Mary Saunders

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Individual & Couples Psychotherapist MBACP, Dip. Couns

About me

Are you tired of feeling anxious and like it will always control your life?

Maybe you’re constantly on edge, overwhelmed by work, stuck in a difficult relationship, or just fed up with feeling like you’re not where you should be. Whether you're navigating personal struggles, a major life event, tension within your relationship, you're not alone and things can change!

I work with adults, couples, teenagers and families, drawing on a wide toolkit that includes psychotherapy, CBT, NLP, hypnotherapy, and solution-focused work grounded in neuroscience. I’m not a one-size-fits-all therapist.  Every client is different and so is every session.  My approach is intuitive, practical, and focused on real results.

I’ll help you uncover what’s really going on beneath the surface  why you think, feel, and respond the way you do and equip you with the tools to shift it. We’ll explore what’s holding you back, work through what needs to be released, and build the self-awareness and confidence to move forward with clarity and with tools so you don't keep repeating the same patterns. 

Anxiety can be debilitating.  Our brains are wired to repeat familiar patterns  even when they don’t serve us  but there is another way. When we work in a solution-focused way, we start creating new neural pathways, freeing you from the cycle of feeling like your mind is in control of you  instead of the other way around.

Couples & Family Therapy
Relationships can feel heavy when communication breaks down or past wounds haven’t healed. Whether you're feeling disconnected from your partner, going through a major life event like infidelity or loss, or simply struggling to navigate the pressures of modern life together I can help.

With extensive experience supporting couples and families, I’ll help you identify what's really going on, rebuild trust, improve communication, and deepen connection. Together, we’ll untangle the patterns and pain points and create space for real change and growth enabling you to develop your level of self awareness and self acceptance of each other.

Think of it as giving your relationship the attention and tune up it needs  to reconnect, realign, and move forward stronger.

 
Support for Teenagers
Teenagers today are under intense pressure from social media, school, peers, and sometimes their own expectations. It’s easy for them to feel lost, anxious, or unsure of who they really are.

I work with teens in a calm, respectful space where they can talk freely without judgment. Through a blend of therapeutic tools, I help them make sense of what they’re feeling, build emotional resilience, and reconnect with their sense of self. It’s about helping them distinguish between perception and reality  and knowing they are enough, just as they are.

Training, qualifications & experience

  • Assessing & Treating Sexual Issues in Psychotherapy, AASECT 
  • Hypnotherapy in Practice Diploma, HPD, MNCH 
  • Diploma in Solution Focused Hypnotherapy/Psychotherapy DSFH, CPHT 
  • Level 4 Diploma in in Therapeutic Counselling, CPCAB
  • Level 3 Certificate in Counselling Studies, CPCAB
  • Level 2 Certificate in Counselling Skills, CPCAB
  • SLABS Bereavement Counselling
  • Cert in Couples Dynamics
  • Cert in Couples Therapy
  • Level 2 Award in Substance Missue

Continuing Professional Development courses and seminars including:

  • Dealing with Trauma and Traumatic memories
  • Group Work
  • Working with Bereaved Families
  • Attachment and Character Strategies
  • Prolonged Grief Disorder
  • Working with anxiety and depression
  • Addiction
  • Assessing and Managing Risk to Self
  • Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT)
  • NLP
  • Coaching

Member organisations

BACP
British Association for Counselling & Psychotherapy (BACP)

BACP is one of the UK’s leading professional bodies for counselling and psychotherapy with around 60,000 members. The Association has several different categories of membership, including Student Member, Individual Member, Registered Member MBACP, Registered Accredited Member MBACP (Accred) and Senior Registered Accredited Member MBACP (Snr Acccred). Registered and accredited members are listed on the BACP Register, which shows that they have demonstrated BACP’s recommended standards for training, proficiency and ethical practice. The BACP Register was the first register of psychological therapists to be accredited by the Professional Standards Authority (PSA). Accredited and senior accredited membership are voluntary categories for members who choose to undertake a rigorous application and assessment process to demonstrate additional standards around practice, training and supervision. Individual members will have completed an appropriate counselling or psychotherapy course and started to practise, but they won’t appear on the BACP Register until they've demonstrated that they meet the standards for registration. Student members are still in the process of completing their training. All members are bound by the BACP Ethical Framework and a Professional Conduct Procedure.

Accredited register membership

British Association for Counselling & Psychotherapy
Accredited Register Scheme

The Accredited Register Scheme was set up in 2013 by the Department of Health (DoH) as a way to recognise organisations that hold voluntary registers which meet certain standards. These standards are set by the Professional Standards Authority (PSA).

This therapist has indicated that they belong to an Accredited Register.

British Association for Counselling & Psychotherapy

Areas of counselling I deal with

Fees

Concessions offered for

  • Trainee counsellors

Additional information

I work out of two calm tranquil locations with plenty of free parking.  Both environments are large and adhere to the two metre distancing rules - I can offer sessions on zoom or face to face

£50 for a 55 minute session

£70 for couple counselling 1hr 10 min

Counselling student discounts available

When I work

8am - 9pm Monday - Friday

Further information

As well as private practice, I work in the London EC2 working with lawyers, traders, CEO's and entrepreneurs with stress management, personal development training.

Kings Hill Community Centre, West Malling, ME19 4LG

Type of session

In person
Online
Phone

Types of client

Young people (13-17)
Adults (25-64)
Couples
Families

Online platforms

Whatsapp
Zoom

Social

Mary Saunders
Mary Saunders