Ben Maclaren — CounsellorCounselling in Canberra, ACT for men, neurodivergent people, and young people — a steady, non-directive space to think things through.https://benmaclaren.com.au/What counselling with a neurodivergent client actually looks likehttps://benmaclaren.com.au/journal/counselling-neurodivergent-clients/https://benmaclaren.com.au/journal/counselling-neurodivergent-clients/Less masking, more room to think out loud. A few ways the work shifts when the client is neurodivergent.Sat, 27 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMTOn grief that doesn't look like griefhttps://benmaclaren.com.au/journal/grief-that-doesnt-look-like-grief/https://benmaclaren.com.au/journal/grief-that-doesnt-look-like-grief/Not all grief follows a death. Some of the heaviest kind never gets named as grief at all — which is often why it doesn't move.Sat, 04 Jul 2026 00:00:00 GMTWhat it means to actually listen without fixinghttps://benmaclaren.com.au/journal/listening-without-fixing/https://benmaclaren.com.au/journal/listening-without-fixing/'Just listen' sounds simple until you try it. Here's what gets in the way, and what's on the other side of it.Tue, 30 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMTGetting a Mental Health Care Planhttps://benmaclaren.com.au/journal/mental-health-care-plan/https://benmaclaren.com.au/journal/mental-health-care-plan/How to ask your GP for one, and what it actually gets you.Sat, 20 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMTNavigating the NDIS as an adulthttps://benmaclaren.com.au/journal/ndis-as-an-adult/https://benmaclaren.com.au/journal/ndis-as-an-adult/What access actually requires, and where most applications get stuck.Mon, 15 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMTSitting with uncertainty before naming the problemhttps://benmaclaren.com.au/journal/sitting-with-uncertainty/https://benmaclaren.com.au/journal/sitting-with-uncertainty/Most people arrive wanting a diagnosis for what's wrong. The more useful first step is usually slower than that.Tue, 09 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMTStarting counselling as a man who's never done this beforehttps://benmaclaren.com.au/journal/starting-counselling-as-a-man/https://benmaclaren.com.au/journal/starting-counselling-as-a-man/A lot of men arrive at a first session having never said most of this out loud to anyone. Here's what that first hour is actually for.Thu, 02 Jul 2026 00:00:00 GMTUnderstanding therapy rebateshttps://benmaclaren.com.au/journal/therapy-rebates/https://benmaclaren.com.au/journal/therapy-rebates/What Medicare actually covers, and what it doesn't.Thu, 25 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMTWhy 'non-directive' doesn't mean passivehttps://benmaclaren.com.au/journal/why-non-directive-doesnt-mean-passive/https://benmaclaren.com.au/journal/why-non-directive-doesnt-mean-passive/Non-directive counselling gets mistaken for doing nothing. Here's what's actually happening in the space it creates.Mon, 18 May 2026 00:00:00 GMT