Clearhead is an online tool that builds resilience through proactive mental health resources, offering bite-sized, accessible tools to help organisations recognise early warning signs before they reach breaking point.
“When I was a doctor, I was appalled by the fact that New Zealand had the highest youth suicide rate among OECD countries,” co-founder Dr Angela Lim tells Verve. “At the same time, wait times to see a therapist were at least three months long.
“I started Clearhead to help ensure personalised mental health support is available 24/7. This includes access to online or in-person counselling appointments, with a choice of more than 600 clinicians across New Zealand, from Auckland to Christchurch, as well as Australia. Sessions can be funded through a workplace employee assistance programme (EAP) or insurance policy, or you can choose to self-fund.”
Can therapy be useful for people who don’t have a mental health condition, but simply feel stressed or overwhelmed?
Absolutely. If you’re feeling anxious, low, stuck or overwhelmed, experiencing grief or low self-esteem, or struggling with relationships, burnout from work or the pressures of everyday life, talking to a therapist can help.
Therapy can be especially useful when you want to proactively better understand yourself, build self-awareness around destructive patterns and triggers, change bad habits, develop confidence and resilience, maintain your wellbeing, or navigate life changes. You don’t need to have a diagnosed mental disorder or wait until things reach a crisis point.
Why do so many still find it difficult to ask for help, and when is the right time to seek support?
Due to the stigma that can still surround therapy, some people assume that those seeking professional support must have something seriously wrong with them or are unable to cope on their own.
But therapy doesn’t have to be a last resort. If you experience persistent negative thoughts or emotions, insomnia or other sleep issues, or communication difficulties, it may be worth talking to a psychologist. This is even more crucial if you no longer find meaning, purpose or enjoyment in life, or are struggling to cope with things that would normally feel manageable.
Most people experience challenges like these at least once in their lifetime. A therapist can help work through unhelpful thoughts, feelings and behaviours and find ways to make positive changes. This might include cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), a type of therapy that helps identify and change unhelpful patterns in the way you think and behave.
How does Clearhead help someone find the right therapist?
Clearhead’s main goal is to help build a strong therapeutic alliance – finding a therapist who matches your needs. You may be looking for a clinician with specific expertise, such as someone who can provide an ADHD assessment and diagnosis, or simply someone you feel comfortable enough with to share your concerns and feel heard.
Choosing a therapist is deeply personal, so finding the right match often involves more than qualifications alone. We match you based on what matters most to you, from experience in areas like eating disorder treatment and modalities like EMDR for trauma to therapist type (like a counsellor), location, language, gender, weekend availability, and more.
This personalised matching approach is reflected in the positive feedback we’ve received from people who have seen a Clearhead therapist, with an average therapy satisfaction score above 97%.
Finding the right therapist can make a real difference, and that’s ultimately the outcome we created Clearhead to achieve.
For more information visit myclearhead.com
