Welcome

As an adjunct to the practice in Coffs Harbour, NSW, Australia, this site developed from the need to provide resources to both clients, and others, for the promotion of well being, and the realization of the potential that lies within. Charles uses many therapeutic modalities in his work with clients, although he is primarily attracted to psychoanalytic and psychodynamic approaches including, Transactional Analysis, and the related model of Intra-actional Analysis in terms of informing the client and the therapist in the process of developing the pathway towards positive and sustaining life changes.

Transactional Analysis and Intra-actional Analysis provide the framework and the means to identify and understand the ego states within, including the Parent, Adult and Child ego states, and how these ego states, in turn, interact with each other within the psyche of the individual and reflect in the interactions with others.

Eric Berne, through Transactional Analysis, was focussed upon the interactional transactions of our ego states with the ego states of others with respect to relationship and communication quality improvements, where, in contrast, Intra-actional Analysis is concerned with the ego state identification and interactions within the individual’s psyche, because there is no doubt your relationships with others are a direct reflection of the nature of your internal ego state relationships and the dynamics of these ego states. Basically, any changes in your external relationships have to be preempted and based upon by changes in your internal relationships.

In this sense then, to take just one example, if your Controlling Parent ego state is engaged in a negative discourse towards your Child ego state (inner critic), creating feelings of frustration, anger and resentment, there is every possibility, of course, that this negative energy will in turn be released towards others and objects in the external world. In this example, rather than focus upon interventions such as, mediation, conflict resolution and couples intervention, Intra-actional Analysis would explore the nature of, and relationship between, the Controlling Parent and the Child ego states within the individual and the Gestalt two chair technique could be highly beneficial in this regard.

Gerard Egan proposed that the counselling process involves three stages; Exploration (which involves helping the client to examine and explore their thoughts and feelings), Insight (helping the client to understand the reason for these thoughts and feelings) and Action (helping the client to make positive changes in their lives). Intra-actional Analysis as a conceptual framework and therapeutic intervention, is based upon a similar three part process of Be With, Understand and Act. Within the Intra-actional Analysis framework, these processes are not mutually exclusive, nor are they sequential, and indeed, it is expected that the individual will spend a lifetime in the Be With phase in terms of meditation and mindfulness to provide an ongoing information stream upon which to develop and enhance self understanding, greater acceptance and the commitment to change. In this case then, the lifelong quest is to “know thyself” which is the foundation of self acceptance and commitment to change as required. The Inner Journey and the tools of meditation and mindfulness are all part of the Be With (know thyself) phase, whereas knowledge of Transactional Analysis and Intra-actional Analysis will provide the foundation for understanding, acceptance and commitment to change, all supplemented by the information and tools in the Resources section.

Charles Lucas BA (Macq,Psy) MA (Syd.Psy) Dip Clin Hyp, MAPS, MASCH has been a Psychologist and Vocational Psychologist for over forty years after completing his undergraduate degree in Psychology at Macquarie University and his Masters degree in Psychology at the University of Sydney. Charles also holds qualifications in clinical hypnosis and Eye Movement Desensitisation Reprocessing and was recently recognised by the Australian Psychological Society for over thirty years of continuous membership.

Charles is a registered Psychologist with the Psychology Board of Australia (PSY0001137893). Charles has authored many articles including, newspaper columns and government publications over the years, and developed the vocational self assessment instrument, the Lucas Concept Analysis Technique (LCAT) and the Kuder Interest Card Sort (KICS). A former consultant to the NSW Government Workforce Management Centre for the management of displaced public servants, and consultant to the University of New England for the management of displaced staff, Charles conceived, developed and delivered the Life Planning Workshop in organisational, corporate and school settings.

Charles commenced the practice of psychology in 1976 with the NSW Vocational Guidance Bureau, where he was engaged as a Vocational Guidance Officer at the North Sydney and Lismore Offices, and later, as the District Guidance Officer/Local Area Manager of Vocational Services Branch/Department of Industrial Relations, Training and Further Education based at the Armidale Office, NSW, Australia. He continued into private practice in 1995 and subsequently established Vocational Guidance Services Pty Ltd with contractual arrangements with the Commonwealth Employment Service as a Special Intervention Psychologist; Centrelink as an Occupational Psychologist and Health Services Australia as a Specialist Consultant Psychologist with responsibility for disability support pension assessments and appeal reviews. This was in addition to a part-time careers counselling role at the University of New England, Armidale, NSW, Australia.

Charles is currently in private practice in Coffs Harbour, NSW, Australia, where he is passionately practising the art and science of counselling psychology, with specialised interests in depression, anxiety and posttraumatic stress disorder. Charles has been a registered Psychologist in NSW for over forty years, and is registered with the Psychology Board of Australia PSY0001137893.