- Grief and end-of-life focus
- Practical coping skills
- Collaborative goal setting
About Vivien
Vivien Ridgway is an AASW social worker with 36 years of professional experience. She focuses on practical support for people facing grief, stress, anxiety and life changes. Vivien aims to treat everyone with respect, sensitivity and compassion while tailoring conversations to each person's needs.
Her background includes work with relationship and parenting concerns, trauma and abuse, and issues related to gender identity. She also supports people coping with addictions, career stress, compassion fatigue and neurodiversity challenges such as ADHD and autism. This range comes from decades of varied practice in community and clinical settings.
Vivien uses a mix of person-centred methods and evidence-based techniques to help people manage mood, behaviour and difficult moments. She draws on attachment-based ideas to look at relationship patterns and on cognitive-behavioural strategies to change unhelpful thinking and habits. Mindfulness and skills from dialectical behaviour therapy are used when people need ways to manage strong emotions.
Sessions aim to be collaborative and straightforward. Vivien works to set clear goals, practise new skills in-session and build plans people can use between meetings. She also offers coaching-style support for leadership and career decisions when that is helpful.
People usually come with a specific problem or feeling stuck during a life transition. Vivien helps them work through grief, rebuild routines, manage anxiety and make practical plans that fit their life. To start, clients complete a short matching questionnaire and then schedule sessions according to availability.
Her background includes work with relationship and parenting concerns, trauma and abuse, and issues related to gender identity. She also supports people coping with addictions, career stress, compassion fatigue and neurodiversity challenges such as ADHD and autism. This range comes from decades of varied practice in community and clinical settings.
Vivien uses a mix of person-centred methods and evidence-based techniques to help people manage mood, behaviour and difficult moments. She draws on attachment-based ideas to look at relationship patterns and on cognitive-behavioural strategies to change unhelpful thinking and habits. Mindfulness and skills from dialectical behaviour therapy are used when people need ways to manage strong emotions.
Sessions aim to be collaborative and straightforward. Vivien works to set clear goals, practise new skills in-session and build plans people can use between meetings. She also offers coaching-style support for leadership and career decisions when that is helpful.
People usually come with a specific problem or feeling stuck during a life transition. Vivien helps them work through grief, rebuild routines, manage anxiety and make practical plans that fit their life. To start, clients complete a short matching questionnaire and then schedule sessions according to availability.
Areas of expertise
Primary focus
Also works with
AddictionsFamily conflictsGriefIntimacy-related issuesEating disordersSleeping disordersParenting issuesAnger managementSelf esteemCareer difficultiesBipolar disorderCoping with life changesCoachingCompassion fatigueADHD
Additional focus areas
AbandonmentAging and geriatric issuesAntisocial personalityAttachment issuesAutism and Asperger SyndromeBlended family issuesBody imageCaregiver issues and stressCommitment issuesCommunication problemsControl issuesCoping with natural or human-caused disasterDivorce and separationDomestic violenceDrug and alcohol addictionEating and food-related issuesEmptinessFamily of origin issuesFamily problemsFatherhood issuesForgivenessGender dysphoriaGuilt and shameHIV / AIDSHospice and end-of-life counselingImmigration issuesImpulsivityInfidelityIsolation / lonelinessJealousyLife purposeMoney and financial issuesMood disordersMulticultural concernsNarcissismObsessions, compulsions, and OCDPanic disorder and panic attacksPersonality disordersPostpartum depressionPost-traumatic stressPregnancy and childbirthPrejudice and discriminationSelf-harmSelf-loveSexual assault and abuseSexualitySocial anxiety and phobiaTraumatic brain injuryWomen's issuesWorkplace issuesYoung adult issues
Therapeutic approaches
Attachment-Based TherapyClient-Centered TherapyCognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)Mindfulness TherapyMotivational InterviewingNarrative TherapyPsychodynamic TherapySolution-Focused TherapyTrauma-Focused TherapySystemic Therapy
Experience
36+ years
Credentials
AASW · Australia
Languages
English
How Vivien’s approaches translate to online therapy
Vivien uses attachment-based ideas to understand how past relationships shape current patterns. This helps when people want to change how they relate to partners, family or colleagues and to make sense of recurring conflicts.She also uses cognitive behavioural therapy to identify unhelpful thoughts and to practise different behaviours. CBT is useful for anxiety, low mood and for building routines that improve sleep and eating. Mindfulness techniques are offered to help notice stress and respond more calmly to strong feelings.
Choosing the right approach is a shared process. The therapist will work with each person to match methods to their goals and preferences, and will adjust over time if something is not helping. That collaborative stance means therapy can shift from skills work to deeper relationship-focused work as needed.
The biography does not list which online formats are used, so please confirm available session types before booking. Online work can make it easier to fit therapy into a busy day, allow shorter check-ins when needed, and reduce travel time. Many people find it simpler to practise new skills between meetings when sessions fit into their routine.
Frequently asked questions
What concerns does Vivien commonly help with?
She helps with stress, anxiety, grief, relationship and parenting issues as well as trauma, addictions and mood concerns such as depression and bipolar.
What is her approach in sessions?
Vivien blends client-centred care with attachment-based ideas, CBT techniques and mindfulness to help people manage thoughts, emotions and relationships.
How much experience does she bring?
She has 36 years of professional work experience as a social worker and has worked across a variety of community and clinical roles.
What credentials and region are listed?
She is listed with the AASW and practices in Australia.
Which languages and international options are available?
Sessions are offered in English and she does not accept international clients.
What session formats are offered?
The original biography does not specify session formats; please confirm current session options before booking.
How does pricing work?
Cost varies with location and therapist availability; sessions are provided through a subscription that can be cancelled at any time.
How do I begin working with her?
Select the Start Therapy button, complete a short matching questionnaire and then schedule sessions according to the therapist's availability.