Welcome back to a new year, and a new edition of Counselling Australia.

At least one-fifth of Australians are directly impacted by chronic illness, with counsellors and therapists more and more likely to see these impacts in session. For that reason, this edition of our magazine explores some of the many aspects of living with one or more chronic illnesses.

To open this edition, Neal Davies has written a first-person perspective on living with chronic PTSD, which offers moving insight into how vicarious trauma can manifest into a chronic condition. Neal and his wife Cathie are both counsellors by profession, with the piece delving into their experience of PTSD and how they were able to heal together. The edition also features a review of Neal’s book by Dr Gaye Cameron.

We’re also pleased to publish a conversation with Jane Milne, CEO of MNDandMe, on motor neurone disease – a condition that two people every day are diagnosed with, and that has a life expectancy of just two and half years. MNDandMe serves the Queensland community, and we encourage any QLD-based counsellors specialising in grief counselling and/or chronic illness to get in touch for prospective client referrals via this form.

Burnout is the subject of an excellent piece by Amanda Dounis, exploring the causes and coping strategies that she’s found helpful across years of working with clients and supervising counsellors. Gabriel Kram, an international clinician and lecturer, has contributed a piece explaining his research into Autonomics – a new view on how the nervous system interacts with stress, and its relationship to chronic illness.

We’re also proud to provide an update from Counselling Corner Myanmar, with thanks to co-founder Edwin Briels and every ACA member who gave their time to supervise and advise therapists from the organisation working in Myanmar.

In addition, Marie-Clare De Vere has contributed an excellent literature review on behavioural-variant frontotemporal dementia (bvFTD), an increasingly recognised and studied form of dementia.

Mark your calendars for our Symposium on 28 May at Pullman Albert Park, Melbourne, as we explore the theme of identity. Featuring presenters from PANDA, the National Eating Disorders Collaboration, the University of Melbourne, and more, the program will include discussions on navigating identity after pregnancy loss, identity after conviction, supporting dads in the perinatal period, rebuilding identity in eating disorder recovery, new research on family and domestic violence, and Deaf identity and trauma. Please see the Symposium advertisement page for more information on this event.

We wish our members all the best launching into the new year.

The ACA Team