Kanda Psychology

25/07/2025

The Weekly WRAP — for the last 3 weeks 😂

Well our week ended on a foul note - quite literally. Sewerage issues to keep Friday interesting! All sorted now with the help of our very amazing plumber. Lots of airing out over the weekend to come 😷

Our beautiful space is now fitted out with LED lights in all our consultation rooms. With 3 settings — warm, white, and natural — and dimmers, everyone's sensory needs can be respected 💡

With the school holidays behind us now, we're adding the finishing touches to reports and look forward to feedback appointments in a few weeks time ✍🏻

And of course we're still riding on the sheer fabulousness of having the amazing Sandhya from Onwards and Upwards Psychology all to ourselves! Such a valuable experience and one we will continue to reflect on and build upon for a long time yet. Jess and Patrina too benefited from some reflection on their important role as the first point of contact for our referrers and families ✅

Of course we welcomed back our therapy clients and look forward to seeing more of our kids, teens, and families next week 🎉

Happy weekend!

24/07/2025

23/07/2025

From first baby shoes to first work boots...

How ironic that we spend their whole lives helping them grow into strong, kind, capable adults… and then feel so mixed when they start to do just that.

What a ride this parenting thing is!

22/07/2025

21/07/2025

ADHD is a term many know — and some signs, like fidgeting or trouble focusing, are widely recognised. But ADHD doesn’t always look the way we expect. Every child is different, and some signs can be subtle, missed, or misunderstood.

Click through to explore some of the lesser-known ways ADHD might show up. Understanding the nuances can help us better support our kids and teens.

20/07/2025

While the clinical team were busy with professional development, so were our A team. (And no, A doesn’t stand for admin — it stands for AMAZING, because these two really do keep everything running!)

Patrina and Jess travelled to Albury to attend an Accidental Counsellor workshop, joining professionals from across the health, disability support, and social work sectors. They spent the day building skills to recognise and respond to distress and safety concerns in clients, families, and colleagues.

As the first point of contact at Kanda, this training helps strengthen their ability to support and guide families to the care they need — with compassion and confidence.

19/07/2025

It's nearly time for school to return! And even though it will be Term 3, and the backpacks and lunchboxes aren’t new anymore… some children (and parents!) may still find the transition back to school after the holiday break tricky.

Anxiety or distress after a break is simply a reminder that change, even familiar change, can still be hard.

📚 Keep goodbyes short, calm, and predictable — your confidence becomes their borrowed bravery 📚 Keep it simple. Too many words — explaining, asking, reassuring — can actually add to the confusion 📚 Gently name the feelings you see — “I can see it’s a bit hard going back today” and affirm that you know they can do this 📚 Reduce non essential after school activities for the first week or two — little brains and bodies may need more time to decompress and reset 📚 If you are still worried after a few days, check in with your child's teacher 📚

Return to school wobbles are just a reminder that little nervous systems need time, support, and connection to find their feet again.

18/07/2025

We love the incredible work of Sandhya Menon from Onwards and Upwards Psychology — her beautiful storybooks, the wealth of free resources on her website, and the parenting courses we often recommend to families.

So it was an absolute privilege to welcome Sandhya to Wagga Wagga this week for a tailored professional development day with our team — how lucky are we?!?!

The day didn’t feel like “training” — it felt like a warm, honest, reflective, and supportive conversation. With neuroaffirming practice as our foundation, we explored how to better understand and support PDA profiles and autistic children experiencing distress. We walked away with thoughtful insights and practical strategies that are immediately useful — both in the therapy room and in the lives of the children and families we support.

We’re so grateful to Sandhya for so generously sharing her professional wisdom, clinical experience, and lived perspective — and for becoming a Wagga local for the day. 😊

16/07/2025

When our kids are struggling, it’s natural to want to jump into problem-solving mode. But more often than not, what they really need first is you — your calm presence, your listening ears, your gentle validation.

Being heard is healing.
Feeling understood is grounding.

15/07/2025

Today marked 1 year at 43 Best street! And what a year it's been...

- We packed, we cleaned, and we moved from Docker street
- One of us reversed into a pole
- We made our own signage
- And got proper signage made
- We celebrated the Olympic spirit with Green and Gold day
- We dressed up for Book Week
- We put a staff shower in
- And then we pulled the shower out
- We rocked our new merch
- We pulled a palm tree down
- Some of us walked 100km, raising funds for the Black Dog Institute
- We knocked walls down
- We built a brand new consultation room (now we have 5 in total)
- We wore it purple
- We got new flooring throughout
- We removed nasty wall decor
- We painted the inside of the practice
- Patrina joined us
- 2 interns nailed their internships and became fully registered psychs
- Someone had an '0' birthday
- We hosted Phoenix Allison Rising for some amazing professional development
- We crowned an inaugural lawn bowls winner
- We welcomed Dan to the team
- We introduced ourselves to AI
- and Steph came onboard

Most importantly, we have loved welcoming families and offering our services from our very warm, accessible, accomodating, and cosy little home!

14/07/2025

Kids often feel first — big, fast, and loud — long before they have the words to explain what’s going on.

When we help our child put words to what they’re feeling — “You’re feeling really disappointed we have to leave the park” or “That was a big fright when the dog barked” — we’re not just labelling emotions. We’re helping their brain make sense of what’s going on inside.

This process of naming emotions builds emotional awareness, reduces intensity, and lays the foundation for self-regulation. Having an adult gently name the feeling is a first step in feeling safe, seen, and supported.

So next time your child is overwhelmed, try saying what you see:
“You look really cross. I wonder if it’s because you wanted a turn.”

It doesn’t have to be perfect — just real, and attuned. Name it, to help them tame it.