Psychodynamic Therapy Perth
Psychodynamic therapy helps people understand the deeper emotional and relational patterns shaping their lives, creating the possibility for lasting change, more meaningful relationships and a stronger sense of self and purpose.
Psychodynamic therapy promotes lasting insight, emotional growth, and healing.
Registered Psychologist
Michiel Gonzales
Michiel is a registered psychologist and has extensive experience working in the mental health field with a variety of presentations. ‘I have learned that deep and lasting change is possible, that long-term issues can be resolved, and people can be free of emotional pain they carry by making sense of difficult experiences together, both past and present, and moving towards a place of self-understanding’. Michiel works with adults and adolescents using an integrative approach which is based on empathy and building a strong mutual respect and working relationship with clients.
Michiel’s approach to therapy is to help clients gain greater insight and awareness into their internal world and patterns of behaviour. He assists his clients in meeting their needs and goals by helping them effectively relate to themselves and other people.
‘With a look beyond just coping, I try to help people resolve the core emotional and relational causes of their anxiety and symptoms. Each one of my clients comes from a unique background and set of experiences, and I collaboratively tailor each therapeutic intervention to my client’s individual needs by drawing upon the following broad range of evidence-based therapeutic treatments: psychodynamic therapy, interpersonal therapy, schema therapy, acceptance commitment therapy (ACT), and CBT.
Is Psychodynamic therapy right for me?
The decision to speak to a psychodynamic therapist about what worries and troubles us does not necessarily need to be the result of a life crisis. It can also be determined by a wish to understand oneself better, to understand one’s desires and values, to free oneself from problematic patterns of behaviour, to learn to better tolerate conflict and find new means of self-realisation.
Benefits of Psychodynamic Therapy
Supported by research: Psychodynamic therapy is an evidence-informed treatment for a range of emotional and psychological difficulties, including anxiety, depression, trauma and relationship concerns.
Goes beyond symptom management: Therapy explores what may be contributing to distress, helping create change at a deeper emotional and relational level.
Recognises recurring patterns: It can help you notice patterns in emotions, relationships and coping that may continue even when you consciously want things to be different.
Develops greater self-understanding: Open exploration can help you understand why particular situations affect you strongly and what your responses may be communicating.
Strengthens emotional awareness: Therapy supports you to recognise, express and manage difficult emotions rather than feeling overwhelmed by them or needing to avoid them.
Supports autonomy and choice: Greater awareness can create more freedom to respond thoughtfully instead of automatically repeating familiar reactions.
Improves relationships: Understanding your needs, expectations and ways of relating can support healthier boundaries, communication, trust and emotional connection.
Builds a more stable sense of self: Therapy can help strengthen identity, self-worth and the ability to remain grounded during emotional or interpersonal difficulties.
Reduces shame and self-criticism: Making sense of how coping strategies developed can encourage greater self-compassion and a less judgemental relationship with yourself.
Creates a collaborative therapeutic relationship: A consistent and trusting relationship with the therapist provides a safe space to explore vulnerability, conflict and new ways of relating.
Uses honest and thoughtful reflection: Collaborative feedback can help you consider experiences from different perspectives and identify opportunities for meaningful change.
Draws upon existing strengths: Therapy recognises the resilience and capacities you already possess and supports you to use them more effectively.
Supports purpose and direction: Psychodynamic therapy can help clarify what matters to you, what may be holding you back and how you would like to live and relate differently.
Encourages lasting development: The emotional capacities and self-awareness developed in therapy may continue to support growth after treatment has ended.
What is Psychodynamic Therapy?
Psychodynamic therapy explores how emotions, relationships and patterns of coping shape the way a person experiences life in the present. We are not always fully aware of why particular situations affect us so strongly, why certain relationships feel familiar or why the same difficulties continue to return. Therapy creates space to notice these patterns and understand the emotional meanings beneath them.
Research supports psychodynamic therapy as an effective treatment for a range of concerns, including anxiety, depression, trauma, relationship difficulties and longstanding emotional distress. The aim is not simply to reduce symptoms, but to help people develop greater self-awareness, emotional flexibility and freedom in how they respond to challenges.
Within a safe and collaborative therapeutic relationship, clients are encouraged to speak openly about their thoughts, feelings, memories and current experiences. The therapist listens carefully, offers reflections and helps identify connections that may not have previously been clear. What emerges between the client and therapist can also provide valuable insight into expectations and patterns that occur in relationships outside therapy.
Over time, this deeper understanding can support more meaningful choices, stronger relationships and a more stable sense of self. The insights and emotional capacities developed through therapy may continue to support growth after treatment has ended, contributing to change that extends beyond immediate symptom relief.
Our Creative Arts Therapist
AThR
Creative Arts & Psychodynamic Psychotherapist
Elisabeth Eitelberger is a registered Psychotherapist and Clinical Counsellor with PACFA, as well as a professionally recognised Creative Arts Therapist with ANZACATA. She tailors her therapeutic approach to address the specific challenges and requirements of her clients, creating a trauma-informed and culturally sensitive environment that encourages both verbal and non-verbal expression.
Her diverse interests encompass Trauma, C-PTSD, Neurodivergence (including Autism, ADHD, and Dyslexia), Identity Development with a focus on LGBTQIA+, along with Anxiety, Depression, Mental Health Disorders, Chronic Pain, and Existential Self-Exploration. Elisabeth advocates for an integrative methodology that combines evidence-based practices with somatic and creative arts therapy, drawing on Psychodynamic and Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy, as well as incorporating techniques from Internal Family Systems, Polyvagal Theory, Sensorimotor Psychotherapy, DBT, MBT, Interpersonal and Existential Psychotherapy, and Humanistic Theories.
With a wealth of experience assisting clients from diverse backgrounds, Elisabeth has also maintained a professional career as an interdisciplinary artist for over thirty years. She holds Master’s degrees in Creative Arts Therapies from Murdoch University and Philosophy from Vienna University.
Itay Lahav is a Senior Clinical Counsellor (PACFA), psychoanalytic psychotherapist, and supervisor with over 22 years of professional experience, including more than a decade within Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS). Itay has worked across hospitals, schools, community services, and private practice, and has undertaken advanced clinical training with NZAP—a rigorous program designed for psychologists, psychiatrists, and psychotherapists seeking deeper clinical development.
Itay’s work is grounded in a holistic view that mind and body are interconnected. Drawing on psychoanalytic (depth) and integrative psychotherapy, sessions explore the underlying meanings of symptoms rather than treating them at the surface. By reflecting on formative experiences, relationships, unconscious patterns, and dreams, clients are supported to gain insight that can reshape present difficulties. This process unfolds in a confidential, steady, and supportive space that balances compassion with clear therapeutic focus.
In practice, Itay offers both focused, time-limited work and longer-term therapy, tailored to each person’s needs and pace. The aim is to help clients build emotional capacity, improve relationships, and move toward a more coherent and meaningful life.
At the core of Itay’s philosophy is curiosity and collaboration. The work invites clients to become more aware of what operates outside conscious view. “Until you make the unconscious conscious, it will direct your life and you will call it fate. The shadows that you ignore eventually become the life that run you”. Itay strives to create a reliable therapeutic relationship where genuine change can take root and endure.
What can I expect when working with a psychodynamic psychotherapist?
Psychodynamic therapy is a collaborative conversation in which you are encouraged to speak openly about whatever feels important. Together, you and your therapist may notice recurring emotions, relationship patterns, ways of coping and situations in which you feel stuck.
The therapist will not simply tell you what your experiences mean. Instead, they will help you reflect on them with curiosity and consider connections that may not have previously been clear. Attention is given to your present circumstances, earlier experiences and what emerges within the therapeutic relationship.
Sessions generally last 50 minutes and may be offered as focused short-term work or as longer-term therapy, depending on your needs and goals. You will usually sit in a chair, and you do not need to arrive knowing exactly what to discuss. The work develops gradually, at a pace that allows trust, understanding and meaningful change to grow.
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