Lydia Nicholson

- Member, Registered with NZ Association of Counsellor (MNZAC)

- Bachelor of Health Science in Counselling, (Auckland University of Technology)
- Graduate Diploma in Psychotherapy Studies, (Child & Adolescent)
- Certified Solution-Focused Therapist

- In-person: Friday at Psykhe Psychoanalytic Practice, Mt Eden, Auckland
- Online: Monday-Friday
- Please call or email for available times

- $140 for 1 hour session
- sliding scale for students and WINZ by negotiation and case-by-case basis
- payment can be made by bank transfer or cash

NB - Cancellation fees apply when less than 24 hours notice is given.

During counselling sessions, Lydia gave me strategies to help me cope with the enormous grief and stress I felt when my husband was diagnosed with a terminal illness. Her strategies inspired me and gave me strength again. Her warmth, love and ability to make sense of my situation helped me claw my way back and find some peace. Thank you Lydia. (VB)

I have valued walking beside you in my grief journey so immensely - and I owe so much of my continued functioning and my own "new normal" to your care and wisdom along the way. (SM)

Before I continue I just wanted to say on behalf of my family (especially my siblings), how immensely grateful we are to you. My siblings and I can not begin to explain just how much your sessions have given us. As I’m sure you’ve picked up already, opening up to one another and embracing that vulnerability has never really been a thing for a lot of us in our family. Your counselling and guidance has done more and given our family more than we could’ve asked for, especially during this time. More specifically you patience, care, compassion, empathy and kindness. You treated our family with such gentleness and for that we are so thankful. It’s still a very long journey ahead for our grief as a family and individually, but your presence in our lives has made it that much more bearable; and given us that hope we needed to feel comfortable enough to be in that space and continue to be in that space for each other. I could honestly go on and on, my siblings surely reminded me to make sure I let you know the gratitude they have for you, so thank you for everything Lydia. (HCV)

Before Lydia, I didn’t have much clue of what grief was or what it looked like for me. I knew it would be different for everyone but in the initial phases of navigating this I was almost drowning in a sea of emotions I had absolutely no control over, furthermore I was not as aware of how my own siblings and parents were coping. Lydia created space for us to understand what our own grief looked like whilst also holding space for our own families grief together. She opened doors to places that allowed the most beautiful and most fearful parts of our grief to coexist all at once. She was the listening ear to all issues and concerns, little or small. It really didn’t feel like counselling but more like talking to a close friend or family member. After Lydia, I am still navigating my own grief, I am no longer drowning but swimming through the never ending waves of emotion and now immensely grateful for the sense of peace she have given me in this lifetime journey. (Kaitlin)

I was always one for believing that with a positive outlook on life, you won't suffer from depression. I never thought of myself as someone who could be depressed. But that was far from the truth. When my brother passed I wanted to be the person my family could depend on for emotional support while they grieved. I wasn't until I actually talked about my feelings with Lydia that I found how important it is to share openly how you're feeling deep inside. She helped me to open up and release all the built up grief and sadness that I wasn't ready to talk about. I thank her so much for guiding me to where I am today. I'm more comfortable opening up to more people now because of her. Thank you Lydia. (Kenneth)

Coming from a community that more often than not, thinks of mental health as something to turn a blind eye to; the thought of grief counselling didn’t necessarily sound appealing when offered to our family. Talking out loud about our emotions, crying and the heaviness that burdened our hearts were all things we had learnt how to deal with alone. After the passing of our brother/son, an immense cloud hung over our family. We were simultaneously lost and broken, unsure of what to do with our grief and all this sorrow. We were able to talk to each other of fond memories we shared with Kiki and how we couldn’t dear comprehend this loss. But digging deeper, continuously keeping that line open for discussing our grief openly was running a little thin. That’s when we met Lydia. Even with the first session we had with her, our family all agreed we felt a little lighter after it. We knew that she had touched our hearts and explained things we weren’t able to put into words just yet. There is something really special in the way Lydia talks, it comes from such natural reassurance and empathy. We all felt as if we were talking to one of our aunties, someone we had known for a long time. For us, she just epitomised tenderness and love. We felt it when she shared a tear with us when talking about our loved one, we could feel her genuineness to want to know. Such care she used when addressing each and every one of us. There have been about 2 occasions where we as kids have witnessed our dad shed tears, one of them being in that room with Lydia. He was able to open up in front of us like he never has before, as his children we are forever grateful that Lydia allowed him to feel safe enough to be vulnerable around his own kids. Being able to exist in a space where we felt safe and secure enough to share how our grief was effecting us differently, could not have been possible without the help of Lydia. She shared phrases and tools that we still to this day try to use. Each time we walked out of a session with her, we knew it brought us closer as a family, closer to our kiki. That is something we can never take for granted. We appreciate and truly loved the time we got in our sessions with Lydia, she helped us through so much that we weren’t equipped enough to handle on our own. We will forever be grateful for the love she extended to our family during such a trying time. Her work is truly special and unparalleled. She is truly special. Thank you always Lydia.