Bay of Plenty
MCouns, NZRN, MNZAC
Debbie Penlington is a senior consultant in Tauranga
I particularly enjoy working with individuals or couples who are experiencing sexual, emotional or intimacy issues, supporting them to make their relationship and sex lives as fulfilling and enjoyable as possible.
Common issues include lack of closeness and connection; desire differences; self acceptance and body image; difficulty talking about sexual needs and preferences; sexual pain; performance anxiety; confusion over sexual orientation; affairs; erectile dysfunction and pornography. I find the combination of my nursing and counselling experience also enables me to work effectively with clients where health issues / illness is impacting on their ability to maintain a satisfying close, intimate or sexual relationship.
I believe that every couple's relationship is special and different from all other relationships. Over time, cycles or patterns can develop in a relationship which make it difficult for partners to hear each other, neither partner is right or wrong - both just see the same situation from different perspectives. With my support each partner can better understand what is happening for them in the relationship, how this may be influenced by their previous experiences and how they impact on their partner.
My approach is strongly influenced by the work of Dr Sue Johnson who developed Emotionally Focussed Therapy (EFT) in the 1980's. EFT is one of the very few approaches to relationship issues that has had research on its effectiveness carried out. Compared to other approaches findings have been very positive showing that relationships of 80-90% of couples receiving EFT improved and 60% of these maintained their improvements or continued to improve. I work from rooms in the Tauranga CBD
My fee is $185.00 inc GST. Please also be aware that once made, appointments not kept or cancelled with less than 24 hours’ notice will be charged. This service is only available to people who are in New Zealand at the time of the consult or to New Zealanders overseas.
Registered Clinical Psychologist, MA (Psychology)
Tanya Furstenburg is our Rotorua consultant
I am a clinical psychologist working online and in Rotorua. I specialize in working with couples who are experiencing sexual difficulties. I’m particularly interested in desire difficulties where one or both partners are not that interested or have lost their interest in sex over time, or couples dealing with recovering after an affair. I also work with individuals and have experience in treating erectile difficulties, ejaculation issues, difficulties with reaching orgasm and out of control sexual behaviour like porn “addiction” or multiple affairs.
I am cisgendered, heterosexual and European and I enjoy working with people from diverse backgrounds and sexual identity and -orientation. My approach is informal, warm, non-judgmental, and cooperative. I rely heavily on feedback from my clients about what their needs are, what they want to get from therapy and which parts of my approach they find most helpful.
I am the co-owner of a private practice in Rotorua, where I have been for 8 years now. I have more than 20 years of experience in consulting with a wide range of people, including those struggling with sexual and relationship difficulties, folks dealing with symptoms of serious mental illness, the effects of trauma, grief, anxiety and depression, or other everyday problems with change or stage of life adjustments.
My fee is $250 (incl gst) per 50 minute session. For couple therapy, I only offer 1.5 hour sessions at a cost of $375 (incl gst).
Please also be aware that once made, appointments not kept or cancelled with less than 24 hours’ notice will be charged. This service is only available to people who are in New Zealand at the time of the consult or to New Zealanders travelling overseas.