Olivia began developing her interest in parenting and parent-child relationships when she first began studying psychology in 2005, working in the child protection area at the time. She completed her first research project investigating the impact on mother’s parenting style on adolescent sense of self (more details here if you are interested), later going on to study parental effects on childhood anxiety, as well as how parent involvement in childhood anxiety treatment impacted on treatment outcomes (check out the abstract here if interested). Olivia developed a strong interest in parent-based responses to oppositional and defiant behaviour concerns in children, later building in evidence-based attachment, gentle parenting, and neurodiversity-affirmative approaches into her work in this space. Olivia is a strong advocate of the neurodiversity-affirmative paradigm and social model of disability and her work is informed by these approaches. Olivia also has lived experience with neurodivergence, being an AuDHDer (Autistic and ADHD).

Olivia’s other area of interest is childhood anxiety and trauma, including both individual work with children in this area, as well as supporting parents to help their anxious kids. She has worked extensively with young people with Autism and ADHD. Olivia is also actively involved in supporting and developing the psychology profession, including providing supervision to early career psychologists, her past role as chair of the APS Tasmania Branch, and her positions as mental health representative for the Clinical Advisory Council at Primary Health Tasmania (PHT), as well as the psychology representative on the PHT Allied Health Network Advisory Group. She presented at the Australian Conference for Neurodevelopmental Disorders in September, 2019, to clinicians helping them to help their clients use positive behaviour support principals when parenting. Olivia re-recorded this presentation for parents to access as well - check it out here!

Prior to Healthy Mind Centre Launceston, Olivia worked in both the adult and child community mental health teams, and commenced private practice in early 2016 after she had her own kids. Olivia opened Healthy Mind Centre Launceston in November 2017, and now spends her time working directly with clients, running the practice, supervising early-career psychologists, and developing online resources and programs in the area of Positive Behaviour Support Parenting and neurodiversity affirmative approaches to working with Autistic and ADHDer clients. Have you seen her Positive Behaviour Parenting Support Group on facebook and her upcoming online course in this area?