About Dr Jacob Cooney
Cooinda Psychiatry Clinic, Buderim Private Hospital
Dr Jacob Cooney is a clinical psychologist in private practice at Buderim, on the Sunshine Coast. He provides assessment, diagnosis, and psychological treatment services for a range of psychological or mental disorders and conditions that negatively affect people’s functioning and quality of life.
Treatment
Dr Jacob Cooney at Cooinda Psychiatry Clinic, Buderim Private Hospital
Assessment, diagnosis and treatment is guided by mainstream research and academic evidence in the fields of psychological science and clinical psychology. Psychological treatment and therapy has a skills-based focus. This involves developing and practising psychological skills within sessions with Jacob and outside the sessions, in order to improve symptoms and quality of life. The types of psychological skills-based approaches employed by Jacob are outlined below.
Cognitive and Schema (Thinking and Beliefs) Therapy
Developing skills for responding effectively to unhelpful and often negative thoughts, beliefs, assumptions, and rules that can trigger and worsen problematic emotions and behaviours.
BEHAVIOURAL THERAPY
Developing the skill of identifying and changing behaviour patterns that reinforce and maintain problematic emotions and thought patterns.
EXPOSURE THERAPY
Approaching (gradually), rather than avoiding, situations that people fear. Exposure is the most essential ingredient in overcoming anxiety. However, for exposure therapy to help it needs to be done gradually, regularly, for prolonged periods of time, and under the guidance of a clinical psychologist.
Mindfulness skills
The skill of improving one's ability to observe and describe thoughts, emotions, situations, oneself, and other people without judging.
Judgementalness is a thinking process that is implicated in the maintenance of unhelpful emotions and behaviours.
Mindfulness and acceptance skills address the emotional and behavioural problems caused by judgementalness.
Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT)
Psychological skills for improving a person’s ability to tolerate distress and big emotions, regulate these emotions (i.e., reduce the intensity and duration of these emotions), and improve a person’s effectiveness in communicating with others.
DBT skills are particularly important for helping people with personality conditions (such as borderline personality disorder), depression and anxiety, and/or addictive, reckless and suicidal behaviour patterns.
Motivational Interviewing
Engaging in a conversation about change (e.g., changing behaviour patterns such as using alcohol, engaging in suicidal and self-harm behaviours, entering destructive relationships) which may then enhance motivation and desire to make a change in the behaviour being discussed.