Hi, it’s me …

Hi, it’s me…….my name is Carrie (♪♪♪♪♪)

Yes, I love the new Taylor Swift song, and it’s also very fitting for my first blog, because I want to introduce myself, and I don’t mean my work history or my qualifications, I mean me, so hopefully by the time you reach the end you will feel like you know me a little already. And a reminder to us all that we are human, we all have likes, dislikes, strengths, and those things that we feel we need to work on. All of that is okay, it’s what makes each of us so amazing and interesting.

My name is Carrie, I emigrated to Australia from England in 2011. I absolutely, categorically do not miss scraping the ice from my car windscreen at 6am in the morning, the grey skies and drizzly rain that often felt like an eternity. I do miss Christmas, it is my absolute favourite time of the year and all I want to do is snuggle up in front of a roaring fire, while it’s snowing outside, eat chestnuts and watch Home Alone, however, this is tropical Queensland. Luckily, I love the sunshine, I was born to live in a tropical climate, waking up every morning to the sun shining changes everything for me.

Another passion (or obsession as my Husband may suggest) is my love of learning! If I don’t have at least 2 courses or research topics on the go at the same time, I’m just not living my best life. I believe education is one of the secrets to a long and fulfilled life and lucky for me, I absolutely can’t get enough of it.

I have a strong believe in myself, I have firm boundaries and morals and I love rules, procedures, processes; I’m here for it all. If something doesn’t align with how I feel inside, I struggle to maintain my focus and motivation. I am fascinated by human behaviour and what we can do with our minds; my interest in people goes right back to my childhood.

I recently received my First-Class Honours Degree in Psychological Science. This degree pushed me to my limits at times, but it also opened my mind, unlocked doors to new awareness’ and I now see people in a completely different way. There’s no turning back!

My belief: everyone is genuinely doing their best, and I mean everyone. I thrive when I have connection, connection is what sets my heart on fire. I’m at my best with one-on-one friendships and relationships, where I can give my all to that person and feel safe to be me. I get connection from my Husband, my 3 wonderful children, a very small group of friends, my work and my 2 sausage dogs, Schnitzel and Chilli (watch out for these 2 little snags in my social media posts, they are my therapy).

I have been planning to open my private practice for the last 6 years, maybe even longer? And now I’m here and I’ve done it. I won’t lie. It’s scary. It’s exciting. It’s all of the feelings. But most importantly it’s mine and it’s built on my own achievements and can be shaped to be however I want it to be.

The road to this moment has been incredible and even ferocious at times. If I can achieve what I dreamed about doing so many years ago, you can too. I hope that now you feel you know some important parts of my story, sharing your story with me will be that little bit easier. I look forward to it.

Carrie.