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Hi, I'm Tamara, the founder of Connected Threads Psychology. I'm a psychologist based on the Sydney's North Shore. I know reaching out for support can take a lot of courage, and I don't take that lightly. My aim is to create a space where you can feel safe, understood, & able to show up exactly as you are. From there, we can gently begin to explore what's been going on for you, at a pace that feels right. I believe every person carries a unique & meaningful story. It is a gre

Starting therapy is a big step and it's really normal to feel a mix of emotions. Whether you have never seen a psychologist before or you're returning to therapy after some time away, people often have questions about what to expect as they start the process. My aim is to make this process feel as safe, supportive, and straight forward as possible from the very beginning. Your First Session: Getting to Know You Your first session is all about getting to know you, at your pace

Relationships can bring us some of life's greatest joys but they can also activate deep fears & insecurities. For some, closeness feels comforting & reassuring. For others, connection can come with ongoing worries about being rejected, abandoned, or not being enough. You might find yourself needing frequent reassurance from your partner, feeling unsettled when they do not respond quickly, or overthinking small changes in their tone or behaviour. You may understand logically t

Attachment is often described as the emotional bond we develop with the people who care for us. These early relationships help us learn whether the world feels safe, whether other people can be trusted & whether our needs are worthy of attention. As we grow, these early experiences can influence the way we understand closeness, respond to conflict, ask for support & protect ourselves in relationships. This is sometimes referred to as an attachment pattern or attachment style.

There is a particular kind of loneliness that comes with losing a pregnancy. You are grieving. You may be grieving the baby you got to meet briefly. Or the potential of the little person you were looking forward to holding. You might be noticing the loss in the way you had already started rearranging your life around them, the version of the next family celebration you had quietly built in your head. And yet, for many of the people around you, there is nothing visible to grie

You might have heard the word "adolescence" used to describe the turbulent, transformative years between childhood & adulthood. But have you heard of matrescence? Matrescence is the developmental process of becoming a mum. It is a profound, all-encompassing transition that reshapes your body, brain, identity, relationships & sense of self. Like adolescence, it is a rite of passage marked by intense change, uncertainty & growth. And like adolescence, we cannot go back once it

Pregnancy can bring up a wide range of emotions. Alongside excitement, gratitude or hope, you may also experience anxiety, fear & moments of intense worry. Experiencing both comfortable & uncomfortable feelings does not mean that you are ungrateful or unprepared. Pregnancy is a significant life transition & it is understandable that your mind may become more focused on what could go wrong. Some worry during pregnancy is common. You may worry about your baby's health, the bir

There is a quiet kind of ache that can settle in after having a baby. It can look like sadness or it can just be a sense of heaviness. You might be going through the motions of caring for your newborn while feeling numb, exhausted or strangely disconnected from everything including yourself. This could be signs of postnatal depression (sometimes called postpartum depression). It's more than the tiredness or mood swings that come with adjusting to life with a new baby. It's a

Becoming a parent is one of life's biggest transitions. It is normal to feel some worry, especially in those early weeks when everything feels new & overwhelming. But for some parents, the worry doesn't settle, it grows, becomes constant, & starts to take over. This is what we call postnatal anxiety (also known as postpartum anxiety). It is more than the everyday concerns of new parenthood. It's a persistent, often overwhelming sense of worry, fear, or dread that can affect y

If you're reading this, I imagine there is a good chance there was something about your birth experience that hasn't sat right with you. Maybe you've felt shaken, confused or overwhelmed since giving birth. Maybe any time you're asked about your birth experience you panic, shut down or want to cry. Maybe you've been told "you & your baby are healthy nothing else matters" & yet this doesn't really soothe what you're feeling. I want to state this at the outset: your experience

The transition into parenthood can be one of the most meaningful & life-changing experiences a person goes through. Alongside joy, connection, & hope, it can also bring intense feelings of vulnerability, emotional overwhelm & isolation which are often unexpected and distressing. Perinatal mental health refers to emotional wellbeing during pregnancy & the first year after birth. This chapter of life can impact anyone; birthing parents, partners, & families. The impacts are oft

Relationships are an integral part of being human, they can provide us with connection, joy, support & a sense of belonging. Yet, most of us have found relationships challenging too. They can often be filled with misunderstandings, stress, & conflict. We often have assumptions about what healthy relationships should look like, for example many of us assume the "right" relationships will be effortless, intuitive & always conflict free. Yet, according to Dr. John Gottman's res

At some point in our lives we will need to have a difficult conversation, whether it be with our colleagues, our friends, or our family. Many of us put these off, maybe because of fear of confrontation or worries about making things worse. Sometimes we have tried to have these conversations, but things have gone awry so we now have less faith in our ability to try again. Unfortunately, difficult conversations are a fact of life. So we can either avoid them & thus ignore impor

Ever notice how communication can feel surprisingly hard sometimes, especially when intense emotions are involved? You might go in to the conversation with the right intention, but the way something comes out lands very differently to how you hoped & quite quickly the conversation may become derailed. As mentioned in our blog post about communication styles, one small shift that can make a big difference is learning how to use "I" statements effectively. At their core, "I" st

Effective communication shapes our relationships, work, and daily interactions. Understanding different communication styles can help you connect better with others and express your own thoughts clearly. Together we will explore four common communication styles: passive, aggressive, passive-aggressive, and assertive. We will look at how each style behaves, what beliefs and emotions drive them, their goals, and the impact they can have on relationships. All information provide

Boundaries have been a popular topic of conversation of late around mental health, relationships & self care. Yet, many people still feel unsure about what boundaries are or how we can set them effectively. For some, boundaries can feel really uncomfortable, selfish or unnecessarily confrontational. Others may confuse boundaries with rules, ultimatums or ways to control others. It is really important for us to understand what a healthy boundary is & what it isn't as healthy b

Emotional awareness is often described as the foundation of emotional wellbeing. It is the ability to notice, identify, understand and response to emotions in ourselves and others. Many of us grew up being taught how to manage our behaviours. Yet for many of us the skills for recognising and managing the emotions underneath our own, and others, behaviours was not explored to the same extent. This leads many of us finding it difficult to recognise or understand what we are fee

Stress is a universal experience, but its impact on our nervous system is often overlooked. When stressors trigger the fight, flight, freeze response, our bodies prepare to face danger. In modern life, these reactions are frequently activated by everyday pressures. Once the stress cycle is activated and our body is prepared for danger, regulating our nervous system requires a completion of the stress cycle. If the stress cycle remains incomplete, excess energy, and tension ca