Denise Gallo, AASW

Denise Gallo is an AASW counsellor with 34 years of professional experience. She draws on long clinical work and field experience to help people manage stress, anxiety, trauma and life changes. She meets people with respect, sensitivity and compassion and adapts her conversations to each person's needs.

Denise aims to make the first steps feel manageable. She acknowledges that starting therapy can be hard and encourages people to take the pace that suits them. Her manner is straightforward and warm, and she focuses on building practical momentum rather than jargon.

Her background includes many years in statutory child protection and international work, and she has raised six children. Those experiences inform how she listens to stories about family of origin, caregiving strain and blended family issues. She also supports people dealing with abandonment, adoption and foster care related concerns.

Denise uses several therapeutic approaches including Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, attachment-based work, client-centred methods, mindfulness and narrative techniques. She adapts these styles to address self-esteem, coping after domestic violence, codependency and recovery from abuse.

She speaks English, Spanish, French and Italian. Denise works in Australia and asks people to follow the usual sign-up steps to begin. Her practical focus is on helping people find manageable ways to cope, rebuild confidence and move through change.

Therapeutic approaches and online support

Denise commonly uses Acceptance and Commitment Therapy and attachment-based work alongside client-centred practice. Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) helps people clarify what matters to them and build small, workable steps aligned with those values to reduce the hold of anxiety and avoidance. Attachment-based therapy focuses on patterns formed in close relationships and helps people understand and change how they show up with others after trauma or caregiving stress. Client-centred therapy gives people space to be heard and to set the pace for change, which can be useful for building self-esteem and recovering from abuse.

Choosing the right approach is a team effort. Denise will discuss your concerns, goals and preferences and help decide which methods to try first. She adapts her use of ACT, attachment ideas and client-centred listening to fit each person's situation rather than applying a one-size-fits-all plan.

Session formats are not specified in the biography, so please confirm current online options before booking. Online therapy can make it easier to fit sessions around busy days, reduce travel time and allow for shorter check-ins when needed. It can also let people connect with a multilingual counsellor from different locations, while the therapist and client work together to choose approaches and pacing that suit everyday life.