Adam Szmerling

Are you struggling with anxiety, relationship problems or emotional overwhelm? I’m Adam Szmerling, a Melbourne psychotherapist with more than 20 years of experience.

Born and raised in Melbourne, I’m an Accredited Mental Health Social Worker (AASW) and Clinical Psychotherapist (PACFA Reg. Clinical 21960).

I work with adults and couples who feel stuck in cycles of anxiety, addiction, relationship difficulties or overwhelming emotions, and who are ready to talk about what keeps those cycles going.

I founded Bayside Psychotherapy in 2009. It is now based in Highett, with sessions in person and online. The practice featured on Channel 7’s House of Wellness in a segment on fears and phobias.

My main approach is psychoanalytic psychotherapy, which looks closely at your thoughts and behaviours and what may sit underneath them. There is published research supporting it for people who commit to the process. I also use schema therapy when it fits.

As well as sessions in Highett, I offer secure, encrypted online sessions, so you can see me from anywhere in Melbourne or further away.

I listen closely to the words you use, and nothing you bring is judged. I draw on Western and Eastern traditions, including my training in Buddhist psychotherapy, depending on what suits you.

I work to create a space where you feel heard, understood and accepted for who you are.

Psychoanalytic psychotherapy: Most people come wanting to stop something: the drinking, the checking, the arguments, the porn. In my experience what’s causing the trouble is usually also doing something for the person, and the first job is to find out what, in their own words.

I listen closely and say back some of what I hear. People often start to hear themselves differently. Knowing why you do something rarely stops it on its own. Saying it out loud, over time, sometimes does, and the change tends to show up later, in what you do.

This is slower work than a short course of sessions. For most people it runs months, sometimes longer. Sessions are face to face in Highett or by video. Later on I may suggest the couch, when the timing is right. If you want a structured program of exercises, another therapist here may suit you better, and reception can help you choose.

Schema Therapy: looks at how early childhood experiences can create patterns that affect your thoughts, feelings and behaviours as an adult. It combines ideas from cognitive-behavioural therapy, attachment theory, and psychodynamic therapy to help you understand and change harmful patterns. This approach can also help couples look at how they relate to each other.

Both approaches look at where symptoms come from as well as the symptoms themselves, and regular sessions over time matter.

Therapy works best when you can come regularly, so we keep the thread from one session to the next, and when you’re willing to say what’s hard to say.

If that sounds like you, I’d love to help. Here’s how to get started:

1. Book your session: call reception on (03) 9557 9113 or book online.

2. Prepare for your session: For online appointments, I’ll send you a secure form to fill out and a link to our virtual waiting room. For in-person appointments, you’ll receive an email confirmation and an intake form to complete before your visit.

You can claim Medicare rebates with a valid Mental Health Treatment Plan (MHTP). Bulk-billing is not available. You or your GP can email me, or fax your referral to 03 9124 1522.

I also accept NDIS self-managed and plan-managed clients on a case by case basis. Please contact me before booking if you are an NDIS participant.