Monique Chasteau

Monique provides a range of therapeutic services for children, adolescents, adults, families and couples.

Areas of Special Interest

• anxiety
• depression
• grief
• sexual abuse
• behaviour problems
• addictions
• relationship problems (family, couple, friendship, work)
• mental health issues
• pain
• stress
• eating or sleep difficulties
• psychological or physical trauma

Counselling Services

I offer short and long-term therapy adapted for the needs of each individual, family or couple. I practice from two private and comfortable rooms, one in Mt Eden and the other at my home in Greenhithe.

You may need strategies to get you through a specific situation. Or you may want to change aspects of your life that have been causing problems for a long time. We develop your emotional and mental toolkit of skills to become more resilient, motivated, confident and peaceful in yourself and more nourished in your relationships. We will make new links between physical, emotional, intellectual and spiritual parts of your life. This will give you greater insight and help to empower you to make good decisions.

I am a mother and stepmother, partner and artist who brings much life experience and my own soul journey to my work as a therapist. I know what its like to feel vulnerable, stressed and overwhelmed. I will be sensitive to your changing needs in every session. We will work with the hard stuff but also bring in playfulness and creativity.

Counselling Approach

My approach is based on respect, kindness, skill and experience. We work together to clarify your thoughts, feelings and relationships and find the best way forward. Sometimes it may be useful explore your memories of earlier times in your life in order to make sense of what goes on in the present.

I also offer practical, educational strategies and provide a number of assessment services for eating, sleeping, stress, brain function and medication effects. I’ll often encourage you to keep track of things between sessions and to take care of physical health.

My educational background is comprehensive and includes person centred therapy, psychodynamic therapy, restorative justice training, affect psychology, art therapy, deep brain reorienting therapy and psychophysiology.

Background and Experience

I have been in practice as an Art Therapist and Counsellor for 25 years. For the last 12 years, I have also offered Biofeedback, Neurofeedback and Brain Assessment services. See my website.

I have worked with a wide variety of people and issues including children, adolescents, families and adults of all ages. My career has included work with people with psychiatric, physical and intellectual disabilities. I work with people in the aftermath of traumatic events such as assault or  homicide and have built a good understanding of the justice system. I’ve also run many art therapy and meditation workshops for the general public.

I worked in the school system as a counsellor for 10 years and from this have gained specific expertise in child and adolescent issues, workplace problems, mediation, working with mental health agencies and Oranga Tamariki.

Supervision Services

I offer clinical supervision and training to counsellors and other professionals. It is important to me as a supervisor to offer a nourishing and supportive experience so that you can continue to work safely, ethically and look after yourself. As a clinical supervisor I draw from attachment theory, biological affect theory, the theory of restorative justice, humanistic psychotherapy, body centred therapies (i.e. polyvagal theory and somatic resourcing). I also sometimes work with transpersonal concepts. I can help with integrating a number of assessment tools into a clinical practice.

In conjunction with the Biofeedback Society of New Zealand, I offer introductory training and supervision in the use of Biofeedback, Neurofeedback and applied neuroscience in a therapeutic setting see my website.

Having worked as a counsellor and educator in both secondary and tertiary education, I bring insight to the issues counselling professionals deal with in institutional settings.