About Us
Who works at Maynooth Counselling & Psychotherapy?
We are Maynooth’s longest running counselling practice & we’re here to listen & help you deal with anything that’s going on in your life. We believe in staying with a client through any painful experience and exploring what that’s like specifically for you, without judgement. Our counsellors tailor your therapy to you & we provide counselling for children, teenagers, adults, couples and families.
We have counselling rooms available for face to face sessions in both Maynooth & Leixlip in Co Kildare. Our team of accredited Psychotherapists are also ready to support your mental health online if that is preferable.
Your first contact will be our Practice Manager, Caroline Fahey, who is happy to answer any questions you may have & find you an appointment with a therapist that is best for you & your needs.
Caroline Fahey
Practice Manager
OUR MAYNOOTH THERAPISTS:
Helen Vaughan
CBT Counsellor and Psychotherapist (using mindfulness) – Adults, couples & teenagers
Helen Vaughan is the Director at Maynooth Counselling and Psychotherapy and is an IACP accredited psychotherapist. Her areas of expertise include working with anxiety, stress (work or personal), fertility/infertility, baby loss/grief, depression, low self-confidence and relationship issues.
She works well exploring thoughts (negative self-talk/thinking errors) and their impact on our feelings, behaviour and wellbeing. Her approach integrates Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT) and Person-Centred Counselling. She offers support and guidance to learn more about how your thoughts and feelings might be affecting your life and how to change them. Helen also specialises in relationship counselling, helping to identify any helpful/unhelpful dynamics affecting a couple and building better communication between partners.
Helen specialises in fertility counselling and is an active member of the Irish Fertility Counsellors Association (IFCA). She can support you individually or with your partner if you’re trying for a baby or considering fertility treatment. She does implications counselling around using donor eggs or sperm so you feel prepared and informed about what’s involved. She can also help you explore options around surrogacy, in terms of what’s available & what to expect etc. She works with individuals and couples who have experienced perinatal or neonatal loss, regardless of how much time has passed.
Helen has also worked as a journalist for many years and can regularly be heard talking about mental health and other issues on radio & TV. Helen will tailor her confidential therapy to each person to find what works for you in a setting that’s warm and relaxed.
Helen works with adults & teenagers and also does relationship counselling.
Qualifications: BA in Counselling & Psychotherapy (2016), BA in Communications Studies (1999). Professional Certificates in Child & Adolescent Counselling and CBT (2017), Relationship Counselling (2019), Fertility Counselling (British Infertility Counselling Assn, 2021 & 2023), and is an active member of the Irish Fertility Counsellors Association.
Helen is available on Tuesdays from 2pm – 8pm & online on Wednesdays also on Thursdays from 10am – 330pm.
nessa fitzgerald
Psychotherapist AND counsellor
Nessa is an Accredited Psychotherapist with the Irish Association of Counselling & Psychotherapy (IACP), and she also works in Public Health Nursing. She has experience working with individuals with a variety of issues, including depression, anxiety, relationship difficulties, low self-esteem, bereavement, carer stress, issues related to sexuality, trauma, adverse childhood experiences, eating disorders and addiction.
Nessa has a particular interest in addiction and supporting those affected by a family member’s addiction, and she has provided counselling to clients in residential treatment centres.
Nessa believes that therapy is about creating a relationship where the client feels accepted and safe to express their experiences, thoughts and feelings in a non-judgemental space. When this occurs, the client can be helped to find their own solutions to any difficulties and ultimately to improve their quality of life.
Qualifications: Nessa has a BA in Integrative Counselling and Psychotherapy, RPHN (Registered Public Health Nurse, BNS (Bachelor of Nursing), MNMBI (Member of Nursing & Midwifery Board of Ireland).
Nessa’s hours of work are on Wednesday mornings.
vida zemaitaitiene
Counsellor and Psychotherapist
Please note: Vida works in both Maynooth & Leixlip
Vida is an IACP qualified Psychotherapist working with adults. Her approach is described as Humanistic & Integrative, which means she considers the whole person and draws on different therapeutic models depending on the needs of the client.
She believes a good therapeutic relationship between the therapist and the client is the key to successful therapy. She aims to create a non-judgemental, safe and collaborative relationship which enables the client to flourish and drives them towards growth and healing.
Vida has worked with a range of issues including anxiety, stress, depression, grief, addiction, suicidal ideation and more. She has worked with many cultural backgrounds and speaks Russian & Lithuanian.
Qualifications: Vida has a BA (Hons) Degree in Counselling & Psychotherapy from the Institute of Counselling & Psychotherapy. She also has a Master’s in Health Psychology. She has a Certificate in Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) & a Cert in trauma work. She has volunteered with the Dublin Rape Crisis Centre.
Vida’s hours of work in Maynooth are Wednesday evenings and Saturdays.
karen bergin
Counsellor & Psychotherapist - Adults & couples
Karen works from a humanistic and integrative approach, meaning that she combines therapeutic approaches to personalise counselling to suit you and your individual needs.
She realises that coming to therapy can be difficult, so she aims to work with you at your own pace. Her goal is to help you feel listened to and understood. She is a pre-Accredited member of IACP and works with individual clients and couples.
Karen works with a variety of issues including stress, anxiety, depression, relationship issues, low self-esteem and grief. She also works as a lecturer for students studying a degree in counselling & psychotherapy.
Qualifications: BSc in Integrative Counselling & Psychotherapy (2023), MSc in Cyberpsychology (2014) and Professional Certificate in Couples Counselling (2024).
Hours: Karen is available on Monday mornings (Maynooth).
Muriel Currid
Counsellor & Psychotherapist - Adults
Muriel is a qualified counsellor registered with the Irish Association of Humanistic and Integrative Psychotherapy (IAHIP). She has supported adult clients to work through issues with anxiety, stress, depression, anger, relationship problems, confidence, identity, self-esteem, trauma, loss, bereavement, health concerns and other challenges.
Muriel provides a safe non-judgmental environment, using an integrative and humanistic approach which is developmentally based, person-centred focused, drawing techniques from psychodynamic, psychosynthesis, CBT and solution-focused concepts as needed to meet your individual therapeutic needs.
She aims to create a secure collaborative therapeutic relationship where you can feel empowered to explore your issues and concerns, in a supportive environment where your strengths and resources can be discovered and nurtured.
Muriel is available for short term counselling as a way of supporting you with specific problem or situation or long-term psychotherapy supporting you to deepen your understanding of yourself and your relationships with others, uncovering thoughts, beliefs, assumptions and emotional reactions and responses possibly outside of your conscious awareness.
Qualifications: MSc. Integrative Counselling and Psychotherapy (TBC 2023), Post Grad. Diploma Integrative Clinical Psychotherapy (2022), Bachelor of Engineering (Honours) (2005).
Hours: Muriel is available on Monday & Friday evenings from 3pm – 9pm & also on Sundays (Maynooth).
michelle keogh
Counsellor & Psychotherapist - Adults
Michelle has experience working with a variety of issues including anxiety, bereavement/loss, low confidence, relationship issues, depression, bullying and addiction. She is a Pre-Accredited Therapist with IACP.
She is an integrative Therapist using techniques from several different approaches, depending on the needs of the client. That allows her to tailor her therapy to their individual situation. She believes the most important part of counselling is the relationship between the therapist and the client and works to ensure each person feels safe enough to share.
Michelle specialises in working with anxiety, by identifying triggers, patterns and underlying thoughts and beliefs that fuel stress. The sessions will help a client to understand their anxiety, the factors that contribute to it and explore tools to manage stress. She draws from a range of techniques, including Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT).
Qualifications: BA in Counselling and Psychotherapy (2021), Safe Talk Suicide Alertness training (2020) & ASIST Suicide Intervention training (2021).
Hours: Michelle is available on Thursday evenings from 4pm – 9pm (Maynooth).
OUR LEIXLIP THERAPISTS:
Joan Heduan
Counsellor and Psychotherapist – Adults
Joan is an Accredited Psychotherapist with the Irish Association of Humanistic & Integrative & Psychotherapy (IAHIP). She works with clients presenting with issues including depression, anxiety, bereavement, abuse, relationship problems, bullying, trauma, attachment difficulties, and other challenges.
Joan aims to create a safe, supportive environment where individuals can work on their issues, process deep and painful emotions, and develop the necessary coping mechanisms and resources to improve the quality of their lives. Joan strives to create a strong therapeutic relationship, where experiences are responded to with compassion, enabling clients to learn to relate to themselves and others in healthier ways.
She focuses on helping clients through a humanistic, person-centred approach integrated with other approaches to suit her client’s needs, including Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT) and Solution Focused Therapy (SFT).
Qualifications: Bachelor of Education (1993), Bachelor of Science in Psychology (2002), Masters in Educational Psychology (2004), Masters in Integrative Counselling & Psychotherapy (2019).
Hours: Joan is available on Monday evenings (3pm – 10pm) in Leixlip.
Annalisa Nardini
Counsellor AND Psychotherapist – Adults, couples & teenagers
Anna adopts a Humanistic and Integrative approach specialising in Cognitive Behavioural Therapy. She uses a flexible and personalised approach to help people make sense of problematic events in their lives. Problem-solving and decision-making can be challenging and Anna focuses on empowering people with the skills they need to achieve their goals.
She is passionate about languages and culture, offers therapy in English, Italian and Spanish and has advanced French. Anna is experienced working with adults and adolescents, both face to face and online. She is able to establish a strong therapeutic relationship with people presenting with a variety of issues.
Her aim is to help people overcome their fears and manage their anxiety by raising their awareness of common stress factors, their self-esteem and personal development.
Qualifications: Bachelor of Science in Psychology (2016). Masters in CBT (2017), Degree in Counselling & Psychotherapy (2019), Certificate in Gottman Couple therapy (2020). Accredited Psychotherapist (IACP) & member of the British Psychological Society.
Availability: Annalisa works on a Wednesdays from 3 – 9pm in Leixlip.
vida zemaitaitiene
Counsellor and Psychotherapist
Please note: Vida works in both Maynooth & Leixlip
Vida is an IACP qualified Psychotherapist working with adults. Her approach is described as Humanistic & Integrative, which means she considers the whole person and draws on different therapeutic models depending on the needs of the client.
She believes a good therapeutic relationship between the therapist and the client is the key to successful therapy. She aims to create a non-judgemental, safe and collaborative relationship which enables the client to flourish and drives them towards growth and healing.
Vida has worked with a range of issues including anxiety, stress, depression, grief, addiction, suicidal ideation and more. She has worked with many cultural backgrounds and speaks Russian & Lithuanian.
Qualifications: Vida has a BA (Hons) Degree in Counselling & Psychotherapy from the Institute of Counselling & Psychotherapy. She also has a Master’s in Health Psychology. She has a Certificate in Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) & a Cert in trauma work. She has volunteered with the Dublin Rape Crisis Centre.
Vida’s hours of work in Leixlip are Tuesday evenings from 3pm.
Charline kearney
Counsellor & Psychotherapist
Charline is passionate about helping clients to achieve their aspirations & goals around health & wellness. Using a pluralistic and humanistic approach to her work, she will attend to the specific needs and goals of each client, using various tools and strategies to promote healing.
Her priority is to make sure that each client feels heard and safe sharing their story. Charline encourages each client to share their goals, preferences and desire on how their therapy should suit their specific needs. She has experience working with adolescents and adults & speaks fluent English and French.
Charline integrates various therapeutic models, including Person-Centred Counselling, Choice Theory, Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT), Acceptance & Commitment Therapy, Existential Counselling and Mindfulness.
Qualifications: Charline is an Accredited Therapist with the Irish Association for Counselling & Psychotherapy (IACP). She holds a BA (Hons) in Counselling & Psychotherapy (2021) & is currently completing a Masters in Pluralistic Counselling & an Advanced Diploma in Mental Health Wellbeing & Coaching.
Hours: Charline is available on Tuesday evenings (3 – 9pm) in Leixlip.
sallyann alexander
Counsellor & Psychotherapist
Sallyann is a Pre-Accredited Psychotherapist and a Career Guidance Counsellor. Her expertise includes work-related stress, and coping with change, anxiety, depression, low confidence, negative self-talk, relationship difficulties and addiction.
She has a special interest in working with anxiety, menopause, coping with poor health and neurodiversity, and ADHD in particular. She has facilitated addiction recovery groups (Continuum Care Groups) with Aiseiri and depression support groups with Aware.
Sallyann’s approach is grounded in person-centred humanistic philosophy and practical interventions, using CBT perspectives and Reality Therapy. She will be flexible and responsive to the specific needs of any client.
Qualifications: Sallyann is a Pre-Accredited Therapist with the Irish Association for Counselling & Psychotherapy (IACP). She holds a BSc in Counselling & Psychotherapy (2022) & a BA in Arts (Community Studies) (2017), a Higher Diploma in Addiction Studies (2014), a Postgraduate Diploma in Adult Guidance (2020) & a Professional Certificate in CBT (2023).
Hours: Sallyann is available on Thursday evenings (3 – 9pm) in Leixlip.
Patricia Hughes
Play Therapist, Leixlip
Patricia is our resident Play Therapist working with children up to the age of 12. She helps young people to deal with any difficulties or strong emotions they might have through the medium of play.
Play therapy is an evidence-based approach that helps children dealing with any social or emotional issues to learn to express underlying feelings they might be struggling with, change their behaviour, develop problem-solving skills, and communicate and relate to others better. Patricia works with a wide range of issues, and has a particular interest in anxiety and low self-esteem.
She has a wealth of experience with young children, working as a therapist for more than seven years and as a Montessori preschool teacher for 12 years. She has worked in private practice and also in schools.
Qualifications: Degree in Counselling and Psychotherapy (2019). Post Graduate Diploma in Play Therapy (2017).
Hours: Patricia is available on a Thursday & Friday afternoon.
OUR ONLINE THERAPISTS:
Mari Gallagher
Counsellor and Psychotherapist – Adults & Couples
Mari is an IACP qualified psychotherapist who works with adults and couples in a person-centred, empathic, facilitative way on a broad range of issues, including depression, anxiety, chronic illness, bereavement, relationship difficulties, work-related stress, suicide ideation and post-traumatic stress.
Mari incorporates Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), Solution Focussed and Person Centred approaches to explore and help reach a fresh perspective on painful life experiences while developing coping strategies to deal with life’s ongoing challenges.
Mari also specialises in adoption issues such as search and reunion and post adoption depression. Mari has a BA in Counselling and Psychotherapy and is a qualified CBT practitioner.
Mari is available online on Tuesdays from 2pm – 9pm.
Ann Marie Kelly
Counsellor and Psychotherapist
Anne Marie Kelly is an IACP-accredited Psychotherapist with a concurrent career in music and the arts, and a previous background in finance.
With experience in a broad range of issues, she works with a gut and body-based approach, using the tools of SFBT and CBT to relieve the life affecting behaviours and responses brought on by trauma and stress.
Anne Marie’s hours of work are online on Tuesdays – Thursdays.
The First Step…
BOOK AN APPOINTMENT
If you wish to book a session with Maynooth Counselling & Psychotherapy, please click below to get started. We look forward to hearing from you.
