- Strengths-based
- Person-centred
- Practical tools
About Derrel
Derrel Drinnan is an AASW social worker with 20 years of experience who helps people through painful life moments. She combines professional training with years of lived experience and a Christian worldview. She aims to make the first step feel doable for anyone who is ready to reach out.
Derrel commonly supports people struggling with stress, anxiety, grief and loss, low self-esteem, and major life changes. She also works with compassion fatigue, feelings of emptiness, issues around abandonment and codependency, and later-life concerns such as hospice and end-of-life matters. Money worries, midlife questions and discovering life purpose are part of her work too.
Her style draws on a strengths-based and person-centred outlook. That means she focuses on the client’s own resources and goals, and listens for what matters most to the person in front of her. Practical tools she uses come from motivational interviewing and solution-focused work, alongside emotion regulation strategies.
Trauma-informed principles guide how she responds with care and steadiness. Sessions aim to be clear and down-to-earth, with the therapist and client planning small steps that can be tried between meetings. People often leave with doable ideas rather than long lists of tasks.
Derrel invites prospective clients to take a short matching questionnaire and schedule a session if it feels right. She seeks to create an open space where thoughts and feelings can be talked through honestly and respectfully.
How evidence-based approaches translate to online care
Derrel draws on motivational interviewing to help people clarify what matters to them and find motivation for change. This approach involves gentle, guided conversations that uncover personal values and small steps forward. Solution-focused work is also part of her practice and concentrates on practical goals and immediate strategies to reduce distress and build momentum.Finding the right approach is a collaborative process. Derrel will work with each person to choose techniques that match their needs, goals and preferences, and will adjust the plan as progress is made. The emphasis is on practical routines and small experiments that can be reviewed together.
The biography does not list specific online formats, so confirm current session options before booking. Online sessions can make it easier to fit therapy into daily life by removing travel time, allowing shorter check-ins and offering flexible scheduling. These practical benefits can help people maintain regular contact with a therapist while balancing work, family and other commitments.
Areas of expertise
Primary focus
Additional focus areas
Experience
20+ years
Credentials
Listed on profile
Languages
English
Frequently asked questions
What kinds of concerns does Derrel commonly help with?
She works with stress, anxiety, grief and loss, self-esteem difficulties and coping with life changes, as well as compassion fatigue and codependency-related struggles.
How would you describe her therapeutic style?
Derrel uses a strengths-based, person-centred style that focuses on a client’s own resources and goals, and draws on motivational interviewing and solution-focused techniques.
What level of experience does she bring?
She has 20 years of professional work experience supporting people through a wide range of life challenges.
What credentials and location are listed for this therapist?
Derrel is an AASW social worker practising in Australia.
Which languages are sessions offered in?
Sessions are offered in English.
Can people from other countries work with her?
International clients are not accepted at this time.
How are sessions paid for and what do they cost?
Session cost varies with location and therapist availability; sessions use a subscription model that can be cancelled at any time.
How do I begin if I want to work with Derrel?
Select the Start Therapy button, complete the short matching questionnaire, and then schedule according to therapist availability.
Profile details come from information the therapist supplied to BetterHelp. Credential and registration rules differ between the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia.