About your therapist, Lauren Fisher
Lauren (she/her) lives in the city of Knox, near the Dandenong Ranges, Wurundjeri Country, in Naarm (Melbourne), Australia, with her young adult human and elderly Siamese cat.
In her previous career, Lauren was a portrait photographer for over 15 years, working for large studios, schools, community facilities, and wildlife sanctuaries. Through this work experience, Lauren began to notice a strong link between the power of the arts in creating positive memories, allowing spaces for people from all over the world to share their stories and come together in community.
While still a lover of photography, she now enjoys exploring all things papercraft, collage, art journalling and mixed media art. Lately, she has been exploring various forms of creative writing and mixed media wall art that incorporates textiles and nature-based objects. Many of these have become popular modalities in her therapeutic offerings.
Alongside the visual arts, Lauren is a lover of all things dance, movement, and music, specifically those of dance forms found in the Middle East and their modern fusions. Over time, Lauren experienced firsthand and observed in others how dance, movement, and music facilitate non-verbal creative expression, sensory and somatic awareness, reclamation of the body, and connection and healing within a community. As a result, Lauren very naturally combines aspects of Dance and Movement Therapy (DMT) into her therapeutic practice.
Born from her deep interest and self-led education in natured-based spiritualities and transpersonal arts, Lauren calls herself “a bit of a Theosophical Omniest Pagan”. Although not formally certified, her transpersonal approach has become a much sought after and integral part of her therapeutic offerings.
You will often find her with her nose in a book, actively engaging in the Arts and going on grand adventures somewhere in the outdoors. She is also on the journey of exploring her own queer identity.
To learn more about the multimodal creative and experiental approaches that Lauren can offer within her services, please check out the page ✨here✨.
EXPERIENCE
Lauren specialises in neurodevelopmental and neurological disability care, including:
✨Autism – all levels of support needs
✨ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) - Externalised, internalised and combined types
✨Combined types of Autism and ADHD - “Autistic Fast Brains” or “AuDHD”
✨SPD - Sensory Processing Differences inc. APD - Auditory Processing Differences
✨Global Developmental Delay + Intellectual Impairment
✨PDA - Pathological Demand Avoidance aka “Pervasive Drive for Autonomy”
✨Learning challenges e.g dyslexia, dyscalculia, dysgraphia
✨Muscular Dystrophy
✨Alzheimer's and Dementia, inc. Frontotemporal and Aphasia
✨Tourette’s Syndrome
With extensive experience in supporting mental ill-health and trauma-induced disability, such as:
✨Anxiety
✨Depression
✨Psychosocial Disability
✨Bipolar I + II
✨Schizophrenia
✨Schizo-Affective Disorder
✨BPD (Borderline Personality Disorder)
✨ABI/TBI - Acquired or Traumatic Brain Injury
✨PTSD and C-PTSD
And challenging life situations, including:
✨Burnout - specialising in Autistic and ADHD burnout
✨Exploring identity, gender and sexuality
✨Grief, loss and bereavement
✨Parenting and motherhood
✨Family dynamics and intergenerational trauma
✨Finding and maintaining a spiritual path
✨Questioning spiritual, religious, cultural or societal norms
✨Challenges met from experiences with non-ordinary states of consciousness - spiritual, psychiatric or substance-induced
✨General lack of satisfaction with life’s direction - needing guidance, inspiration and a road map to moving forward
All challenges are met through biopsychosocial-spiritual systems theory and the Social Model of Disability, with a compassionate and deeply empathetic understanding of how neurodiversity, disability, mental ill-health and adversity can often intersect and co-occur.
EDUCATION:
✨ BA in Arts Psychotherapy - Ikon Institute of Australia
CURRENT REGISTRATION, INSURANCE AND CHECKS
✨ANZACATA - Tiered
✨PACFA - Clinical Counsellor
✨Public Liability and Professional Indemnity Insurance with Focus
✨NDIS Check - NDIS Worker Screening Clearance
✨First Aid and CPR
✨Working with Children’s Check
✨Police Check
SUPERVISION
✨Lauren participates in regular 1:1 and group clinical supervision with a trusted supervisor and small cohort of peers.
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
✨Art Therapy First Aide with Dr Carla Van Laar | 2020
✨Getting Creative with Trauma Part 2 with Dr Carla Van Laar | 2020
✨The Art of Relationship, Connection and Co-creation with Dr Carla Van Laar | 2020
✨Creative Mental Health and Self-Care Retreat with Dr Carla Van Laar | 2021
✨Yellow Ladybugs Conference: Supporting Autistic Girls/Gender Diverse Youth | 2023, 2024
✨Tending to the Therapist Within with Laura Battley | 2024
✨Authentic Practice facilitator in collaboration with Laura Battley | 2025