Trauma-related conditions, complex mental health and psychosocial disability
- Complex post-traumatic stress disorder
- Schizophrenia spectrum conditions
- Depressive and bipolar disorders
- Obsessive-compulsive disorder
When body, mind and movement shape everyday life
Compassionally™ Occupational Therapy works alongside people living with complex, fluctuating or less visible health conditions. We consider how physical, neurological, psychological, relational and environmental factors interact to shape everyday life. Our approach to occupational therapy is grounded in careful listening, validation and transparent collaboration. Together, we develop a shared understanding that guides practical recommendations and support for meaningful participation in the activities, roles and routines that matter.
Does your situation feel more complex than one diagnosis can explain?
Complex needs do not always fit one box
Everyday life can be difficult to explain when pain, fatigue, movement, thinking, sensation, self-regulation, relationships, roles and surroundings are all involved. A diagnosis may describe one part of the picture without fully explaining how these factors interact.
You may feel stuck or misunderstood
Support needs may be unclear, or ordinary activities may take more effort than other people realise.
Different services may see different parts
Occupational therapy considers how those factors come together in daily activities, routines, roles and environments, and how they affect participation.
You may want practical help without pressure
We can begin with what is happening now. You do not need to explain everything at once.
Shared understanding shapes support
By listening carefully, validating the person’s experience and collaborating transparently throughout assessment, intervention and review, we develop and continually refine a shared understanding of what is affecting everyday life. This evolving understanding guides relevant recommendations and practical support that reflects the person’s circumstances and priorities.
Our approach
Making sense of what you have experienced, what still feels difficult and what matters now
Compassion is more than kindness. In occupational therapy, a compassion-focused approach aims to support safety within the therapeutic relationship through careful listening, validation and transparent collaboration. These qualities shape assessment, intervention and review as new information and real-life experience emerge.
The work may involve acceptance, adaptation, rehabilitation, learning, support or environmental change, depending on what matters to the person and what is workable.
Begin where you are
You decide what feels important to share. There is no expectation that everything must be explained at once.
Make sense together
We explore how physical health, inner experience, routines, relationships, culture, surroundings and supports affect participation.
Explore what matters
Goals can guide the work without defining the whole person. The focus remains on meaningful activities, roles and settings.
Plan, practise and adapt
Assessment continues while plans and interventions are reviewed and adapted as needs become clearer and everyday experience shows what helps.
Health conditions we work with
We work across several diagnostic groups, with particular focus on functional needs that are complex, interacting, fluctuating or less visible. The same condition can affect people differently, so we consider how it interacts with the person’s body, inner experience, relationships, routines, roles and surroundings to affect everyday function and participation.
Neurological conditions and associated functional changes
- Acquired brain injury
- Post-concussion difficulties
- Functional neurological disorder
- Neurodegenerative and other neurological conditions
- Cognitive, movement and participation changes
Persistent pain, fatigue and complex disability
- Neuropathic and persistent pain
- Myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome
- Complex physical disability
- Co-occurring physical and psychosocial disability
- Multiple and interacting disability-related needs
Neurodevelopmental and sensory needs
- Autism spectrum disorder
- Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder
- Intellectual disability
- Sensory processing difficulties
- Emotional, behavioural and self-regulation difficulties
This is not an exhaustive list. Occupational therapy focuses on how health conditions and disability affect everyday function and participation. It complements, but does not replace, medical or psychiatric assessment and treatment.
Services
Assessment, individualised occupational therapy, rehabilitation and practical support are delivered collaboratively. A shared understanding of what is affecting everyday life develops and evolves throughout the work, guiding clinical reasoning, recommendations and support for occupational performance and participation.
Assessments
- Functional Capacity Assessments
- Home and Living Assessments, including consideration of Individualised Living Options, Supported Independent Living and other support models
- Occupational performance assessments
- Functional reporting
Clarify functional impact and unmet support needs, and develop practical recommendations grounded in the person’s everyday life.
Individualised occupational therapy
- Understanding complex needs in everyday contexts
- Neuropsychoeducation
- Collaborative strategy development
- Sensory processing support
- Self-regulation support
Work together to understand what is getting in the way, develop practical strategies and adapt support over time.
Rehabilitation and participation
- Neurorehabilitation
- Meaningful activity engagement
- Graded practice
- Routine development
- Environmental adaptation
Support occupational performance and participation in the activities, roles and settings that matter.
Technology with purpose
- Assistive technology and smart home solutions
- Virtual reality to support persistent pain management and graded rehabilitation
- Neurofeedback to support neurorehabilitation and self-regulation
- Cognitive and sensory supports
Use technology selectively where it is clinically appropriate and may reduce effort, improve access or support participation.
Ways to refer
Individuals, families, professionals and organisations can contact Compassionally™ directly. The information requested at referral can be adapted to the person’s needs, funding and reason for occupational therapy involvement.
Self-referral
Individuals or families may contact the practice directly to discuss the support being sought, location, funding and whether occupational therapy may be suitable.
Health and allied health professionals
General practitioners, psychiatrists, paediatricians, neurologists, pain physicians, psychologists, physiotherapists, speech pathologists and other treating practitioners may refer where occupational therapy input may clarify function, participation or support needs.
Support coordinators, NDIS and community teams
Referrals may relate to Functional Capacity Assessments, intervention, assistive technology, rehabilitation, home and living needs, clinical reporting or collaborative support planning.
Parents, families, carers and guardians
Enquiries may relate to routines, participation, self-regulation, care needs, environments, communication or practical support strategies.
Lawyers, insurers and workers compensation stakeholders
Referrals may involve occupational performance, Functional Capacity Assessments, rehabilitation, return to activity, support needs or clear clinical reporting.
Professional development organisers
Presentations, workshops or professional education may be discussed where the topic aligns with the practice’s occupational therapy, research and education expertise.
Meet Simon
Simon is an occupational therapist registered with the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA), with more than 10 years of clinical experience across mental health, disability, neurorehabilitation and complex functional presentations. He works with children, adolescents and adults across community, clinical and rehabilitation settings.
His occupational therapy approach is informed by experience in neuropsychiatry, persistent pain, neurological rehabilitation, psychosocial disability, Positive Behaviour Support, neuropsychoeducation and assistive technology, together with psychologically informed clinical reasoning. This background supports careful consideration of how physical, neurological, psychological, relational and environmental factors interact in everyday life.
His work includes Functional Capacity Assessments, Home and Living Assessments, individualised intervention planning, rehabilitation, clinical supervision and collaborative support for people with complex physical, psychosocial, behavioural and neurodevelopmental needs.
Qualifications and registration
- AHPRA registration no. OCC0001914750
- Master of Occupational Therapy, Curtin UniversityNeuropsychiatry stream
- Bachelor of Psychology with Honours, Curtin University
- Master of Applied Psychology (Professional), Murdoch UniversityDisability stream
- Doctoral candidate, Doctor of Psychology in Clinical Psychology, Murdoch University
Clinical focus and practice influences
- Complex physical, neurological and psychosocial presentations
- Persistent pain, chronic conditions and somatic symptoms
- Trauma-related, behavioural and self-regulation needs; selective forensic referrals within occupational-therapy scope
- Assistive technology
- Psychologically informed occupational therapy drawing on principles from the Unified Protocol, Mentalisation-Based Treatment and Compassion-Focused Therapy
What happens after you enquire?
- Step 1: Make contact. Share what support is being sought, the person’s location, funding and any accessibility needs.
- Step 2: We review the enquiry. We consider whether the request fits our scope, service area, funding arrangements and current capacity.
- Step 3: Discuss the next step. We may respond by email, phone or text to clarify the request and discuss possible next steps. A suitability discussion may be arranged and may take up to 30 minutes.
- Step 4: Begin when there is a good fit. If there is a good fit, we provide relevant information about the service, fees and consent before arranging the first appointment.
Initial contact is not an assessment, therapy session or emergency service and does not guarantee that services will commence. If another pathway appears more suitable, we can discuss this.
Discuss a referral
Call, text or email with a brief summary of the support being sought, location, funding, accessibility needs and the best way to contact you. We generally respond within two business days.
Fees, service scope and likely time requirements are discussed before services begin.