Neil

Originally from South Africa, I grew up in Port Elizabeth / Qgeberha (“The Friendly City) on the sunny Eastern Cape coast. My ancestors are from The Netherlands, Germany, Poland, and Scotland. I identify as queer and use he/him pronouns.

Before qualifying as a clinical psychologist, I worked in Johannesburg’s television industry and then as an ESL teacher in Taipei, Taiwan. I went back to South Africa in 2013 to study toward my Clinical Psychology degree. I came to Aotearoa / New Zealand in 2022 and now call Te Whanganui-a-Tara / Wellington home.

In my free time, I love exploring the coastline, mountains, and forests of my new home. I spend as much time as I can with my dog, who goes almost everywhere with me.

My approach

I work in an integrative and collaborative way by drawing on a broad range of therapeutic approaches to develop a responsive treatment plan with each individual client. I start any therapeutic process by focusing on developing a safe and trusting therapeutic relationship, and a shared understanding of each client’s experience.

I practice mainly in a Psychodynamic framework, meaning that I consider how early relationships and their struggles influence us in the present. Depending on the person I work with, I integrate other frameworks into a comprehensive treatment approach, including Schema Therapy, Narrative Therapy, Interpersonal Process Therapy, CBT, DBT, and EMDR.

If relevant to a specific therapeutic process, I offer neurodevelopmental assessments (ADHD and ASD), as well as other diagnostic assessments. However, I prefer to work trans-diagnostically and not focus unnecessarily on applying labels. Before engaging in these kinds of assessment, I like to discuss each individual’s rationale to ensure that our purpose is clear and addresses their specific needs.

I generally work with people 18 years and older, both individuals and intimate partnerships. I occasionally take on younger clients if the significant adults in their lives are able to provide appropriate support and engagement. In such cases, I am able to work with families.

Clinical Psychologist

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Dog life

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Queer

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Nature

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Clinical Psychologist 〰️ Dog life 〰️ Queer 〰️ Nature 〰️

Professional background 00

In my career as a clinical psychologist, I’ve worked in primary health, secondary mental health, psychiatric inpatient, and corrections / forensic settings in both South Africa and Aotearoa / New Zealand. I have a Bachelor’s degree in Counselling and a Master’s degree in Clinical Psychology from Nelson Mandela University in South Africa. Prior to pursuing my professional studies in psychology, I completed a Bachelor’s degree of Journalism, specialising in Television and Politics.

Outside of my private practice, I work in Te Whatu Ora’s Adult Community Mental Health service in Lower Hutt.

I am registered with both the New Zealand Psychologists’ Board (NZPB) and the New Zealand College of Clinical Psychologists (NZCCP). I’m also a member of the EMDR Association of New Zealand (EMDRNZ). Lastly, I’m registered with ACC as a Sensitive Claims Provider for treatment and specialist assessments.

Book a session with Neil

  • Sessions are 50 minutes and cost $200

  • Currently available Mondays & Fridays

  • In-person or online

  • Based in Wellington Central.

For enquiries, email neil@qtc.org.nz