Sandcastles of Life
Counselling & Sandtray Therapy
Expressive Therapy Centre
NDIS Service Providers
Personal Development Workshops
Therapeutic Groups
Pychoeducational Groups for Carers
Training in Sand Therapy
Speaker Engagement
Our Vision
Empowering children, teenagers & adults towards healthy self development and psychological well being
Our Mission
Justice for children, adults & families
Fiona Werle
Fiona has over 20 years' experience in the field of personal development, though her style has always come from a place of philosophy and art, with her first studies as a Feng Shui practitioner. Fiona also hosted the only English speaking radio program in Holland where she interviewed people and allowed them to tell their stories.
Fiona discovered mental health and well-being when she did her Dip. of Positive Psychology. This lead her to do a Degree in Social Science specialisation Counselling. She then went on to do her specialist training in Sandplay Therapy and now uses this in her unique form of therapeutic skills that she makes available to all her clients. Her style is strength based, solution focused and her approach to counselling allows for clients to explore their issues in a nurturing and emphatic environment.
Fiona also uses Mindfulness and she is a qualified Strengths Coach and is available as a Supervisor for Counsellors or Sand Therapists.
Registered Counsellor - ACA (MACA)
Member World Association of Sand therapy professionals Member International Association of Sandtray Therapy
Professional Supervisor - College of Supervisors
Professional Trainer - Cert IV TAE40116
NDIS Provider - Therapeutic & Early Childhood Supports
Helena Kourelakos
My name is Helena Kourelakos and I am a clinical psychotherapist and counsellor. I use a person centred approach specialising in sand therapy. I have worked in depth with complex mental health issues within the community for NDIS and from this experience I have a thorough understanding as a support coordinator of the NDIS scheme, how it works, and how you can make it work best for you.
'My clinical experience has been primarily working with people experiencing trauma and complex trauma.
I use a person centred approach and mindfulness techniques with clients to support them in telling their story through the sand. I also have experience in running therapeutic groups and psychoeducational groups for carers.'
Registered Counsellor - ACA
International Association of Sandtray Therapy
Graduate of Arts Psychology WSU
Post Graduate of Counselling and Psychotherapy WSU
Services
At our cottage situated in the grounds of the Western Sydney University in Richmond we offer services that are expressive psychologies born out of research and evidence-based methods, this includes our specialist Sandtray therapy.
Sand play is a right brained integrative therapy for; children/adolescents who are having difficulty expressing their emotions, children/adolescents who are non verbal due to intellectual disability, trauma or non English speaking.
This method uses the indoor sand tray, sandtray miniatures, within a safe space or the neuroception of safety, created specifically for this purpose, supported by a trusted therapist in which to express their emotions, with or without using words to explain their stories. Children from ages 3 to 9 often resolve their own issues in the sandtray in the form of battles using the soldiers or other re-enactments. Children from about 10 years will often create sand worlds then explore the miniatures and their meanings with the therapist.
Children with autism especially take to Sandtray as a form of non-verbal sensory motor communication. It teaches them to explore their inner expressions of Self and relate their internal feelings to their external emotions. This aids in self-regulation. We then help them to integrate emotions, feelings and words using the sandtray images.
Individual Counselling
Therapeutic support for individual one to one facilitation helping children & adolescents towards self-knowledge, emotional acceptance and self growth.
Couples Counselling
A reconciliation process within a supportive environment to talk through relationship concerns.
NDIS
Services available include Early Childhood Supports (Ages 0-6), Therapeutic Supports (Ages 6+), Out of Home Care & FACS support. Click here for NDIS info.
