- Stress and anxiety
- Trauma and loss
- ACT and CBT methods
About Melissa
Melissa Stokes is a psychologist and an accredited social worker with the Australian Association of Social Workers (AASW) and AHPRA registration, with 25 years of professional experience. She works with people facing stress, anxiety, grief, trauma and abuse, mood conditions such as depression and bipolar, ADHD, relationship and attachment concerns, eating and sleeping difficulties, career and parenting strains, and LGBT-related issues.
Melissa brings experience from hospitals, community mental health, youth justice, sexual assault services and both public and private practice. That background means she is familiar with crisis settings and long-term care. She has used a range of evidence-based therapies across those roles and with different age groups.
Her clinical approach is integrative. She draws on cognitive-behavioural methods such as CBT, emotion-focused techniques, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT) and attachment-based ideas. Sessions often include psychoeducation, practical skills training and reflective conversation to help people make sense of what they are feeling.
Melissa also supervises students and other professionals, bringing teaching and mentoring into her work. She has contributed to research at the Research and Education Unit for Gendered Violence and completed a research thesis on online mindfulness and user motivation.
Outside of her clinical role she spends free time hiking, foraging, playing board games, cooking, doing yoga, listening to music and gardening with her dogs. She works from Psychological Therapy Services in Payneham, Adelaide and offers work with clients here online.
How Melissa uses ACT, CBT and attachment ideas online
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) focuses on noticing difficult thoughts and feelings without getting stuck in them, and choosing actions that reflect personal values. It can help when guilt or shame is getting in the way of everyday choices. Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) looks at the links between thoughts, feelings and behaviour and teaches practical skills for testing unhelpful thoughts and changing patterns. Attachment-Based Therapy pays attention to how early relationships shape current reactions, and it supports learning new ways of relating to oneself and others.Finding the right mix of approaches is part of the work. Melissa discusses the options with each person and together they decide what fits best for the client’s needs, goals and preferences. The process is collaborative and may shift as therapy continues.
Confirm the specific session formats before booking, as the biography notes work from Psychological Therapy Services in Payneham, Adelaide and online but does not list every format here. Online sessions can make it easier to fit appointments around work or family, allow shorter check-ins when time is tight, and reduce travel time. Therapists and appropriately qualified professionals can use video or phone in different ways to focus on skills practice, thought records, values work or emotion regulation exercises, depending on what suits the client.
Areas of expertise
Primary focus
Also works with
Additional focus areas
Therapeutic approaches
Experience
25+ years
Listed in
Australia
Languages
English
Frequently asked questions
What kinds of guilt or shame issues does she address?
She works with feelings tied to trauma, relationships, parenting, identity and past actions, and broader issues such as body image and abandonment.
How does she approach feelings of guilt and shame in sessions?
Melissa uses an integrative style that mixes CBT, ACT and attachment ideas with skills training and psychoeducation to help clients understand and respond differently to those feelings.
How much clinical experience does she have?
She has 25 years of professional experience in hospitals, community mental health, youth justice, sexual assault services and private practice.
Which credentials and where does she practise?
She is a psychologist and an AASW social worker with AHPRA registration, based in Australia and seeing people from Payneham, Adelaide as well as online.
Are sessions available in other languages or for international clients?
Sessions are offered in English and international clients are not currently accepted.
What session formats are offered?
Please confirm current session options before booking by checking the online therapy options; the biography lists in-person work in Payneham and online work here.
How are costs handled for therapy?
Cost varies with location, and sessions use a subscription model that can be cancelled at any time.
How do I begin working with her?
Select the See online therapy options button, complete a short matching questionnaire, and schedule a first session.
Online talk therapy is not emergency care. If you are in danger or thinking about harming yourself, use the crisis numbers.