Knowledge Hub · 06

Resources & Links

Support beyond this practice. Melbourne Counselling Centre is not a crisis service — if you need help now, start with the first list.

Written by Anne Evans, Counsellor & Psychotherapist · Reviewed August 2026

If you need help now

Free, confidential, and available when this practice is not.

Emergency — 000 For immediate danger to yourself or someone else. Call now, do not wait for an appointment.
Lifeline — 13 11 14 24-hour crisis support and suicide prevention, by phone, text or chat.
Suicide Call Back Service — 1300 659 467 24-hour counselling for anyone affected by suicide.
13YARN — 13 92 76 24-hour crisis support line for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
1800RESPECT — 1800 737 732 24-hour national family violence and sexual assault counselling.

Ongoing support lines

Lower-cost or free support that works well alongside counselling.

Beyond Blue — 1300 22 4636 Anxiety, depression and suicide prevention support, 24 hours.
MensLine Australia — 1300 78 99 78 Counselling for men with family and relationship concerns.
Griefline — 1300 845 745 Grief and loss support, plus moderated online forums.
Kids Helpline — 1800 55 1800 For anyone aged 5 to 25, 24 hours a day.

Professional bodies

For checking a practitioner’s registration or finding another counsellor.

Australian Counselling Association National register of qualified counsellors — theaca.net.au. Anne Evans is an ACA member.
PACFA Psychotherapy and Counselling Federation of Australia — pacfa.org.au
Australian Psychological Society Find a psychologist, including Medicare-rebated options — psychology.org.au
Medicare Mental Health Free walk-in and phone mental health support, funded by the Australian Government — medicarementalhealth.gov.au

Worth reading

Books clients most often say made something click.

On trauma Bessel van der Kolk, The Body Keeps the Score — why trauma lives in the body.
On relationships Sue Johnson, Hold Me Tight — the pursue-withdraw cycle, and how to interrupt it.
On anxiety Russ Harris, The Happiness Trap — acceptance-based tools in plain language.
On grief Julia Samuel, Grief Works — case studies rather than instructions.

How to use this list

The crisis lines at the top are free, staffed 24 hours, and the right first call when someone is not safe — including for you if you are the one supporting them. They are not a lesser option than counselling; for an acute moment they are the better one.

Alongside counselling, not instead of it

Support lines, forums and apps do something counselling cannot: they are available at 3am. Counselling does something they cannot: sustained, individual work on the pattern underneath. Most people who get somewhere use both. If you are already working with Anne, tell her which of these you are using so the work can account for it.

Checking a practitioner

Anyone can call themselves a counsellor in Australia. The professional registers listed here let you verify qualifications and standing, and it is entirely reasonable to check before booking with anybody — including this practice. Counsellor, psychologist or psychiatrist explains what each register covers and what Medicare does and does not fund.

More from this site

Free material here includes twelve how-to guides, a 37-term glossary, the FAQs, client questions and short videos. If you want to talk to someone, book a session or send an enquiry.

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