Psychological Support for Veterans and DVA Clients
Supporting Current and Former Serving Members on the Gold Coast and via Telehealth
Leaving Defence doesn’t always mean leaving your experiences behind.
Many veterans continue to carry the psychological impact of military service long after they transition into civilian life. For some, this may involve post-traumatic stress, anxiety, depression or chronic pain. For others, the challenges are less obvious. Feeling constantly on alert, struggling to switch off, losing a sense of purpose, finding relationships difficult, or carrying guilt about events that occurred during service.
At Balance Psychology Services, we provide evidence-based psychological therapy for current and former Australian Defence Force members and DVA clients. We understand that every veteran’s experience is different, and therapy is tailored to your individual goals rather than following a one-size-fits-all approach.
Common Reasons Veterans Seek Therapy
Veterans often tell us they have spent years simply “getting on with it.”
Sometimes it isn’t until something changes… a relationship breaks down, work becomes more stressful, we become a parent, we transition out of Defence, or we simply become so exhausted that we realise it’s time to seek support.
We commonly work with veterans experiencing:
PTSD and operational trauma
Moral injury
Anxiety and excessive worry
Depression and emotional numbness
Hypervigilance
Anger and irritability
Burnout and chronic stress
Sleep difficulties and nightmares
Chronic pain
Adjustment to civilian life
Relationship difficulties
Loss of identity following military service
Guilt, shame and self-criticism
Understanding Moral Injury
Not all military trauma comes from fearing for your own life.
Many veterans carry memories involving impossible decisions, witnessing suffering, feeling unable to protect others, or believing they should have done more.
These experiences often leave people questioning themselves long after the event has ended.
Therapy provides a space to process these experiences safely, helping reduce the emotional burden while allowing you to honour your values and service.
EMDR Therapy for Veterans
EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing) is a highly researched and effective treatment for trauma.
Rather than repeatedly talking through traumatic experiences, EMDR helps the brain process memories that remain emotionally “stuck.” As memories are processed, they often become less distressing, allowing people to respond to reminders without experiencing the same level of emotional and physical activation.
EMDR can be helpful for:
PTSD
Operational trauma
Moral injury
Distressing memories
Anxiety
Chronic stress
Treatment is always paced according to your readiness, with time spent building emotional regulation skills before trauma processing begins.
Therapy That Makes Sense
Military culture often values resilience, responsibility and pushing through adversity.
These qualities can be enormous strengths, but they can also make it difficult to recognise when support is needed.
Therapy isn’t about taking those strengths away.
It’s about helping you understand the patterns that may no longer be serving you. Whether that’s always feeling responsible for everyone else, struggling to relax, remaining constantly alert, or finding it difficult to switch off after years of operational readiness.
Our approach is practical, collaborative and grounded in evidence-based therapies including:
EMDR
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
Schema Therapy
Trauma-informed psychological care
DVA Referrals
Balance Psychology Services welcomes referrals for eligible DVA clients.
If you are unsure whether you are eligible for funded psychological treatment, we are happy to discuss the referral process with you.
What to Expect
Your first appointment is an opportunity to understand what has brought you to therapy and what you would like life to look like moving forward.
Some people arrive knowing exactly what they want to work on. Others simply know that something isn’t working anymore.
Wherever you’re starting, therapy begins with understanding your story before working together to develop a treatment plan that fits your goals.
You Don’t Have to Carry It Alone
Seeking support isn’t a sign that you’ve failed.
It’s an opportunity to better understand the experiences that have shaped you, process the things that continue to weigh heavily, and move towards a life that feels more balanced, meaningful and connected.
If you’re ready to take that first step, we’d be honoured to walk alongside you.
Book an appointment today or contact Balance Psychology Services to learn more about our veteran and DVA psychology services.