Our Team
Tonia Martin
Tonia Martin is a Clinical Psychologist who is passionate about improving sleep for both adults and children. She approaches this task with a warm and friendly style, a deep understanding of sleep difficulties, and the expertise to provide effective strategies for treating insomnia and the anxiety associated with not sleeping.
In her Psychology practice, Tonia specialises in working with adults and children who struggle with sleep. She is keenly aware that sleep loss impacts the entire family. Tonia is able work with parents to develop a calm bedtime routine, a confidence in the child’s ability to sleep, and healthy sleep for the whole family. As a result, families report feeling connected, closer, and happier together.
Tonia began her career as a Registered Nurse. In this role she became aware of the importance of sleep for good health. She implemented calming routines for her patients before bed on evening shifts, spending time listening to their concerns and making them as physically comfortable as possible.
Tonia observed that feeling heard and listened to provided a sense of calm for her patients. Soon it was the psychological, rather than the physical side of nursing which interested her. Tonia decided to pursue her love of learning and study Psychology. She has spent the last 25 years working to support her clients with evidence-based therapy.
In 2012, Tonia met Dr Frank Cahill, a psychologist who specialises in helping people sleep with confidence. There was a good fit for Tonia between the physiological and psychological aspects of sleep which brought together her Nursing and Psychology careers. Tonia commenced training with Frank and has continued to pursue her understanding of the factors leading to sleep difficulties and to provide evidence-based treatments for insomnia. These have included trainings in Cognitive Behavioural Therapy for Insomnia while working on the REST program at Monash University, and at the Healthy Sleep Clinic. In 2017 she attended the Southampton Children’s Sleep training in the Uk. She finds this work particularly rewarding as the benefits of treatment can dramatically change people’s lives in a relatively short time frame.
Tonia is trained in Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing therapy (EMDR), a treatment for trauma. She will often use EMDR to address the intense anxiety that people can experience at bedtime and in her work with clients who have experienced trauma.
Over her career, Tonia felt passionate about her work supporting children and families to create strong emotional connections and build emotional competence. She is the mother of three young men and has experienced firsthand the challenges of parenting. She runs Tuning into Kids and Teens parenting programs and has Train the Trainer certification in the Solihull Parenting Program. She believes that providing a connected, safe and secure environment before bed assists in maximising the effectiveness of behavioural strategies for children’s sleep.
Tialara Harris
Provisional Psychologist
Tialara (she/her) is an open minded and warm provisional psychologist. She is passionate about working in collaboration with her clients’ to achieve their wellbeing and therapy goals. She recognises that a strong therapeutic relationship is essential to the success of therapy.
Tialara provides a safe and thoughtful space for her clients to explore their current difficulties. She has a love of learning and a capacity to reflect on her clients’ situations and provide the most appropriate treatments. She is passionate about providing psychological support to people of all ages and backgrounds, including those within the LGBTQIA+ community.
Tialara has experience helping people with depression, anxiety, stress, and sleep related difficulties, employing a client-centred approach and applying a variety of evidence-based interventions to facilitate positive change such as Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), Cognitive Behaviour Therapy for insomnia (CBT-I), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Art Therapy and Mindfulness-based interventions.
Tialara is available on weekdays for in person or Telehealth appointments.
Victoria Heywood-Smith
Provisional Psychologist
and Art Therapist
Victoria (Tori) Heywood-Smith is a provisional psychologist and art therapist, undertaking her work with empathy and diligence. She holds a Masters of Art Therapy and Bachelor of Psychological Science with Honours from Latrobe University. She has worked with a diverse range of client groups, including young people and older adults with mental and physical health challenges, she has specialised training and experience in working with children.
Her approach is evidence-based, trauma-informed and culturally sensitive. Tori tailors her approach to each individual and draws from evidence-based therapies including: Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT) for insomnia (CBT-I), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Art Therapy and Mindfulness-based interventions.
Tori is passionate about addressing specific client goals by providing a warm and safe space that nurtures self-expression and builds clients’ inner resources. Tori is committed to fostering meaningful transformation and supporting clients on their personal mental health journey.
Tori is available on weekdays for in person or Telehealth appointments.
Supervision
Our team is growing as awareness of sleep difficulties becomes more understood and we will be employing Masters/Doctoral students who will receive supervision to develop this area of specialty. If you are interested in join the team here at Talking Sleep, please contact us to express your interest.