About Us 
Higher Purpose Counselling was established by husband-and-wife team Jason and Donna Olbourne. The world is changing rapidly and what was once the formula for success; go to school, get qualified, find a good job, get married, buy a house, raise a family was once considered the Australian dream. Today, it is as much a fairy-tale with the pressures and social stigmas; as it is a nightmare or completely unattainable for so many.
Add in a relationship breakdown, the death of a loved one, a redundancy, interest rate rises, a work injury, self-medication, unchecked behavioural changes and suddenly we find we are not the person who set out so bright eyed and bushy tailed all those years ago.

And that is okay. Because the moment you recognise this, you are immediately onto a brand-new trajectory.

Some people are ashamed of this and stay silent, others feel like they are struggling like so many others and understand life wasn’t meant to be easy. But it was not meant to be impossible.

However, it goes much deeper than that. At different stages in our lives, we have different perspectives. You certainly view life as a young adult different to when you become a grandparent. Does it mean that life continues on the same trajectory based on life stages?  Certainly not.

Having had their fair share of life's pitfalls thrown at them and a lack of resources in their local area, Jason and Donna realised they could provide necessary services to the community in the Hunter Valley region of NSW where they currently live. Jason has spent most of his career in the media whilst Donna has worked in the sport industry and education. It was here that we got a varied look at the bigger picture of life and the ups and downs people experience on a daily basis.

“Working in the media presents an industry of glamour and prestige. I can assure you it is not unlike any other industry filled with the same pitfalls as anywhere else, uncertainty, pressure, addictions, isolation, judgement and performance anxiety are just some of the day-to-day nuisances that if manifest can lead to more serious problems that lead to marriage breakups, early death and loneliness.” Said Jason.

When their lives were turned upside down with the loss of their daughter, following on from the loss of 3 parents and a spouse in a short period of time, both Donna and Jason were faced with asking firstly, why me? Why us? To begin questioning the purpose of life, the point of suffering and suffering unnatural loss of a child versus natural loss of a parent.

For them understanding grief and loss would forever change their lives as it changes everyone who goes through it. The thing is, as painful as it is, how we recover, how we cope, how we grieve, how we re-learn to live out of our lives is all part of the journey.  You can choose to be a victim or a survivor.

Just as you can choose to live life and not let setbacks define you. It is called life. It is not called dream. It is meant to be unpredictable and full of surprise and spontaneity. Life it tough. But with the right approach we can always find our best days ahead of us.