WELCOME
I am a clinical psychologist based in South Christchurch, seeing adult clients (aged 18 and over) both in-person and via Zoom nationwide.
I provide individual psychotherapeutic treatment for anxiety disorders, depression, adjustment to life circumstances, relationship problems, sleep disorders, and adult ADHD assessment and therapy. I also have interests in autism with or without co-occurring ADHD, as well as in the impact of feminising sex hormones on ADHD symptoms across the lifespan.
I also have a strong understanding of autism and neurodiversity in general, approaching these from a neurodiversity-affirming perspective. I use evidence-based talking therapies, including Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT).
Check out my blog:
I currently have space for new therapy clients for start in ~1 week - please email me.
I am full for ADHD assessment bookings for the remainder of 2024
I do not keep a waiting or cancellation list. My next intake will be in mid-January for February to April assessments. Bookings are advertised clearly right here, usually by 8 am on the day, but I don't give the specific day. I recommend you check my website each morning by 8 am from mid-January. I only assess people who live within the Canterbury region, as they can access medication through the public health system with an adequate psychologist assessment.
Places are allocated on a first-emailed, first-served basis, provided you also meet the criteria for evidence you must be able to provide for assessment (read the information on this link before planning to contact me). Places are usually taken within several hours of being advertised,
You can email me for a list of psychologists who advertise that they assess adult ADHD - including some who have a lot more availability than me and who can book assessments in coming months.
Before booking an assessment, a 50-minute interview will be conducted in person or via Zoom. This costs $200, paid at the end of the appointment. If an assessment is appropriate, this is then booked, and the screening interview cost is deducted from the total $1800 cost. The remainder of the payment is due two weeks before the assessment date. Check here for more details of what an assessment entails.
Please note that you MUST have evidence of several ADHD symptoms present prior to the age of 12, either evident in school reports, or by report of someone who knew you well as a child (usually a parent). Please check that you can provide this evidence (preferably by talking first to the person who would be the informant to see that they remember something) before pursuing a booking.
ABOUT PETRA
I am a registered clinical psychologist trained at the University of Canterbury, graduating in 2012. For nine years (2011-2020), I worked in a public health interdisciplinary team at the Older Persons Mental Health Service. I have worked with people dealing with a full range of mental health problems, from outpatients to day clinic patients, to those very unwell in the inpatient ward. I have worked with people with chronic and recurring mental health problems and those experiencing their first episode of mental unwellness.
I also performed neuropsychological assessments, so I know a fair bit about how brain function is affected by a range of factors, both internal (e.g. neurodevelopmental differences and degenerative brain disease) and external (e.g. brain injury due to trauma or chemical exposure, including alcohol).
I do not offer neuropsychological assessment privately.
In private practice I work with people with a range of mental health, neurodevelopmental, and life problems issues. I can see people from all around the country via Zoom. You can see more of the kinds of problems I work with here.
QUALIFICATIONS
I completed a PhD in psychology in 2011 and qualified as a registered clinical psychologist in 2012 at the University of Canterbury. My PhD focused on older adults determining driving ability, both in cognitively healthy older adults and those with cognitive impairment, including dementia.
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2012 - Postgraduate Diploma in Clinical Psychology (PGDipClinPsyc)
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2011 - PhD in Psychology
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2007 - Bachelor of Arts Honors (first class) in Psychology
Member of the New Zealand College of Clinical Psychologists
Member of the Australasian ADHD Professionals Association
PERSONAL
I live in Christchurch with my husband (also a clinical psychologist) and our two young children. I enjoy walking on the hill, listening to podcasts, reading, and sitting in silence in my small amounts of spare time.
DO YOU NEED IMMEDIATE/EMERGENCY HELP?
I do not provide an emergency help service. For those in Canterbury, there is the Crisis Resolution service through the Canterbury District Health Board. The government-sponsored Need to Talk service is accessed by free call or text 1737 or 0800 1737 1737.