Online Counselling, Therapy & Psychologists

Every therapist is different and their therapeutic style and personalities are all unique. However, all of our Indigo practitioners will hold a compassionate and non-judgmental space for you, where you are free to be who you are. Your therapist is there to listen to you, guide you, and help you overcome life’s challenges.

Generally, you’ll spend the first session getting to know each other, talking about your history and what it is you’d like to work through. From your second session onwards, you’ll get to go deeper, peeling back the layers and all the while learning practical strategies to help you transform and grow.

At Indigo we encourage our clients to have at least 10-20 sessions. Though this is dependent on your needs and recommendations made by your therapist.

Everyone is welcome to attend online counselling or therapy with one of our practitioners at The Indigo Project.

Online counselling or therapy via Zoom is an accessible, safe and convenient option for those who are unable to attend face-to-face appointments, or simply prefer to meet online. Whether it be a busy schedule due to work and family, health-related reasons or distance, online counselling can help you.

Our team of trained clinical psychologists, psychologists, psychotherapists and counsellors attend to a range of common mental health issues such as depression, anxiety, stress, grief and loss, life transitions, relationship issues and more.

A number of practitioners also specialise in areas such as sexuality, gender and identity, addiction, sports and performance, personality disorders and therapy for children and adolescents.

Several therapists also provide services in marriage counselling and couples therapy.

We highly encourage you to view our practitioners and use the filtering options to find a psychologist or counsellor who can help you with the issues you are seeking help for.

Meet our therapists and what they can help you with here.

If you need help, our Therapy Matchmakers team will be able to match you with a practitioner. Give us a call on (02) 9212 5469 or email us at [email protected] so we can support you on your journey.

Our therapists typically have capacity to see several new clients each month. However these openings can get filled up fast from those who have been on a waitlist. If there is someone that you particularly want to see but is currently unavailable, we can place you on a waitlist until there is an opening.

If you prefer to attend an online counselling session sooner, our Therapy Matchmakers can help you find an alternative practitioner based on your needs and what you are looking to achieve in therapy.

Meeting a therapist for the first time can feel like a first date. If you don’t connect with your therapist on your first or second session, we’ll pair you with a new practitioner and your next session will be on the house* as part of our Perfect Match Promise.

*Terms and conditions apply.

If you are the parent or legal guardian of a minor, you will need to make an appointment online or via the phone.

We have many psychologists, psychotherapists & counsellors who have experience dealing with children and adolescents in therapy. See who can help here.

Those who require online counselling or therapy will have to make an appointment directly with The Indigo Project via our online booking form or on the phone. We do not accept bookings on behalf of an individual or couple from a third party unless as part of an insurance plan, support scheme or similar arrangement.

Couples are welcome to attend online therapy sessions together with one of our couples therapists.

We recommend setting up for your online therapy session 5-10 minutes before it commences. Make sure your computer or phone microphone and video is working, and that you are comfortable and ready to sit through your session uninterrupted.

There’s zero pressure to prepare anything for your first session but if you find it helpful, you can jot down some points about specific things you’d like to work on or discuss with your therapist.

Everything you discuss with your therapist here at Indigo is absolutely confidential, and will not be shared unless you or someone else is at risk of serious harm.

For first time clients, payment is made via debit or credit card at the time of booking. For returning clients, there are a number of payment methods available such as authorised direct debit or online via the payments link on your invoice.

The Indigo Project started in Sydney, and now offer telehealth services to anywhere in Australia, given there is stable internet or phone connection. Whether that is Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide, Hobart, Darwin, online counselling is a convenient and effective means of therapy.

A GP Referral acts as a cover letter from your GP to The Indigo Project (or your specific psychologist). It explains to us why you’re being referred, what type of plan you’re on (Initial, Review or Better Access Pandemic) along with the number of sessions with a psychologist you’re eligible for (6, 4 or 10).

A referral also includes your GP details, their provider number and their signature. Your Mental Health Care Plan isn’t valid without one of these.

A Mental Health Care Plan (MHCP) is a more structured document with specific sections for the GP to fill out regarding your circumstances and medical history. It needs to specify a Medicare item number as this will tell your practitioner whether it is your initial plan or a review. It should also be signed and dated by your GP.

Initial plan 

• Your GPs provider number, address, phone number, full name and signature
• Your full name and date of birth.
• Date of Initial Plan.
• The type of referral and the number of sessions it provides, e.g. Initial = 6, Review = 4, Better Access Pandemic = 10.

We also need your GP to provide a Mental Health Care Plan to go with the referral. This includes more background information about you which will help your practitioner create the best strategy to support you.

Review Plan

• Needs to contain the GP details (provider number, address, phone number, full name and signature)
• Addressed to the Indigo Project
• Specifies an item number eg 2712 or specifies type of plan eg 'review'
• Needs to specify the number of sessions (4 - 6)

BAPS Referral

• Needs to contain the GP details (provider number, address, phone number, full name and signature)
• Addressed to the Indigo Project
• Specifies an item number eg 2712 or specifies type of plan eg 'review'
• Specifies it is a Better Access Pandemic Scheme (BAPS) review
• Allocates 10 sessions

Unfortunately, no. Medicare will not allow us to accept a referral unless it is addressed to either The Indigo Project or to your specific practitioner.

You need a new referral and mental health care plan when you have used up the number of sessions on your current plan.

For example, your initial plan will be for 6 sessions, followed by a review which will give you 4 sessions, followed by another review for the pandemic scheme which will give you another 10 sessions. (This means you’re now eligible to claim for 20 sessions per calendar year, which is pretty cool).

Medicare rebates allow you to get a chunk of your session fee paid for by the Aus government. You can qualify for a rebate by grabbing a referral from a GP, along with an up-to-date Mental Health Care Plan.

Please note, this applies only when you see one of our Psychologists/Clinical Psychologists (Psychotherapists, Counsellors & Coaches, unfortunately, don’t qualify for the rebate).

The Medicare rebate depends on the type of psychologist you see.
If you’re seeing a registered or senior psychologist, the rebate is approximately $89, but if you’re seeing a clinical psychologist, it’s about $131 (check out the table below…)

How it works is, you pay the up-front full fee to us, and then claim the rebate following your session (directly through Medicare).

After you’ve paid the up-front full fee and have had your session with us, we’ll send you an invoice.

This invoice will have all the information you need to lodge your claim directly with Medicare using the Express Plus Medicare App on your smartphone. Check out our blog which shows a simple step-by-step guide on how to set this up.

Once you’ve lodged your claim correctly, you’ll receive a rebate payment from Medicare directly into the bank account that you have linked to your MyGov account.

It can take up to 7 days for the rebate to land in your bank account, however, the average wait time is 24 - 48 hours.

We do not currently offer Bulk-Billing services. Best to ask your GP about clinics that offer bulk billing near you.

In a cool move by the Aussie government, you are now eligible to claim rebates for up to 20 sessions with a psychologist per calendar year (e.g. Jan 2022- Dec 2022).

An Initial Mental Health Care Plan and a GP Referral Letter will qualify you for 6 (Initial) sessions with a psychologist before you’ll need to go back to your GP for a Review.

Once you’ve had your review with your GP you’ll be eligible for another 4 (review) sessions with your psychologist.

After those 4 (review) sessions, you’ll need to go back to your GP again for another review which will release the extra 10 (Better Access Pandemic) sessions.