A conversation with Lyndsay

Lyndsay, tell us about your current role as a psychologist. What does your role involve and what does a typical day look like for you?

I am the Director of The Self Centre.  I oversee all the goings on at the practice, and help to ensure that everyone is engaged in values-based work.  My job is varied, flexible, and dynamic, which I absolutely love. 

I see my role as being about building relationships and supporting people (our team, our valued clients, and our referring doctors).

The heart-beat of my job is the therapeutic work that I do.  I feel grateful to be able to accompany people in their lives.  I also spend a lot of my week working with my team to build strong practices, developing trusting relationships with our referring doctors so that we offer comprehensive quality care, learning and reading to ensure that I am abreast with quality evidence-based treatment protocol.  I connect with Psychologists from other practices – we offer each other support and advice, and I spend a lot of time thinking creatively about how we can continue to offer ongoing quality treatment.

Why did you become a psychologist?

My parents are both kind people, who are very interested in human behavior and are both quite psychologically minded.  My father a business man, and my mother was a teacher and school counsellor.  They both taught me the value of understanding human behavior and that by understanding ourselves and others, we can offer kindness, forgiveness, and shared humanity.   I think growing up in the kind of environment lead to an evitable career in Psychology.  I have never wanted anything other than to be a Psychologist, it is something that is always with me. 

What’s the best thing about your job?

I love connecting with people, I love accompanying people through the difficult moments, and celebrating their wins. I love the opportunity to build trusting relationships with people.  I love sharing the little moments of being human that we can all relate to, and also those big ‘ah ha’ moments.   I love helping people learn about who they are and why.  I have worked with some people for many years and I really enjoy accompanying them through their lives. 

I also love running the business of a private practice.  I love how dynamic and flexible the role is and how many different things I get to do in my week.  I love the creativity that is required to help the business grow, and I love the team-work involved in making it all come together.   Every day is different and I love that.

How do you keep physically and mentally healthy?

Health is very important to me, physical, psychological and emotional. I am very deliberate with my health care: I priorities recovery and self-care above all else. I try to sleep 7-8 hours each night, and walk 10,000+ steps each day, I eat healthy fresh food, and I don’t drink or use any drugs. 

I spend lots of time with people I love laughing and having fun, but by nature I’m an introvert so I ensure that I also have enough down-time/alone-time in every day and across the week so that I feel balanced. 

I have learned to monitor the quality of my thoughts through mindfulness practice, and respond immediately with self-care when I need it.  I tend to find noise overwhelming, so I ensure that my recovery time is quiet or silent.  

What do you enjoy outside of work?

I really value down-time.  I don’t often have full day’s off – between parenting my 2 boys, and balancing the business needs I don’t often have the luxury of full day’s off.  However, I do try to find regular times for myself in each week.  If I have enough time, I’m likely at the beach, either walking or reading. 

Growing up in Canada, of course we didn’t have beaches like we do here in Australia, and I always feel so grateful and fortunate when I’m at the beach.  Often after I’ve been to the beach for an hour or two, I have a much more productive day when I get home and I always feel more spacious after time at the ocean.