About Us

Sophie Smith, Clinical and Educational/Developmental Psychologist & Clinic Director

Sophie is the Director and founder of The Young Mind Clinic in Lane Cove, on Sydney’s lower north shore. Sophie has nearly two decades of experience working with young people and their families in a variety of settings. Sophie opened the Lane Cove clinic in 2017, building a team of psychologists who similarly bring specific knowledge and skills of child and adolescent psychology. Currently, she provides clinical supervision support to the team at TYMC whilst providing consultant clinical supervision services to other psychologists in private practice as well as psychologists, social workers and counsellors working in schools. Sophie is a Board Approved Supervisor and is able to provide supervision to clinical as well as Ed/Dev registrars, registered psychologists and provisional psychologists.  Sophie has been invited to speak at schools, conferences and as a guest lecturer for students undertaking master’s degree training in psychology. Her expertise with a wide range of child mental health difficulties and years of supervising others in the field puts her in a unique position to understand both the psychological issues facing young people and the challenges of working in this space.

Sophie currently offers therapy at her Bowral rooms for young people between the ages of 16 and 24. She utilises a cognitive behavioural focus with the addition of a dialectical behaviour therapy (DBT) skills approach.  Some common presentations that Sophie currently works with include:

• Adjustment issues (eg transitioning from school to work or uni)
• Anxiety & depression
• Perfectionism and procrastination
• Difficulties with sleep
• Relationship and interpersonal challenges including managing conflict and improving communication
• Time management and organisation

Sophie has a warm interaction style and is conscious of the importance of developing trust and a strong  therapeutic relationship to provide the right conditions for change. She particularly appreciates everyone’s  unique set of strengths that when harnessed properly, can provide a powerful force in the direction of change.

Sophie provides supervision to registered psychologists, including registrars in the area of Clinical and Ed/Dev practice endorsement, provisional psychologists and other health professionals seeking supervision in the area of child and adolescent practice.

Areas of practice that Sophie has extensive experience supervising other health professionals include:

• Anxiety and mood issues
• Emotional regulation and self harm
• ​Safety planning and risk assessment
• OCD
• Perfectionism and procrastination
• Bullying and friendship concerns
• Parenting and behaviour issues
• ADHD and specific learning disorder comprehensive assessment.
• Navigating the case management and counselling process within the school counselling context.
• Understanding organisation issues associated with schools and how health professionals form their identity within them as useful sources of information, support of students and families and guidance for staff.

Sophie’s main therapeutic approaches and programs include:

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)
Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT) Skills
Motivational Interviewing (MI)

Accreditations and registrations:

Registered and dual endorsed Clinical and Educational/Developmental Psychologist with AHPRA, Member of the Australian Psychological Society (APS), Member of the Clinical College (APS), Board Approved Supervisor with National Psychology Board (AHPRA).

Sophie is available on the following days:

Tuesday and Thursday (Bowral only)

Lisa Wood, Psychologist

Nikita Singh, Clinical Psychologist

Pina Campagna, Clinical and Educational/Developmental Psychologist

Pina works therapeutically with young people presenting with:

Anxiety, including phobias, social anxiety, separation anxiety, generalised anxiety
Exam stress and other academic concerns
Depression and mood difficulties
Sleep problems
Emotional dysregulation
Behavioural difficulties (including oppositionality)
Social difficulties and friendship issues
Communication and conflict issues within or outside of the family
Organisation and executive functioning issues
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)
Autism (Levels 1 and 2) and associated challenges (anxiety, school and social difficulties, emotional regulation)
School avoidance (or ‘refusal’)

Pina provides comprehensive assessment (including psychometric assessment) for:

Autism Spectrum Disorder.
ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder).
Specific learning difficulties and disorders with impairment in reading (dyslexia), writing (dysgraphia) and maths (dyscalculia).
Intellectual disability (including adaptive behaviour assessment).
Intellectual giftedness.

Tools used:

ADOS and ADI-R for diagnostic assessment of autism
Wechsler Tests: WISC-5, WAIS, WIAT, WPPSI
Adaptive Behaviour Assessment System (ABAS)
Vineland
Test of Variables of Attention (TOVA)
A range of questionnaires may also be used as part of the above assessments including the Conners, ASRS, BASC, TRF, Spence

Pina also sees parents for a range of parenting issues:

Assistance managing behavioural challenges of primary school-aged children.
Helping parents understand how to play and spend positive time with their child.
Dealing with teen issues, including phone use, boundary setting, emotional connection and communication.
Helping parents identify if their child needs further assessment or therapeutic input for clarifying what might by ‘typical’ behaviour vs less ‘typical’.

Pina’s main therapeutic approaches and programs include:

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT) Skills
Motivational Interviewing (MI)

Accreditations and registrations:

Registered and endorsed Educational and Developmental Psychologist with AHPRA, Australian Psychological Society (APS) member, Educational and Developmental College (APS) Member, Board Approved Supervisor, National Psychology Board (AHPRA), completed specific training in the ADOS and ADI-R (University of Melbourne Intensive Training Modules).

Pina is available on the following days:

Monday
Tuesday
Friday

Kylie Walker, Psychologist

Kylie is a Registered Psychologist with a depth of knowledge in supporting children, adolescents, and their parents from extensive experience working in schools and private practice settings.  Kylie has a genuine interest in equipping young people and their parents with strategies and skills to help them navigate anxiety, depression, academic stress, high-achieving environments, perfectionism, social difficulties, low self-esteem, emotional regulation, and sleep problems.

Kylie’s engaging, empathetic nature and compassionate approach help young people and their parents feel supported, valued and empowered to make positive changes. She is passionate about identifying a child’s unique strengths and working collaboratively with them to find solutions to the difficulties they are facing. Kylie integrates a range of evidence-based practices to tailor a therapeutic approach to meet each child’s specific needs.

Kylie works therapeutically with young people presenting with:

Anxiety including phobias, social anxiety, separation anxiety, generalised anxiety
Perfectionism and procrastination
Exam stress and other academic concerns
Obsessive Compulsive behaviours and tics
Depression and mood difficulties
Sleep problems
Emotional dysregulation
Behavioural difficulties (including oppositionality)
Social difficulties and friendship issues
Communication and conflict issues within or outside of family
Organisation and executive functioning issues
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)
Autism (Level 1) and associated challenges (anxiety, school and social difficulties, emotional regulation)
School avoidance (or ‘refusal’)

Kylie provides comprehensive assessment (including psychometric assessment) for:

ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder).
Specific learning difficulties and disorders with impairment in reading (dyslexia), writing (dysgraphia) and maths (dyscalculia).
Intellectual disability (including adaptive behaviour assessment).
Intellectual giftedness.

Tools used:

Wechsler Tests: WISC-5, WAIS, WIAT, WPPSI
Adaptive Behaviour Assessment System (ABAS)
Vineland
Test of Variables of Attention (TOVA)
A range of questionnaires may also be used as part of the above assessments including the Conners, ASRS, BASC, CBCL, TRF, Spence

Kylie also sees parents for a range of parenting issues:

Assistance managing behavioural challenges of primary school aged children.
Helping parents understand how to play and spend positive time with their child.
Dealing with teen issues including, phone use, boundary setting, emotional connection and communication.
Helping parents identify if their child needs further assessment or therapeutic input and clarifying what might be ‘typical’ behaviour vs less ‘typical’.

Kylie’s main therapeutic approaches and programs include:

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)
Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT) Skills
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
Cool Kids Program
Motivational Interviewing (MI)
Tuning into Teens
Integrated Family Intervention (Dadds & Hawes)

Accreditations and registrations:

Registered Psychologist with AHPRA, Member of the Australian Psychological Society (APS).

Kylie is available on the following days:

Tuesday
Thursday

Monique Andreacchio, Psychologist (Clinical Psychology Registrar)

Monique is a warm and thoughtful therapist passionate about working with children and adolescents. She focuses on creating connection and safety within the therapeutic relationship and an environment to support growth in individual’s unique challenges.

Monique has experience working with young people presenting with a variety of concerns in multiple settings. She utilises evidence based practice in approaching each client’s unique presentation. She has a particular interest in treating young people with physical illness or health concerns. Monique is trained in and able to provide comprehensive assessments to young people for the purposes of diagnosing specific learning difficulties, ADHD, intellectual disability and giftedness.

Monique works with young people presenting with:

Anxiety including phobias, social anxiety, separation anxiety, generalised anxiety
Perfectionism and procrastination
Exam stress and other academic concerns
Obsessive Compulsive behaviours and tics
Depression and mood difficulties
Sleep problems
Psychological issues related to other health conditions
Emotional dysregulation
Behavioural difficulties (including oppositionality)
Social difficulties and friendship issues
Communication and conflict issues within or outside of family
Organisation and executive functioning issues
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)
Autism (level 1) and associated challenges (anxiety, school and social difficulties, emotional regulation)
School avoidance (or ‘refusal’)

Monique provides comprehensive assessment (including psychometric assessment) for:

ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder).
Specific learning difficulties and disorders with impairment in reading (dyslexia), writing (dysgraphia) and maths (dyscalculia).
Intellectual disability (including adaptive behaviour assessment).
Intellectual giftedness.

Tools used:

Wechsler Tests: WISC-5, WAIS, WIAT, WPPSI
Adaptive Behaviour Assessment System (ABAS)
Vineland
Test of Variables of Attention (TOVA)
A range of questionnaires may also be used as part of the above assessments including the Conners, ASRS, BASC, CBCL, TRF, Spence

Monique also sees parents for a range of parenting issues:

Assistance managing behavioural challenges of primary school aged children.
Helping parents understand how to play and spend positive time with their child.
Dealing with teen issues including, phone use, boundary setting, emotional connection and communication.
Helping parents identify if their child needs further assessment or therapeutic input and clarifying what might be ‘typical’ behaviour vs less ‘typical’.

Monique’s main therapy approaches (customised for young people) include:

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)
Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT) Skills
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
Cools Kids Program
Motivational Interviewing (MI)
Tuning into Teens
Integrated Family Intervention (Dadds & Hawes)

Accreditations and registrations:

Registered Psychologist and Clinical Registrar with AHPRA, Member of the Australian Psychological Society (APS).

Monique is available on the following days:

Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday

Maddie Fooks, Psychologist

Maddie holds a Master’s degree in psychology and is passionate about supporting young people and families. She has a focus on evidence-based practice and individualising solutions.  An attitude of openness and curiosity allows for a non-judgemental and collaborative approach with families. Maddie believes in the power of creating trust and safety in a therapeutic relationship in order to instil hope and foster positive change.

Maddie draws from her experience working as a school counsellor across the full age span from ages 4 to 18 to provide support to children, adolescents and their parents. She is particularly interested in supporting young people with anxiety, depression, interpersonal difficulties, emotional regulation and behavioural issues. Maddie has completed training in the Westmead Feelings Program for young people on the autism spectrum.  Maddie is trained in and has experience providing assessments to young people in government and non government schools and private practice settings to young people for the purposes of diagnosing specific learning difficulties, ADHD, intellectual disability and giftedness. Maddie’s experience and knowledge of school settings is valuable in guiding her clients and their families.

Maddie works therapeutically with young people presenting with:

Anxiety including phobias, social anxiety, separation anxiety, generalised anxiety
Perfectionism and procrastination
Exam stress and other academic concerns
Obsessive Compulsive behaviours
Depression and mood difficulties
Sleep problems
Emotional dysregulation
Behavioural difficulties
Social difficulties and friendship issues
Communication and conflict issues within or outside of family
Organisation and executive functioning issues
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)
Autism (Level 1) and associated challenges (anxiety, school and social difficulties, emotional regulation)
School avoidance (or ‘refusal’)

Maddie provides comprehensive assessment (including psychometric assessment) for:

ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder).
Specific learning difficulties and disorders with impairment in reading (dyslexia), writing (dysgraphia) and maths (dyscalculia).
Intellectual disability (including adaptive behaviour assessment).
Intellectual giftedness.

Tools used:

Wechsler Tests: WISC-5, WAIS, WIAT, WPPSI
Adaptive Behaviour Assessment System (ABAS)
Vineland
Test of Variables of Attention (TOVA)
A range of questionnaires may also be used as part of the above assessments including the Conners, ASRS, BASC, CBCL, TRF, Spence

Maddie also sees parents for a range of parenting issues:

Assistance managing behavioural challenges of primary school aged children.
Helping parents understand how to play and spend positive time with their child.
Dealing with teen issues including, phone use, boundary setting, emotional connection and communication.
Helping parents identify if their child needs further assessment or therapeutic input and clarifying what might be ‘typical’ behaviour vs less ‘typical’.

Maddie’s main therapeutic approaches and programs include:

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)
Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT) Skills
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
Cool Kids Program
Motivational Interviewing (MI)
Integrated Family Intervention (Dadds & Hawes)
Westmead Feelings Program 2 (understanding and managing emotions as well as problem solving and perspective taking for autistic children aged 8-14 years with average range intellectual ability or above).

Accreditations and registrations:

Registered Psychologist with AHPRA. Maddie has also completed intensive training in the Westmead Feelings Program.

Maddie is available on the following days:

Monday
Tuesday

Duncan Hunt, Psychologist (Educational and Development Registrar)

Duncan is a psychologist with a Masters in Educational and Developmental Psychology, which is post graduate training for psychologists that focuses entirely on working with young people.
He has experience working in both the private practice setting and school environment providing assessment and evidence-based therapy to child and adolescent clients utilising a cognitive behavioural and brief solution focused framework. He uses a collaborative and engaging
approach to therapy, supporting young people in building skills to overcome their challenges. Duncan is interested in assessing young people for learning disorders, ADHD and intellectual disability and particularly enjoys working with neurodiverse young people, supporting them to understand their strengths and identify ways to support them in a neuro-affirming way. Duncan has worked with children aged 6-18 years old with a broad range of presentations and is trained in and able to provide comprehensive assessments for the purposes of diagnosing specific learning difficulties, ADHD, intellectual disability and giftedness. He is committed to delivering sessions that are engaging and personalised to each child’s strengths, interests, and needs. He has also completed research in improving access to social support for LGBTQIA+ young people. Duncan has a warm and friendly approach with young people and their families.

Duncan works therapeutically with young people presenting with:

Anxiety including phobias, social anxiety, separation anxiety, generalised anxiety
Exam stress and other academic concerns
Depression and mood difficulties
Emotional dysregulation
Behavioural difficulties (including oppositionality)
Social difficulties and friendship issues
Communication and conflict issues within or outside of family
Organisation and executive functioning issues
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)
Autism (Level 1) and associated challenges (anxiety, school and social difficulties, emotional regulation)
School avoidance (or ‘refusal’)
Identity related challenges

Duncan provides comprehensive assessment (including psychometric assessment) for:

ADHD (Attention Decit Hyperactivity Disorder).
Specific learning difficulties and disorders with impairment in reading (dyslexia), writing
(dysgraphia) and maths (dyscalculia).
Intellectual disability (including adaptive behaviour assessment).
Intellectual giftedness.

Tools used:

Wechsler Tests: WISC-5, WAIS, WIAT, WPPSI
Adaptive Behaviour Assessment System (ABAS)
Vineland
A range of questionnaires may also be used as part of the above assessments including the
Conners, ASRS, BASC, CBCL, TRF, Spence

Duncan also sees parents for a range of parenting issues:

Assistance managing behavioural challenges of primary school aged children.
Helping parents understand how to play and spend positive time with their child.
Dealing with teen issues including, phone use, boundary setting, emotional connection and communication.
Helping parents identify if their child needs further assessment or therapeutic input and clarifying what might be ‘typical’ behaviour vs less ‘typical’.

Duncan’s main therapeutic approaches and programs include:

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) skills
Motivational interviewing (MI)
Solution Focused Brief Therapy (BFST)

Accreditations and registrations:

Registered Psychologist and Educational and Developmental Registrar with AHPRA.

Duncan is available on the following days:

Monday
Thursday
Friday

Stephanie Bertola, Psychologist

Stephanie’s strength-based approach is grounded in genuine curiosity, compassion and a deep appreciation of our uniqueness as individuals. She loves assessment and therapy work that can help children, adolescents and families uncover more about themselves, foster understanding among one another and reach their goals. The resilience, resourcefulness and untapped potential of individuals inspire her.

Before joining The Young Mind Clinic, Stephanie dedicated nearly 15 years working with international children’s charities, including UNICEF and World Vision. This experience shaped her understanding of the diverse challenges children, adults and
families face which led her to complete her studies in psychology at Monash University where she completed her Psychology studies including a Masters of Psychology. Stephanie pursued working in a private practice setting in Melbourne following this.

Stephanie works therapeutically with young people presenting with:

Anxiety including phobias, social anxiety, separation anxiety, generalised anxiety
Depression and mood difficulties
Self-esteem
Emotional dysregulation including anger
Exam stress and other academic concerns
Psychological issues related to other health conditions
Behavioural difficulties
Social skills and difficulties including friendship issues
Communication and conflict issues within or outside of family
Organisation and executive functioning issues
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)
School Avoidance (or ‘refusal’)
Autism Level 1
ADHD
Grief and loss, including divorce.

Stephanie provides comprehensive assessment (including psychometric assessment) for:

ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder).Specific learning difficulties and
disorders with impairment in reading (dyslexia), writing (dysgraphia) and maths
(dyscalculia).
Intellectual disability (including adaptive behaviour assessment).

Tools used:

Wechsler Tests: WISC, WAIS, WIAT, WPPSI
Adaptive Behaviour Assessment System (ABAS)
Vineland
A range of questionnaires may also be used as part of the above comprehensive
assessments.

Stephanie also sees parents for a range of parenting issues:

Parenting anxiety and support
Assistance managing behavioural challenges of primary school aged children.
Helping parents understand how to play and spend positive time with their child.
Dealing with teen issues including, phone use, boundary setting, emotional connection and communication.
Helping parents identify if their child needs further assessment or therapeutic input and clarifying what might be ‘typical’ behaviour vs less ‘typical’

Stephanie’s main therapeutic approaches and programs include:

Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT),
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT),
Behavioural therapy
Mindfulness based therapies

Accreditations and registrations:

Stephanie is a registered psychologist with the Australian Health Practitioner
Regulation Agency (AHPRA) and is a member of the Australian Psychological
Association (APS).

Stephanie is available on the following days:

Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday

Debbie Bowring

Debbie is our Administration/Practice Manager with 25+ years of administrative management experience in the banking and finance sector.

Debbie is a warm and attentive professional who is passionate about nurturing a thoughtful and friendly environment in the workplace, and providing support and assistance to the team.

Julia Robinson

Julia has been the friendly voice on the other end of the clinic phone since 2017.  She brings her administrative expertise to assist clients and manage bookings.  Her warmth and efficiency is highly valued by families and clinicians.