About Derrel
Derrel Drinnan is an AASW social worker with 20 years of experience supporting people through hard seasons. She draws on professional training and life experience to help clients who are feeling overwhelmed, bereaved, anxious or stuck. Derrel focuses on practical, down-to-earth conversations.
She helps people manage stress, build self-esteem and cope with big life changes. She also works with issues such as compassion fatigue, grief and worries about money and life purpose.
How Derrel works
Her style is strengths-based and person-centred. That means sessions start with what the client already knows and can do, then build small steps toward better coping. She uses motivational interviewing, solution-focused ideas, trauma-informed ways of working and emotional regulation strategies to support change.
Sessions aim to be calm and unhurried so people can name what is hard. Derrel draws on a Christian worldview alongside clinical practice for clients who wish to include faith in discussions. Her approach is collaborative and paced to each person's needs.
She works with issues linked to abandonment, codependency, emptiness, guilt and shame, forgiveness, self-love and women's matters. Derrel also has experience in hospice and end-of-life counselling and helping people navigate midlife concerns and questions about life purpose. To begin, people choose a session format that suits them and arrange appointments that fit their schedules.
Derrel encourages those taking the first step to reach out and see if her way of working feels like the right fit.
What Derrel works with
The areas below are the ones Derrel selected when setting up a profile. The first few are listed as the main focus; the rest are also named.
Also listed
Training and background
| Register | AASW |
|---|---|
| Years in practice | 20 |
| Languages | English |
| Session format | Online: video, phone, live chat or messaging |
| Country | Australia |
Memberships and registers are shown as supplied; they are not licences, and this directory does not verify them.
Online support options
Therapeutic approaches and online support
Derrel commonly uses motivational interviewing to help people find their own reasons for change and build motivation for practical steps. This approach suits people who feel stuck or uncertain about next steps and want clear, respectful guidance.She also draws on solution-focused techniques which emphasise small, achievable goals and what already works. These short-term strategies help when the priority is immediate coping and clearer day-to-day routines.
Finding the right approach is a collaborative process. The therapist will talk with each person about their needs, goals and preferences and then tailor strategies together. Clients are encouraged to give feedback so the way of working can change as progress is made.
Online therapy is offered via video calls, phone sessions, live chat and text messaging to provide flexible options. Video calls let people use visual cues and longer conversations, while phone sessions work well when bandwidth is limited or a quieter check-in is needed. Live chat and messaging suit brief updates or people who prefer written reflection. These formats make it easier to fit sessions around work, caregiving and other commitments and allow different ways to connect depending on mood and energy.
Start online instead of waiting
Our partner service asks a few questions about what you are looking for and matches you with a therapist for sessions from home.
Book with DerrelWe will earn a commission if you sign up through our link, at no cost to you.
Common questions
What concerns does this counsellor help with?
How would you describe the therapeutic style?
What is Derrel's background and experience?
What credentials and location apply to this therapist?
Which languages are sessions offered in?
What session formats are available?
How are fees and payments handled?
How do I start working with this counsellor?
A practical next step
Write down two things you would want to be different in six months. That is the most useful thing to bring to a first session, whoever it is with. If you would rather start now than keep reading, online sessions are the quickest route.
We will earn a commission if you sign up through our link, at no cost to you. Entries are not assessed or endorsed by this directory.
Other entries for stress, anxiety
Supportive LCSW helping people build strength and clarity
Practical, trauma-aware therapy for everyday life
Practical, relational therapy for life transitions