Ruth Sanders, AASW

Ruth Sanders is an AASW social worker with eight years of experience in the mental health sector in Australia. She helps people facing stress, anxiety, problematic substance use, grief and loss, compassion fatigue and major life changes. She also works with issues linked to family of origin and relationship patterns that keep repeating into adulthood.

Ruth uses a client-centred, strengths-based style in sessions. She listens for the patterns people describe and helps them notice how early family roles and expectations show up now. Conversations focus on practical steps people can try between meetings and on small shifts that reduce overwhelm.

Her approach draws on several evidence-informed methods, including Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, Dialectical Behaviour Therapy and Motivational Interviewing. Those tools are used to build emotional skills, reduce avoidance, and support clearer decision making. Sessions combine reflective conversation with straightforward exercises.

Ruth aims to help people dealing with caregiver strain, communication problems, feelings of guilt or shame, and isolation. She often supports people working through divorce or separation and those sorting out midlife questions about purpose and role.

People meet Ruth expecting a practical, down-to-earth focus. She encourages clients to notice old family patterns and to try different ways of relating. This is presented as a collaborative effort to change unhelpful habits and to make day-to-day life more manageable.

How therapeutic approaches are used in online sessions