Antoinette Bastian , PACFA

Antoinette Bastian is a counsellor with four years of practice based in Australia. She focuses on helping women who are feeling overwhelmed by stress, anxiety, relationship strains, grief and shifts in self-esteem. Antoinette speaks plainly and works alongside clients to find small, workable steps forward.

She treats clients as experts in their own lives and builds on existing strengths. Sessions aim to be practical and supportive, with attention to what is most pressing for each person. Antoinette encourages realistic goals and steady progress rather than quick fixes.

Her work covers life transitions such as divorce and midlife reassessment, and health-related stresses including chronic illness and ageing concerns. She also supports people dealing with panic attacks, social anxiety, workplace pressure and smoking or vaping cessation. Women’s issues form a consistent part of her focus.

Antoinette uses evidence-based therapeutic techniques suited to each person's needs. She helps clients find ways to manage panic, reduce social avoidance and rebuild self-worth. The tone in sessions is collaborative, respectful and aimed at practical outcomes.

Clients can expect clear conversations about goals and simple strategies to try between meetings. Antoinette welcomes questions and works at a pace that suits each person’s comfort and readiness for change.

Approaches for online therapy and what to expect

Antoinette uses evidence-based therapeutic techniques to address common difficulties in everyday language. One approach she draws on focuses on helping people manage panic and anxiety through paced breathing, grounding exercises and gradual exposure to feared situations. This approach helps reduce the intensity and frequency of panic attacks and social avoidance.

Another set of techniques emphasises practical self-esteem work and coping skills for life changes. These involve identifying unhelpful thought patterns, trying small behavioural experiments and building routines that support mood and confidence. These strategies are useful for grief, midlife shifts and relationship stress.

Finding the right approach is a collaborative process. Antoinette will discuss options with each client and adapt methods to match their goals, preferences and daily realities. She works with people to set clear goals and try techniques between sessions to see what fits.

Online sessions are offered by video call, phone, live chat or text-based messaging to make therapy flexible. Video calls allow face-to-face conversation, phone sessions can suit low-bandwidth situations, live chat works for shorter check-ins, and messaging lets people share thoughts between meetings. These options help people fit therapy around work, family and other commitments.