From Uni Mates to Co-Directors: The Story of Lavender House Wellness Collective
It all started with a late entrance and an empty seat.
Back in our undergraduate days at UniSQ, Khara and I first crossed paths in a psychology lecture. She arrived late and the only available seat was next to me. Fate—or Khara’s inability to arrive on time(!)—sealed our friendship. We quickly became study buddies, swapping notes and offering mutual support through the stress of our Honours year. Sharing a thesis supervisor meant we spent countless hours reading each other’s drafts, offering encouragement (and a beer or two) along the way.
Our careers seemed destined to intertwine. After graduation, we both landed full-time jobs at the Department of Child Safety, where we navigated the complexities of frontline work together. Then, as if we hadn’t spent enough time in each other’s company, we decided to tackle our Masters of Clinical Psychology at UniSQ—part-time, of course, because working full-time while doing postgraduate study seemed like a fun challenge (spoiler: it was not).
Even during our training, we couldn’t shake each other. We completed our externship at together at the same private practice, continued on beyond our practicums side by side in our own individual private practice endeavours, and were supervised by the same clinical psychologist throughout our registrar program. By this point, we had officially spent more waking hours with each other than with our own families.
Khara was a key part of my wedding (she did a reading at the ceremony); I, however, did not get to return the favor because she eloped to Italy (rude!). We also became parents around the same time—me with two boys, Khara with two girls—giving us even more in common (and even less sleep).
As our careers progressed, we continued sharing office spaces, attending professional development workshops together, and frequently joking about opening our own practice. In 2017, we took a big step forward, running a successful group therapy program on mindfulness and self-compassion for children and parents. We even conducted research on its efficacy.
Then, in 2019, a series of unplanned events led us to stumble upon 78 West Street. It felt right, so we did what any two psychologists with a dream would do—we put in an offer and Lavender House Wellness Collective was born.
Since then, we’ve transformed five therapy rooms at Lavender House Toowoomba, expanded our team to include 10+ practitioners, developed thriving group therapy programs incorporating EFT and self-compassion and hosted various other professional development and peer supervision events.
During the past few years, as our individual private practices have grown, we’ve also had the privilege of supervising early-career psychologists in various settings, something we’re both incredibly passionate about. We firmly believe in fostering a trauma-informed, judgment-free space—not only for our clients but for the next generation of health practitioners as well. Now, as we look to the future, we’re excited to further develop our professional development, supervision, and mentoring under the “Walk the Talk” banner (watch this space!).
Khara and I have built more than just a business together. We’ve built a friendship, a shared vision, and a place where clients and practitioners alike can feel truly supported. And to think—it all started with a late arrival and an empty seat.
xx Victoria
