Melissa Stokes, AASW, AHPRA
25 years in practice
Melissa Stokes is an experienced clinician who helps people manage stress, anxiety, trauma, grief and life changes.
License and registration
- AASW
- 458598 · expires June 2026
- AHPRA
- PSY0002632549 · expires November 2026
- Years in practice
- 25
- Languages
- English
Details are as listed on the therapist's public professional profile. You can check the registration with the body that granted it.
About Melissa
Melissa Stokes is an experienced clinician who helps people manage stress, anxiety, trauma, grief and life changes. She works with a wide range of concerns including mood differences, ADHD, eating and sleeping problems, parenting strains, and self-esteem or career questions. She brings a calm, straightforward approach to the first step of reaching out.
Melissa has 25 years of practice in Australia and holds AASW and AHPRA credentials. She has worked in hospitals, community mental health, youth justice, sexual assault services, and both public and independent practice.
Background and approach
That variety means she has seen many kinds of life challenges and practical ways to respond. Her style is collaborative and person-centred. She listens first, then helps people build skills they can use day to day.
Sessions often include simple learning, paced exposure to difficult feelings, and practical tools for coping and decision-making. Melissa draws on approaches such as Emotionally-Focused Therapy, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, attachment-based work, cognitive behavioural techniques and client-centred counselling. She adapts methods to suit each person's needs rather than following a single formula.
She also supervises students and other professionals, sharing experience gained from clinical and research work. Outside clinical life Melissa enjoys hiking, foraging, music, board games, yoga and time with her dogs. Her background combines clinical practice with research into online mindfulness and gendered violence assessment work.
Focus areas and approaches
Everything Melissa lists on their public professional profile, in their own terms.
- Stress, Anxiety
- LGBT
- Trauma and abuse
- Coping with life changes
- Coaching
- Grief
- Eating disorders
- Sleeping disorders
- Parenting issues
- Self esteem
- Career difficulties
- Bipolar disorder
- Depression
- ADHD
- Abandonment
- Aging and geriatric issues
- Attachment issues
- Blended family issues
- Body image
- Cancer
- Caregiver issues and stress
- Co-morbidity
- Codependency
- Commitment issues
- Communication problems
- Control issues
- Coping with natural or human-caused disaster
- Dependent personality
- Dissociation
- Divorce and separation
- Domestic violence
- Family of origin issues
- Family problems
- First responder issues
- Forgiveness
- Gender dysphoria
- Guilt and shame
- Impulsivity
- Infidelity
- Isolation / loneliness
- Jealousy
- Life purpose
- Midlife crisis
- Veteran and Armed Forces Issues
- Narcissism
- Obsessions, compulsions, and OCD
- Panic disorder and panic attacks
- Paranoia
- Personality disorders
- Phobias
- Polyamory / non-monogamous relationships
- Postpartum depression
- Post-traumatic stress
- Pregnancy and childbirth
- Prejudice and discrimination
- Process addiction (porn, exercise, gambling)
- Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)
- Self-harm
- Self-love
- Sexual assault and abuse
- Sexuality
- Social anxiety and phobia
- Somatization
- Trichotillomania
- Women's issues
- Workplace issues
- Young adult issues
Approaches Melissa names
- Emotionally-Focused Therapy (EFT)
- Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
- Attachment-Based Therapy
- Client-Centered Therapy
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
- Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)
- Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR)
- Mindfulness Therapy
- Motivational Interviewing
- Narrative Therapy
- Psychodynamic Therapy
- Solution-Focused Therapy
- Somatic Therapy
- Trauma-Focused Therapy
Naming an approach is not evidence of training in it. This directory copies what each therapist lists and does not check training records.
Online support
How therapeutic approaches translate to online care
Emotionally-Focused Therapy (EFT) focuses on mapping and shifting emotional patterns in relationships and within oneself. Online sessions can use EFT-style work to name feelings, practise new responses, and build stronger emotional awareness when distress arises.Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) helps people notice painful thoughts and feelings without getting overwhelmed by them. It uses simple exercises to clarify values and build small actions that move life in a chosen direction, which adapts well to phone or video coaching and homework tasks.
Attachment-Based Therapy explores how early connections shape current ways of relating and feeling safe. In remote sessions this can mean talking through relational patterns, tracking emotional triggers, and practising new ways of asking for support.
Finding the right approach is part of the work. Melissa will collaboratively discuss your needs, goals and preferences and suggest which methods to try first. She adjusts the plan as you learn what helps, so you’re involved in choosing the path forward.
Online therapy offers practical flexibility - video calls for richer face-to-face interaction, phone sessions when bandwidth is limited or a shorter check-in is needed, and live chat or text for brief reflections or ongoing coaching. These options make it easier to fit therapy into work, family life or when travel is difficult, while keeping the focus on what helps you move forward.
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Questions people ask
What issues can Melissa help with?
She supports people facing stress, anxiety, depression, bipolar mood challenges, trauma and abuse, grief, parenting strain, eating and sleeping difficulties, ADHD and self-esteem concerns.
How would you describe her therapy style?
Melissa works in a collaborative, person-centred way. She listens, validates feelings and then introduces practical skills and strategies to use between sessions.
What level of experience does she have?
Melissa has 25 years of professional experience across hospitals, community mental health, youth justice, sexual assault services and both public and independent practice.
What credentials and location are listed?
She holds AASW and AHPRA credentials and practices in Australia.
Which languages and international clients are supported?
Sessions are offered in English and international clients are not currently accepted.
What session formats does she use?
Therapy is offered via video calls, phone sessions, live chat or text-based messaging depending on what suits you.
How are fees and payments handled?
Cost varies with location and therapist arrangements; sessions use a subscription model that can be cancelled at any time.
How do I begin working with her?
Click the Start Therapy button, complete a short matching questionnaire, and schedule a time according to therapist availability.
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