Your Adaptations Make Sense – They Arose for Good Reasons
If traditional therapy hasn't helped, you haven't failed – the system may have failed you. While medical or structured approaches work for some, for many they don't address the deeper relational wounds.
I'm Mark McIntyre, a Gestalt therapist who works differently. I help people the medical model has labelled "treatment resistant" or "too complex." People who've been through years of treatment but are still searching. Adolescents who need support when no one understands their struggles. Anyone whose symptoms are seen as problems rather than the survival strategies they actually are.
Every symptom serves a purpose. Until we understand that purpose together, change isn't sustainable.
I Offer Something Different
Instead of This:
- Treating symptoms as pathologies
- Working against your defences
- Coordinated fragmentation of care
- Labels like "treatment resistant"
- Asking "what's wrong with you?"
I Offer This:
- Seeing symptoms as creative adjustments
- Working WITH your protective parts
- Integrated, relational healing
- Understanding that makes sense of struggle
- Asking "what happened to you?"
Who I Work With
Complex Trauma & CPTSD
I specialise in working with complex PTSD and trauma that hasn't responded to traditional approaches. I understand that healing relational wounds requires relational healing – not just medication and protocols.
Adolescents Who Need Support
Father to a teenager, I understand this generation's unique struggles. A significant number of kids at my daughter's school are self-harming. I see self-harming behaviours as attempts to manage overwhelming experiences. Together, we will explore safer alternatives to address the overwhelm.
The "Treatment Resistant"
If you've been labelled difficult, complex, or treatment resistant, I see someone whose needs weren't met by standardised approaches. Your uniqueness isn't a problem – it requires a unique response.
Those Still Searching
Years of therapy, medications, programs – yet you're still seeking something that actually helps. I offer relational therapy that honors your survival strategies while supporting genuine transformation.
A Different Perspective
Featured Article: "When the System Misses the Story"
My critique of how the medical model fragments people who are already struggling with fragmentation, and why healing happens through relationship and integration.
Read the Full ArticleGestalt + IFS Integration
I combine Gestalt therapy's focus on present-moment awareness with IFS's compassionate parts work. This integration helps us understand how past experiences live in your current moment while honouring all parts of you.
My Journey Here
From pioneering computers in education (1980) to reaching "difficult" students, from IT consulting to therapy – my path taught me that being different isn't deficit. It's variation that requires understanding.
Read My StoryBegin Your Healing
$150 per session
First two sessions 50% off
In-person (The Gap or West End, Brisbane) & Online
The Space
A calming environment in The Gap, Brisbane, where all parts of you are welcome. View the therapy space and understand the container we'll create together.
View the Space