About

Welcome to The Playful Psychologist, a space where connection, curiosity, and compassion come together to support growth.

I’m Emily, a Clinical Psychologist, mum of three, and the founder of The Playful Psychologist.

This platform was created with one clear purpose: to help parents and professionals feel confident, calm, and capable when supporting children’s emotions and behaviour.

Through the Grounded Growth Framework, every offering, from supervision and CPD to parent workshops and digital guides, is built around three simple pillars:

Grounding: cultivating safety, clarity, and regulation.
Reflection: building insight and self-awareness through community and curiosity.
Growth: applying evidence-based strategies with confidence and compassion.

With over a decade of clinical experience, and a lifelong personal connection to neurodiversity through my brother, I understand that no two children, or professionals, are the same. My approach is flexible, affirming, and rooted in the belief that differences are diversity, not deficits.

Since 2018, The Playful Psychologist has supported thousands of families and early-career clinicians to navigate the emotional world of childhood with more confidence and connection.

Here, you’ll find practical tools, reflective spaces, and research-backed resources that make psychology feel human, not clinical.

Whether you’re a parent learning to understand your child’s emotions and support their growth, or a psychologist finding your professional rhythm and building confidence in your clinical voice, you’ll find resources, community, and guidance that meet you exactly where you are.

Ready to grow with support? Explore the pathway that fits you best:

The Family Forum → A safe space for parents to learn, connect, and nurture emotionally intelligent children.
The Clinicians’ Forum → A professional community for psychologists to grow grounded, confident, and connected clinical practice.

Together, we’re nurturing the next generation of emotionally intelligent children, and the calm, confident adults who guide them.

One final note: resources on this website are for general educational purposes only and do not constitute therapeutic advice. This website is not a substitute for professional assessment, diagnosis, or treatment. If you need clinical support, please seek care from a registered allied health professional.

Published Research

Explore my published clinical research and my co-authored book. You can find these publications listed below.

Psychological Well-Being and Its Relationships with Active and Passive Procrastination.

Emily A Habelrih & Richard E Hicks (2015)

Click here for the full article.

A Study of the Wellbeing of Siblings of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders: Sibling Efficacy, Positive and Negative Affect, and Coping Strategies.

Emily A Habelrih, Richard E Hicks, & Daisy Vanstone (2018)

Click here for the full article.

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If you’re looking for a book to explain death to younger kids, this one is a great place to start. It talks about how every life on earth comes to an end and explains what happens when we die. Tough topic, but an important one! 💡

In case you’re confused by the new Medicare changes that came into effect from 1 November this year, here’s a handy little summary of all the deets you need to be across.

Any q’s? Let us know 👇🏼

This is so important @karenyoung_heysigmund 🔥 We always say that schools have come ‘such a long way in terms of inclusion’ but when the starting point was literally ROCK BOTTOM and they’ve made a small amount of progress, it frankly doesn’t make too much of a difference. And if by ‘progress’ we mean we aren’t throwing dysregulated kids out of school, then sure, maybe we have made some progress. But if by ‘progress’ we mean truly understanding a child’s neurotype, supporting them, and readjusting our mainstream school system to help those children belong, thrive, and grow? Then I’m sorry, but very minimal progress has been made. I have no problem with schools who put their had up and say ‘we aren’t perfect, we’re still learning and trying.’ But I do have a problem with any school that insists they don’t have a bullying problem, that insists they are completely inclusive when their students are sitting their begging for support, or schools that aren’t open to any form of feedback from their most vulnerable students. Thoughts? 💡

Let’s talk about the elephant in the room: Consistency.

Why? Because I think people bang on about it without actually understanding what it means in the context of supporting kids with their behaviour.

I often see “consistency” in behaviour plans interpreted as “we must do the exact same thing every time.”

But consistency is about predictability, not inflexibility.

Children thrive when they know what to expect, but that doesn’t mean we can’t adapt to context, needs, and emotional states.

The danger of rigidity is that we prioritise the plan over the person.

It should be less about following a ‘plan’ to the letter, and more about meeting a child’s need in a predictable yet contextually responsive way.

What are your thoughts? 💡

Feeling a bit overwhelmed with what you need to be across with the new Code of Conduct coming into effect in December?

We’ve done a tl:dr version of some of the major changes

Have any questions? Let us know! 🫶🏽

Look what has arrived! I’m so excited to read this one by @tinapaynebryson it looks AMAZING! Has anyone had a chance to read it yet? I’ll let you know my thoughts when I’m done! 📕 💡

I’ve been really intentional this year to create accessible resources so that everyone has an opportunity to learn and grow. Because parenting is hard enough without the added burden of feeling like the things you need are out of reach. Is there something you’d like to see more of in 2026? 💡

Those of you raising boys (like me), this book is a great one for your book shelf! It explores what it means to be a boy, questioning older stereotypes on being ‘strong’ and being ‘a man.’ It’s such a sweet book. Raising boys is such an honour, but it’s also a huge responsibility, and this book can really support the type of masculinity that I’m hoping to instil in my two! 💡

It’s important to remember this because we always see resilience as a badge of honour. And resilience is such a great skill, but let’s not assume that resilience is easily obtained. It’s hard earned. It’s fought for. And its not something you ‘get.’ It’s tested time and time again by tough situations. 💡

This idea I had for a networking lunch grew out of a desire to connect with REAL and LIKEMINDED people. And do it while having a laugh and eating good food (a couple of wines as well). And far out I am so glad these are happening. This second one was just as fun as the first, with even more new faces and LOTS of laughs. We even celebrated a birthday today. Good food, good company, like minded people. Honestly, what more could you ask for? 💡

Thanks @missymisdemeanorelliott I needed the confidence boost 🫡 but for real this is a great pump up song all millennials should add it to their list 😂 💡

This is SUCH a great book to explore positive mental health with kids! It helps children develop healthy thinking habits and coping techniques right from the start, in an age appropriate way. It covers topics including positive self-image, emotional intelligence, relationships and mindfulness, and gives children a bunch of ideas about how to keep their minds healthy. This book is perfect for starting conversations with children about their mental and emotional health, laying an epic foundation for emotional well being. I came across this one in my local bookstore, and it’s also available online! 💡

The holiday season is coming up which means lots of family gatherings….which also means lots of unsolicited parenting advice! Anyone relate? 😵‍💫 Save this one for when you need a little script to deal with the aunty who hasn’t made an effort in 10 years but suddenly has a degree in early child hood development and a doctorate in perfect parenting 💡

THIS 🔥 @insideparenting - it is so important to remember this on the hard parenting days 💡

Guys! By now you may have heard that I’ve made the decision to offer assessments privately and just WAIT until you see my new space! It’s calming, movement friendly, and allows me to conduct assessments in a much more affirming way. I’m so excited to share this space with you!! What’s your favourite part?? I still can’t decide 😅 Email me if you have any questions: theplayfulpsychologist@gmail.com 💡

Have I missed any? 😂😂
Man oh man, a haunted house sure has changed since I was 10 that’s for sure! 💡

Love this book on consent. I’m a huge fan (if you can’t tell 😂) of using books when you’re unsure how to talk about a certain topic with kids, and this is a great one to explore what saying ‘no’ means and defining consent in an age appropriate way. 💡

Why is it that there’s always a caveat in parenthood? I’ll tell you why. Because there are unrealistic expectations for us to be perfect all the time. And there’s always some internet hero out there ready to shove it in our face when we aren’t 100% perfect. You are a great mum. Your kids are great kids. The end. That’s the whole post 💡

Honestly these past few days were incredible, not only for me as a professional but also me as a mother, a sister, an advocate. Thank you to @tspa_tasschoolpsychology and @aus_psychs_couns_in_schools for inviting me down to speak to this incredible group! What an absolute honour it was. I loved hearing the keynote from @drbillygarvey and finally meeting @iamjesssanders in person (you’d think ONE of us would have remembered a photo 😂🤦🏽‍♀️). Did a bunch of work, ate some incredible food, had some nice solo time, and met some incredible people. Time to go and see my babies ✈️ 💡

If you’re after some feelings books for younger kids, these are three that I’ve loved for a while! I get so excited when I see my favourite resources becoming accessible inside mainstream shops! This was never the case when I became a psychologist! 💡

This is such a great and helpful visual I found via @regulatedclassroom 👏🏽 Such a simple way to explain the importance of coregulation, and how emotions ARE contagious! 💡

Progress over perfection @heyamberrae 👏🏽 I have been reflecting a lot on this year. And when you just see what you did in a day, it doesn’t seem like much. But when you see what you did in a week, a month, a year…..game changer. 💡

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@theplayfulpsychologist

About

Published Research

Psychological Well-Being and Its Relationships with Active and Passive Procrastination.

A Study of the Wellbeing of Siblings of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders: Sibling Efficacy, Positive and Negative Affect, and Coping Strategies.

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