Elaine Driver

I work full time from two locations in central Auckland and North Shore. I am an experienced counsellor master degree qualified child and adolescent counsellor with a background in teaching psychology.  As well as counselling I facilitate parenting courses, social skills training and Lego therapy for children and young people. 

I specialise in working with young people managing their anxiety using a CBT approach. I work alongside young women struggling with issues relating to self esteem, body image, relationships and perfectionism. In this work, I always provide workable strategies to bring about emotional regulation. I have recently qualified in Sand-Tray Therapy and will be offering this in both practices for those children and young people who find it difficult to talk directly about their feelings.

Areas of Special Interest

I specialise in working with children and adolescents. Specifically presenting with issues relating to anxiety and emotional dysregulation. I am trained in sand-tray therapy which is helpful in facilitating engagement and solution focused work with clients who are reluctant to talk directly about their thoughts, feelings and problems. This is particularly effective when working with younger children.

Counselling Services

I specialise in working with young people and their families. Engaging families in the counselling is extremely effective in bringing changes for the whole family.

I am a counsellor because there is nothing more rewarding than seeing someone discover their potential to live a life that is not based upon anxiety and fear.

Many young people face difficult challenges in our fast paced, social media focused world. Helping young people manage these challenges by equipping them with strategies to the face, as well as, handle these pressures, so that they can engage more positively with life, is what I do best.

Counselling Approach

My counselling apporach is eclectic as I am guided by clients needs.
I draw upon a range of approaches including:

• Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT)
• Focussed Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (FACT)
• Sandtray therapy
• Lego based therapy

Background and Experience

• I have extensive teaching and Psychology background (over 20 years)
• I am a schools guidance counsellor (part-time)
• A facilitator for parenting workshops and exam ‘de’ stress workshops