About
Meet Dr Marianne Torres
Clinical Psychologist DPsyc(Clin), BPsychSc(Hons)
“There is no ‘one size fits all’ approach. I want to know about your story – what makes you thrive and what energises you.”
It has been an incredibly interesting journey of studying psychology that got me here. I naively thought that maybe by the time I finished my masters degree I would be a “better psychologist.” But as I stood there with my oversized hat receiving my doctorate degree, I knew there was so much more to discover.
It is exciting times as research on the brain is evolving and I love this about my work.
I’ve learnt the most from working in teams with great minds like psychiatrists, paediatricians speech therapists, occupational therapists and social workers. They taught me about family systems and attachment-based models which now grounds my practice.
These places I’ve worked like Redbank House, Family and Community Services and rehabilitation centres, where people are in dire need of help (just surviving!)- are perceived as the most complex.
It helped me see complexity as an opportunity to work systemically and reflectively.
How can I be of help?
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Anxiety and Depression
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Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and Complex Trauma
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Child and Parent relationship problems
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Disruptive behaviours and attention problems
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Parenting at each developmental stage from infancy to adolescence
(including fertility, prenatal and postnatal)
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Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD)
I’ve also written and published some stuff during my doctorate on fathers in parenting – their contribution is sometimes underestimated but equally important.
I really love running parenting groups because there is so much character in a group it’s fun! I can always relate to that soft spoken character that takes lots of notes and loves eating morning tea – that’s me in a nutshell.
It’s taken a bit of work and practice, but I think I am a pretty great listener 😃
Creativity is also my key to building solid connections – using music, movement, play, books, animals, sports to engage. When I work with children with Autism, they constantly invite me to get to know their lens of the world and what excites them as individuals.
There is no “one size fits all” approach. I want to know about your story – what makes you thrive and what energises you.
My husband says parenting is “bittersweet” because we have felt love and pain like nothing we’ve felt before.
We have had those days of sleep deprivation, sticky play-doh on shirts, on our laptops and probably up our dog’s nose (again?!).
It has tested our limits but has helped us recognise our strengths more than ever. When it feels like I’m just surviving, I try to remember that I am constantly working towards more days and even small moments of thriving.
So I’m here before you, as an imperfect Filipina-Australian parent living in the beautiful Blue Mountains. Sometime ago, when I had more free time, I was travelling and reading more, cooking fancier meals, spending too much money in cafes eating avocado on toast and even snowboarding in winter. Like some of you, I’ve been a child and a teen and now I get to be a grown up!
It would be really great to finally meet you. Let’s talk soon!
