Gloria Tay
Principal Counsellor
I do not offer online therapy
"I love children and have an immense passion for my field of study. I believe everyone needs therapy to rehabilitate their mind, soul and heart."
About Me
Being in the field of Psychotherapy since 2010, I started out working with children and parents. Best of both worlds as I love children and have an immense passion for my field of study. I specialise in helping parents understand their children’s behaviour better and to better equip them with parenting skills to overcome difficulties when it comes to raising children, especially those with special needs.
I have worked with children with ADHD, Autism, learning difficulties and children whose conducts were labelled as “misbehaviours” due to the lack of understanding and knowledge. I have given talks and workshops to parents in childcare centres, facilitating them with skills that will make raising children even more fun and enjoyable!
Driven by the importance of nurture and nature, I began to broaden my clientele to working with teenagers, young adults and adults, since 2014 until presently. I work alongside these individuals through their journey in understanding and coping with their mental disorders. I also work with people in general who are going through life transitions and have reached a roadblock in terms of their direction in life and relationships with other individuals.
Presently, I specialise in mental health disorders such as addictions, substance abuse, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), gender/sexual identity, couples therapy and group therapy. I believe that everyone needs therapy one way or another, to rehabilitate their mind, soul and heart.
Clients Population
Children (0-12 years)
Adolescents / Teens (13-17 years)
Young Adults (18-25 years)
Adults (26-64 years)
Individuals with Disabilities
Minority and Multicultural Communities
Parents and Caregivers
People Experiencing Grief and Loss
People with Anxiety Disorders
People with Relationship Issues
Session Format
Couples Session
Family Session
Individual Session
Modalities
Acceptance & Commitment Therapy (ACT)
Choice Theory & Reality Therapy
Christian and Pastoral Counselling
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
Developmental Psychology
Educational Psychology
Emotion-Focused Therapy
Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT)
Person-Centered Therapy (Rogerian)
Play Therapy
Positive Psychology Interventions
Psychoanalysis
Psychodynamic Therapy
Solution-Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT)
Transactional Analysis (TA)
Areas of Work
Addiction (Substance and Behavioural)
Eating Disorders and Food Issues
Anxiety Disorders (Including Panic Attacks)
Phobias and Fear Disorders
Bipolar Disorder
Borderline Personality Disorder
Cognitive Disorders (Including Dementia)
Dissociation Disorders
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD)
Depression
Grief, Loss, and Bereavement
Ageing Concerns
Identity Issues and Personality Disorders
Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer (LGBTQ+) Issues
Women's Issues
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)
Autism Spectrum Disorders (Including Asperger's)
Attachment Issues
Divorce and Separation Issues
Marriage and Couples Issues
Parenting and Pregnancy Issues
Relationships
Sexual Issues and Intimacy
Life Purpose and Meaning
Life Transitions (Including Mid-Life Crisis)
Spirituality and Existential Issues
Anger Management
Stress (incl. PTSD)
Work and Career Issues
Abuse (Physical, Sexual, Emotional)
Bullying and Peer Issues
Trauma and Abuse
Qualifications
Diploma In Early Childhood Care and Education | Temasek Polytechnic | 2013
BSC Double Major Psychology | University of Western Australia | 2015
Master Of Counselling (Advanced) | Swinburne University of Technology | 2019
Professional Memberships
Singapore Associate for Counselling
What is the professional background and clinical experience of this therapist?
Hi, I'm Gloria, a psychotherapist based in Singapore. I work with clients who are often high-functioning on the outside, but most of the time they are stuck or unaware or caught up in patterns on the inside. I work with clients and help them to find out their childhood traumas, their patterns that they're stuck in, and most importantly how to get out of them and to lead a better life for themselves.
What is the clinical philosophy and therapeutic approach of this therapist?
My clinical approach is more insight-driven but also very practical. The modalities that I use mostly are CBT (Cognitive Behavioural Therapy), Mindfulness, Psychoanalytics, and TA (Transactional Analysis). I also work with... at the same time, I work with... I don't just focus on the surface, I focus on everything that is deeper: more emotional conditioning, more self-awareness, goes down to the responses that we usually try to use to protect ourselves, like defence mechanisms.
Which client populations and mental health concerns does this therapist specialise in?
At the same time, therapy with me is not just about creating awareness but also learning how to respond when certain patterns and behaviour comes about. So it really depends on each individual. My clients will come in, we'll have a chat about their background, what they're going through, which will then help me to assess how are they functioning on their daily basis naturally. And then we'll go deeper into what is bothering them, their childhood traumas, which then will help me to decide which modalities match them best.
How does this therapist's approach align with the Dr OM & Associates philosophy?
I joined OM & Associates because I feel that there is a strong alignment with regards to the way we carry out therapy for our individuals. It's not just focusing on the surface but a lot of depth, a lot of emotional inner work is done here. Therefore I feel it aligns very well with the work that I enjoy doing for the people as well. It gives me a lot of opportunities to work with children and parents at the same time because it helps me to understand the children better in order for the parents to know how to handle them, how to look after them, how to nurture them and maximise their potential according to their character, their personalities.
What are the tips this therapist has for their followers?
One more tip will be understanding emotions. One thing I often remind clients is that even if we feel something strangely or we are thinking about something over and over again, that is not our reality because the truth is that we suffer a lot more in our heads than in reality. What I mean by we suffer more in our head than in reality is because of the overthinking that we have, the replaying of scenarios, the past memories and traumas that we keep thinking about without actually trying to understand why we are still feeling this way and the patterns that are still happening. So it's good to actually be in the present, to realise, to feel here.
