Trauma therapy for people who are tired of managing it

Depth-focused trauma treatment for adults on the Gold Coast and Northern Rivers. In-person in Miami and Kingscliff. Telehealth available Australia-wide.

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How trauma shows up

Trauma isn't always what you think it is

Many people who come to Sweetnam Psychology don't identify as having experienced trauma. They know something happened — or many things, over time — but they don't use that word for it. What they notice is the aftermath: patterns that don't make sense, reactions that feel too big or too absent, a persistent sense of being cut off from themselves or from others.

Trauma doesn't require a single catastrophic event. It can be the accumulation of smaller experiences — emotional neglect, inconsistent caregiving, chronic stress, humiliation, loss. What matters is not the event itself but how it was processed, and what got left unresolved.

PTSD & complex trauma

Intrusive memories, hypervigilance, emotional numbing, avoidance — sometimes clearly linked to an event, sometimes harder to trace to a specific origin.

Childhood & relational trauma

Patterns formed early in response to environments that felt unsafe, unpredictable, or emotionally unavailable. These shape how we relate to ourselves and others long into adulthood.

Emotional numbing & disconnection

A flatness or sense of unreality. Going through the motions. Feeling cut off from your own emotional life or from the people closest to you.

Trauma in the body

Chronic tension, fatigue, difficulty settling, physical symptoms without clear medical explanation. The body carries what hasn't been processed.

The approach

Trauma treatment that works at the emotional level

Taylor Sweetnam is a clinical psychologist and published researcher specialising in trauma and attachment. Her approach is grounded in Intensive Short-Term Dynamic Psychotherapy (ISTDP) — an evidence-based method that works directly with the emotional experience underlying trauma, rather than simply helping to manage its symptoms.

ISTDP is particularly well suited to trauma because it works with what's happening in the room, in real time — the defences that developed to protect against overwhelming feeling, and what lies beneath them. The work is careful, attuned, and paced appropriately to what each person can tolerate.

This is not exposure therapy or prolonged trauma processing in the traditional sense. It's depth-focused work that moves toward the emotional core of the experience — at a pace that feels manageable.

Trauma is not what happens to you. It's what happens inside you as a result of what happened to you.— Gabor Maté

Access & locations

Trauma therapy on the Gold Coast, Northern Rivers & online

In-person trauma therapy is available at the Miami clinic on the Gold Coast and at the Kingscliff clinic in the Northern Rivers. Telehealth sessions are available for patients across Australia — equally effective for most trauma presentations and preferred by many people who find it easier to work from the safety of their own space.

Evening and weekend appointments are available at both locations and via telehealth. Medicare rebates apply for eligible patients with a Mental Health Treatment Plan. DVA funding is accepted for eligible veterans — trauma is one of the most common presentations in veteran mental health work.

Common questions

Frequently asked questions

I'm not sure if what I experienced counts as trauma. Can I still come?

Yes. Many people who do significant trauma work don't initially identify their experience as traumatic. What matters is not the label but what you're carrying and how it's affecting your life. The initial session is a good place to explore this together.

Is ISTDP safe for trauma?

Yes, when conducted by a trained clinician. Taylor's approach is carefully attuned to what each person can tolerate at any given point. The work moves toward difficult emotional experience, but always at a pace that feels manageable — not overwhelming.

How is this different from EMDR or other trauma therapies?

EMDR works primarily through bilateral stimulation to process traumatic memories. ISTDP works through the therapeutic relationship and direct emotional experience in the room. Both are evidence-based. Taylor works within the ISTDP framework — whether it's the right fit for your particular presentation is worth discussing in an initial session.

Is trauma therapy available via telehealth?

Yes. Telehealth trauma therapy is available Australia-wide and is effective for most presentations. Many people find the familiarity and safety of their own environment actually supportive of trauma work.

Do you work with veterans experiencing trauma?

Yes. Taylor has significant experience working with veterans experiencing PTSD, complex trauma, and moral injury, including through Open Arms. DVA funding is accepted. See the DVA page for more detail.

Can I get a Medicare rebate for trauma therapy?

Yes, with a Mental Health Treatment Plan from your GP you're eligible for Medicare rebates for up to 10 sessions per calendar year.

You don't have to keep carrying it alone.

Book an initial session on the Gold Coast, in Kingscliff, or via telehealth anywhere in Australia.