested in is what becomes possible for you.

You do not need to be in crisis to begin. Many people come to understand themselves more deeply, to reflect on a transition, or to invest in their own wellbeing. Attending to your inner experience, your thoughts, feelings, conflicts and hopes, is a serious piece of work rather than an indulgence.

If you are curious about whether we might work well together, you are welcome to get in touch through the contact page or learn more on my specialities page about who I work with.

Qualifications

  • Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Psychology, University of Newcastle (2006)

  • Bachelor of Arts (Honours, Class 1) (Psychology Major), University of Newcastle (2002)

  • Graduate Diploma of Trauma-Informed Process Work Psychotherapy, Pathways Psychology Institute (2023)

  • Diploma in Clinical Hypnotic Sciences, Hypnotherapy Training Australia (2021)

  • Certificate in Holistic Counselling & Meditation Teaching, Australian School of Holistic Counselling (2020)

  • 200 hour Certified Yoga Teacher (2020)
    (Vinyasa, Hatha, Yin & Chair Yoga)

Registrations & Memberships

  • General Registration as a Psychologist with the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA, Registration Number PSY0002616374)

  • Member of The Australian Association of Psychologists Inc (AAPi)

  • Member of the Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR) Association (EMDRAA)

Ways of working

My training spans psychological science and depth-oriented practice. What we use depends on what you bring and what is useful to you. You do not need to know which of these you want. We work that out together.

 

STRUCTURED, EVIDENCE-BASED APPROACHES

Cognitive and behavioural therapies. Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), and approaches drawn from Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT), including skills for emotion regulation and distress tolerance.

 

Mindfulness-based approaches. Mindfulness runs through much of this work rather than sitting apart from it. This includes Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR), mindfulness as it is used within ACT and DBT, and practices drawn from my own long-standing meditation training. The emphasis is practical: noticing what is happening as it happens, and having somewhere to stand when it is difficult.

Self-compassion work. Approaches informed by Compassion-Focused Therapy and Mindful Self-Compassion. This is often the most useful work for people who are capable, self-critical, and far kinder to others than they are to themselves.

 

EMDR. Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing, for working with trauma and distressing life experiences. More on the EMDR page.

DEPTH AND BODY-BASED APPROACHES​

Schema therapy. For long-standing patterns that keep repeating across relationships, work and family life, and that have usually been in place since well before adulthood. Schema therapy looks at how those patterns formed and what maintains them, rather than only at the current situation.

Attachment-informed work. Attention to how early relationships shaped what you expect from closeness, and how those expectations show up now in partnership, parenting, friendship and work. Useful when the difficulty is less about a single event and more about a way of relating.

Parts work. Informed by Internal Family Systems (IFS), working with the different parts of you that hold conflicting needs, protective habits or long-standing patterns.

Process Work Psychotherapy. A depth-oriented approach that follows what is emerging in experience rather than only what was planned, including dreams, symptoms, and the things that sit at the edge of awareness.

Somatic and body-based work. Attention to what the body is doing alongside what the mind is saying. Grounding, breath and movement, informed by my yoga and meditation training.

Creative and expressive approaches. Image, metaphor, writing and other creative methods, for the times when words alone are not getting there.

Clinical hypnotherapy. Focused therapeutic work using hypnotic techniques, where clinically appropriate and with your consent.

The Art of Balancing Life

My work is shaped by a long-standing personal yoga and meditation practice, and a lifelong curiosity about the connection between mind, body and experience.

Time in nature, gym workouts and moments of stillness support my own wellbeing. I live with my husband, Gener, and our blended family of five teenagers, who offer a daily reminder on the importance of grounding, humour and perspective.

My interest in neurodivergence is both professional and personal. I understand what it means to recognise your own neurodivergence later in life, as well as the complexity of raising neurodivergent children.

My PhD in the early 2000s investigated attentional control, specifically how we switch attention between tasks. A holistic understanding of psychology has remained a lifelong interest of mine ever since.

Living on our rural property, The Pines, much of my time is spent outdoors tending to the gardens, caring for our chickens, and learning more about growing our own food. This connection with the natural environment offers a sense of rhythm and stillness that shapes the way I meet and support clients.

Rebecca Hannan PhD Psychologist Martinsville NSW Telehealth Provider Australia wide

Contact Rebecca

Send your questions here: 
NOTE: this form is not monitored for urgent or crisis situations.

Thank you for your message. Your enquiry has been received and I will respond as soon as I am able during business hours.

The Pines Sanctuary,
Martinsville, NSW, 2265

Conveniently located for clients from Lake Macquarie, Central Coast, Newcastle, and the Hunter Valley, with sessions also available via Telehealth Australia-wide.

Location:

Socials:

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn

© 2026 Rebecca Hannan. All Rights Reserved. 'IntraConnect' is the trading name for the Partnership of Gener Lapina and Rebecca Hannan ABN 48774654541.

 

More information on the counselling services Gener offers via his website
www.generlapina.com

We (Gener and Rebecca) acknowledge Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the First Australians and Traditional Custodians of the land that we live, learn and work on. We are on the traditional lands of the Awabakal and we give our enduring respect to this land and its Elders past, present and emerging.

 

Photos of Rebecca by Hayley Melrose.
 

We wholeheartedly embrace diversity and are committed to providing a safe and inclusive space for all. 

This website is not a crisis service. If you  need urgent help see emergency support services.

Psychology services are provided by Rebecca Hannan, AHPRA-registered psychologist (Registration No. PSY0002616374).

bottom of page