About
Safe Refuge Counselling
A quiet counselling practice in Mount Barker offering trauma-informed, Catholic-informed care for women in the Adelaide Hills.
Meet Aana
Aana Carpenter
I’m a trauma-informed counsellor based in the Adelaide Hills, and I’m so glad you’ve found your way here.
My journey into counselling began with a background in Biomedical Science and Medicine, trained at Sydney Medical School. But somewhere along the way, I realised that what I most wanted to offer wasn’t a prescription — it was presence. I wanted to sit with people, truly meet them where they are, and walk alongside them at a pace that felt safe and right for them. So I found my way to counselling, and I haven’t looked back.
I work primarily with women, because I know firsthand how much we carry. The weight of motherhood, the identity shifts that come with each new season of life — from birth and postpartum to the quiet earthquake of menopause. The grief. The anxiety. The way we can lose ourselves in giving so much to everyone around us. These experiences are real, they are valid, and they deserve more than a rushed appointment. You deserve a space where you can slow down, breathe, and be gently present with wherever you are right now.
I draw on evidence-based approaches to support women navigating depression, anxiety, trauma, grief and loss, and spiritual abuse — always at your pace, always with your comfort leading the way. I’m a member of two professional bodies and am committed to upholding the highest ethical standards in my practice.
When I’m not in the counselling room, I’m a mum to two boys and a girl, and I’m grateful every day for my loving husband and the beautiful hills community we call home.
This is a safe refuge. I’d love to welcome you here.
Our Mission
A Refuge, Literally
Safe Refuge exists to give women in Mount Barker and the Adelaide Hills somewhere genuinely safe to bring the things they cannot say anywhere else. Trauma. Grief. The loneliness of early motherhood. The quiet shame of feeling like you are failing at a life everyone else seems to manage.
We believe that real healing goes beyond symptom management. Our approach honours the whole person — mind, body, and spirit — because lasting recovery needs more than a “freedom from” pain. It calls for a “freedom for” a life of genuine connection, meaning, and flourishing.
Safe Refuge is a practising Catholic counselling practice. Women of every tradition and none are welcome.
Our Approach
Trauma-Informed, Evidence-Based, Unhurried
Informed by faith and guided by evidence-based practice, Safe Refuge addresses the real challenges women face: isolation in a hyper-connected world, the instability of family breakdown, the quiet despair of feeling purposeless, and the long shadow of unresolved trauma.
- Trauma-Informed Care
- Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)
- Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction
- Solution-Focused Brief Therapy
- Emotion-Focused Therapy
- Christian-informed reflection (when welcome)
Why Safe Refuge
What Makes Us Different
For Women, By a Woman
A women-only practice in a town where genuinely women-centred counselling is hard to find. No need to translate.
Catholic-Informed
A practitioner who takes your faith seriously without imposing it, and who understands the language of parish, prayer, and meaning.
Rooted in the Hills
Local, embedded, and unhurried. We are not an Adelaide practice with a satellite room. Mount Barker is home.
Credentials
Professional Memberships & Listings
ACA Level 1
Member of the Australian Counselling Association, meeting recognised standards of professional training and ethics.
Psychology Today
Verified listing on Australia’s leading mental health directory. View profile →
Next Step
Let's Talk
A discovery call is a short, free conversation to explore whether Safe Refuge is the right next step for you. No referral needed.