First steps and wait times
Once you submit an enquiry, a member of the TPAV BlueHub team will aim to call you at your preferred time, wherever possible. During this brief conversation, you’ll learn more about the program and have the opportunity to discuss what’s going on for you.
If BlueHub is the right fit, we’ll schedule an initial intake assessment. If not, we’ll help connect you with a more suitable support service based on your needs.
Assessment and allocation
If BlueHub is identified as the most suitable option for you, the next step will be an initial intake assessment. This is a 30-minute phone conversation with a TPAV BlueHub clinician, scheduled at a time that suits you. The purpose of this assessment is to help match you with the most appropriate clinician for your needs, considering any previous treatment and your own preferences.
Once the assessment has been completed, we’ll email you two consent forms to review and return, and you’ll be placed on a short waitlist.
As soon as a clinician becomes available, a member of the TPAV BlueHub team will contact you with an offer to begin treatment. If you're comfortable with the match, the clinician will be assigned to you. From there, you won’t need to do anything—your BlueHub clinician will contact you directly to arrange your first appointment at a time and date that works for you.
First appointment
Your first session is mostly focused on helping your clinician understand your situation and how they can best support you. During this time, your clinician will explore your history, what has brought you to seek support, and any details that will help them create a treatment plan tailored to your needs.
This usually involves some open questions about your home life, work, and overall health, as well as a few short questionnaires. Sometimes, completing the assessment may take more than one session. By the end, you and your clinician should have a shared understanding of your current concerns, clear goals to work towards, and a plan for the next steps in your care.
Every clinician brings their own approach, style, and personality to their work. Your first few appointments is a chance for you to see how comfortable you feel with your clinician. If it doesn’t feel like the right fit, that’s okay—simply reach out to the BlueHub team, and we’ll be happy to help you find someone who’s a better match for you.
What happens in therapy?
Trauma therapy is a deeply personal journey, and it looks different for everyone. The right approach depends on your unique experiences, symptoms, and goals, as well as your clinician’s methods. At BlueHub, our clinicians draw on evidence-based practices that have been proven to help people recover from trauma and improve their wellbeing.
Some of the most effective therapies for trauma include Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (TF-CBT), Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR), Prolonged Exposure (PE), and Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT). Every BlueHub clinician is trained in at least two of these approaches, along with other helpful strategies. Together, you and your clinician will create a treatment plan tailored to you—one that usually includes learning about how trauma affects the brain and body and building skills to support your mental health and quality of life.
In the beginning, therapy may not focus on re-telling past traumatic events. Instead, your clinician might help you notice how trauma shows up in your thoughts, feelings, and body. This step-by-step process ensures you feel supported and not overwhelmed.
One key difference between trauma-focused therapy and general counselling is the active stage of trauma processing. Here, your clinician will guide you through safe techniques designed to help your brain store trauma as a memory—something from the past—rather than a vivid experience that resurfaces when triggered. An important part of trauma treatment is helping both your body and mind recognise that you are now safe, and that the traumatic event is in the past.
Finishing treatment
As treatment progresses, the focus often shifts from reducing distress to building a meaningful, connected life. For some, this may include completing therapy, while others may choose to continue with their clinician for ongoing support.
It’s also important to know that recovery is rarely a straight line. At times, you may feel worse before you start to feel better—this is a natural part of working through painful experiences that have been held inside for so long. Our clinicians will always move at your pace, helping you feel safe and supported every step of the way.
