Diagnoses and conditions
These pages are about diagnoses and named conditions, such as depression, anxiety and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Each one covers what the name means, which therapies have the strongest evidence, and how to get assessed and treated in Australia. You don't need a diagnosis to start therapy. If you'd rather start from how things feel, try the pages under In your own words.
- DepressionWhat depression is and how common it is in Australia, what the national guideline puts first, why the well-studied therapies come out level, and how to find and pay for help.
- Bipolar disorderWhat bipolar disorder involves, the role of therapy and medication, and where to start in Australia.
- Generalised anxietyHow generalised anxiety shows up in the mind and body, the different kinds of anxiety, what Australia's guideline puts first, what the research says about therapy, and how to find help.
- Obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD)What OCD involves, why unwanted thoughts are so common, the therapy with the most evidence for it, how therapy and medication can help, and how to find help in Australia.
- ADHD in adultsWhat ADHD tends to look like in adults, why it's often missed, how assessment works in Australia, what the guideline recommends, and what therapy adds alongside medication.
- PTSDWhat post-traumatic stress disorder is, what helps in the first weeks after a trauma, the therapies with the strongest evidence, and the options if trauma-focused therapy isn't possible or right for you yet.
- Complex PTSDWhat complex PTSD describes, where the diagnosis stands, what helps and why, the debate about steadying first, and why the relationship with your therapist matters so much here.
- Borderline personality disorderWhat a diagnosis of borderline personality disorder describes, how the diagnosis is changing, the long-term outlook, the therapies that help, and how to find them in Australia.
- Seeing or hearing things others don'tWhy people sometimes see, hear or believe things others don't, what a GP can do, why getting help early matters, where talking therapy fits, and where to start in Australia.
- BurnoutWhat burnout is and isn't, why it isn't classed as a diagnosis and what that means for getting help, how it relates to depression, and what the evidence says helps.