Dr. Melanie du Preez

Dr. Melanie du Preez

Clinical Psychologist | Life Transformation Coach | Founder, Mindpath Academy

HPCSA-registered Clinical Psychologist (PS 0073547) · Klerksdorp, South Africa

I'm Dr. Melanie du Preez, an HPCSA-registered Clinical Psychologist (PS 0073547) based in Klerksdorp, South Africa, with over 26 years in clinical practice. I hold a doctorate in Clinical Psychology, and my work sits at the intersection of trauma, neurodiversity, and eating disorder recovery — the areas most therapists don't touch, and the ones I find most worth touching.

I'm one of fewer than five practitioners in South Africa certified in the Maudsley Method/Family-Based Treatment for eating disorders, and I'm a BWRT® (BrainWorking Recursive Therapy) Practitioner, certified at Levels 1 and 2. My clinical approach also draws on DBT and ACT, trauma-informed care, and — more recently — Ketamine Assisted Therapy. I work extensively with ADHD, autism, and AuDHD in adults, which isn't purely academic for me: I was diagnosed with ADHD myself at 50, and that diagnosis changed how I understand masking, burnout, and why “just try harder” was never going to work.

Alongside my clinical practice, I completed Life Transformation Coach certification through the Transformation Coaching Academy, including NLP Practitioner training, Negative Emotional Therapy PractitionerTM, Life Coaching, Mental Health Coaching, and Emotional Wellbeing Coaching, as well as certification in Neurodivergent Coaching. That combination lets me move between clinical depth and practical, coaching-style support depending on what someone actually needs.

I run my own practice, Du Preez Associates, and I'm the founder of Mindpath Academy, my mental health education brand, through which I've taught thousands of students globally as a Udemy instructor. I also work across several other platforms and practices, including Shemesh, Workplace Options, and The Psychology Couch. I've published two coaching apps — Neurodiversity Skills Coach and Anchor — built to put practical, evidence-based tools directly in people's hands between sessions. I'm the author of The Jigsaw Mind series (starting with Puzzle Pieces: Why Smart Women Miss Their ADHD for Decades) and The RSD Files, a nonfiction series unpacking Rejection Sensitive Dysphoria context by context. I've also been a long-standing South African radio commentator on mental health, speaking on eating disorders, anxiety, and body dysmorphia.

If there's a thread running through all of it, it's this: no toxic positivity, no “embrace your superpower” nonsense, no inspiration quotes standing in for actual help. Just clinically grounded, honest psychoeducation and strategies that work in real life — from someone who understands the material both professionally and personally.

Podia: drmel1.podia.com | Linktree: linktr.ee/melaniedp.psychology

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