Patricia Pataki

Areas of Special Interest

• Anxiety and Depression
• Child & Adolescent Psychotherapy
• Relationship issues
• ADHD
• Autism/Asperger’s Syndrome
• Eating disoders
• Childhood Trauma

Psychotherapy and Counselling Services

I am a registered Psychotherapist offering short-term and long-term psychotherapy for children, young people and adults. I am able to provide safe and effective therapy, whether you have a diagnosis (such as depression, ADHD etc.) or not.

I welcome people from all walks of life; I will not make assumptions about you based on your sex, age, colour, race, disability, sexuality, social, economic or immigration status, lifestyle, religious or cultural beliefs.

Counselling/Therapy Approach

I offer a safe, non-judgmental and confidential environment to enable my clients to work through whatever type of difficulty they may be dealing with.

My approach to working in therapy relies mainly on psychodynamic theories; meaning that I believe that our early experiences (such as those encountered during our childhood and adolescence) have a significant impact on us.

We may search for patterns in your life to better understand what may be causing and perpetuating your problems. In long-term therapy it is crucial that you come to trust me to share these often very personal memories and experiences.

In line with existential philosophy, I have a deep respect for our human capacity to make choices and to be autonomous – I will not make any decisions for you, nor will I pursue a set agenda during our sessions.
I help my clients get the most out of their therapy by offering an alternative, neutral perspective; giving them the space to reflect and come to decisions in their own time.

I believe that the relationship between therapist and client (the “therapeutic relationship”) is an important part of what makes therapy effective. Therefore I take earning and preserving my clients’ trust very seriously. 

My Approach to Working with Children/Adolescents

My approach to working with children and young people is an integration of Play therapy, Art therapy and Relational (Attachment-based) Psychotherapy. I offer individual therapy sessions for children/young people, while working with parents/whanau in separate sessions (in so-called ‘Parent Consultation sessions’). 

When working with a child/young person, my primary aim is to help my young clients explore, express and process potentially difficult or disturbing emotions; by making these feelings more manageable through the use of art/play materials and/or story-telling, within the safe space of the therapy.

For further information, please contact me directly.