Meet Cienna
I'm Cienna Baker, a Clinical Psychologist, Board Approved Supervisor and ISST Advanced Certified Schema Therapist and Supervisor.
Alongside clinical practice, I work in psychology education and supervision, with a particular interest in helping therapists translate theory into confident, flexible clinical practice.
A Bit About Me
My clinical work has consistently drawn me toward clients whose presentations do not fit neatly into a single symptom or protocol — complex trauma, personality pathology, emotional dysregulation, chronic depression and anxiety, addiction, and longstanding interpersonal patterns. Schema Therapy became a natural fit because it gave me a way to hold formulation, the therapeutic relationship and experiential change within the same model. Over time, I have also integrated EMDR, in both standard and intensive formats. DBT and CBT strategies are added as needed and clinically indicated.
Alongside private practice, I work in academia teaching and coordinating postgraduate psychology training, including teaching Schema Therapy and DBT. I supervise provisional psychologists, clinical psychology registrars and clinicians developing their Schema Therapy practice and accreditation.
The part of therapist development I am most interested in is the gap between knowing the model and being able to use it in the room, confidentially. My supervision, consultation, resources and training therefore focus heavily on formulation, clinical decision-making, therapist responsiveness and what to actually do when a session becomes messy.
Experience
Clinical Psychologist
Psychology Board of Australia Board Approved Supervisor
Advanced Certified Schema Therapist and Supervisor
EMDR trained - EMDRAA Full Member
University lecturer and postgraduate psychology educator
Experience supervising provisional psychologists, clinical psychology registrars and therapists pursuing Schema Therapy accreditation
Clinical interests in personality disorders, particularly BPD; complex trauma and PTSD; emotional dysregulation; chronic depression and anxiety; addiction; and complex interpersonal presentations
Why Schema Therapy?
Schema Therapy gives clinicians a rich way of understanding not only what a client is struggling with, but why the same patterns continue to be activated and maintained across situations and relationships. It is particularly useful for complex and longstanding presentations where symptom-level work alone can feel insufficient.
What I value most about the model is that it combines a strong formulation framework with an active therapeutic relationship and experiential interventions. It also asks us to pay attention to what is happening in the room — including schema and mode activation in the client, and the therapist’s own responses.
My approach to teaching and supervising Schema Therapy is practical. I am less interested in clinicians being able to perfectly label every mode and more interested in helping them understand what is happening, formulate it coherently and respond therapeutically.
Teaching and Training
Alongside private practice, I have worked extensively in postgraduate psychology education, including lecturing and unit coordination within the Master of Clinical Psychology program at Federation University Australia.
My teaching has included advanced clinical interventions, particularly Schema Therapy and DBT, and this experience has strongly influenced the way I now develop professional training.
I know what it's like to sit through professional development, understand everything being presented, take pages of notes…and then return to work on Monday and wonder how any of it translates to the client sitting in front of you.
So my trainings are intentionally designed around the gap between learning a model and actually practising it.
Supervision Style
One of the things I hear frequently from therapists is some version of:
“I understand the theory. I just don’t always know what to do with it in the room.”
That is exactly the space I enjoy working in.
My supervision style is collaborative, formulation-driven and practical. We can absolutely talk theory, but I want supervision to help you walk into your next session with a clearer understanding of what is happening and some ideas about what you might actually do.
Depending on what you bring, supervision might involve case formulation, identifying schemas and modes, treatment planning, selecting and practising interventions, working through treatment impasses, reviewing experiential work, thinking about the therapeutic relationship, or exploring your own responses and schema activation as a therapist. We do all of this from a reflective lens - reflective practice matters!
I also place a strong emphasis on developing your own clinical judgement. My aim isn't to create therapists who continually need to ask “What would my supervisor do?” I want to help you become increasingly confident in understanding why you are choosing an intervention and adapting your approach when therapy inevitably doesn't go exactly according to plan.
And sometimes supervision is simply a space to say, “I have absolutely no idea what to do with this client anymore.” We can start there too.
Get in touch
Finding the right psychologist matters. If you think my approach might suit what you are looking for, you're welcome to get in touch. I offer free 15-minute discovery calls where you can tell me a little about what you would like help with and we can work out whether Psychology Laine is the right fit.