About me
Welcome to my web page my name is Sharon Doherty, I'm a counsellor and therapeutic yoga teacher. When working with clients I offer both yoga and counselling individually, and where appropriate, I combine the benefits of yoga practices and counselling to offer a trauma informed approach to explore sensitive and complex issues in a safe space.
As a counsellor my specialism is supporting clients living with the ongoing physical and mental health issues attributed to an autoimmune condition. I have also developed a particular interest in helping clients recover from the complicated nature of narcissistic relationships.
Individual Counselling
My passion for counselling adults and young people with a range of presenting issues comes from the personal challenges I have faced in life and learning to manage and balance a range of emotional and practical needs to overcome difficult situations.
Child & Adolescent Counselling
I work in age appropriate and creative ways that suit each individual, this could include: drawing, modelling clay, Russian dolls, buttons, writing poems or songs and when preferred I also use suitable talking interventions when required.
Family Therapy
Family counselling can be a useful place to explore and better understand family dynamics and behaviours. There are many ways differences between adults and children within your family can show up. Time in family therapy can be a safe place to explore and identify these differences and begin the process of working together to find an appropriate solution.
Therapeutic Yoga
Is a one to one trauma informed and embodied approach that integrates counselling and specific yoga practices to regulate the autonomic nervous system. This is especially useful when working with a range of physical and mental health issues
Working therapeutically 1:1 involves a consultation to understand your health and lifestyle needs, and helps inform which yoga practices would best support you. All sessions are respectful of your your body and it's existing range of movement and are adapted to help rehabilitate any injury.
In my practice the most common presentations are:
Anxiety
When practiced regularly, the individual combination of grounding, breath practices, yoga postures and relaxation balance and regulate the heightened "fight/flight" response of nervous system to be more able to access the parasympathetic nervous system or "rest and digest". These practices help to reduce the physical and mental and emotional symptoms of anxiety: poor sleep, shaking, restlessness, muscle tension, nausea, digestive problems, sweating, shortness of breath, palpitations, panic attacks, tiredness, negative thought cycles, excessive worry, poor focus and concentration, forgetfulness and irritability.
Depression
Clients experiencing depression can live with an everchanging range of emotional, physical and mental states that can have a significant impact on daily living. Depression can be characterised by persistent: low mood or sadness, low self-esteem, feeling hopeless and helpless, anxious or worried, guilt ridden, tearful and feeling irritable and intolerant toward others. Some common examples of physical symptoms include: disturbed sleep, lack of energy, changes in appetite and weight, unexplained aches and pains and low sex drive. Mental function can be impaired to varying degrees making it more difficult for clients to: make decisions, enjoy life and show motivation or interest and some clients can experience thoughts of self-harm or suicide. Research has indicated that clients experiencing depression show higher levels of the stress hormone cortisol and lower levels of key neurotransmitters, working regularly with specific yoga practices will begin to regulate the nervous system and alleviate the unwanted symptoms.
Trauma
Trauma symptoms can be complex, clients often report a range of physical, mental and emotional experiences. These can include disturbed sleep, nightmares or insomnia, flashbacks, repetitive distressing images and physical sensations including trembling, aches and pains,sweating and nausea, these can also contribute to difficulty concentrating and irritability and anger outbursts. These can occur immediately after a traumatic event or can be triggered at a later time. Working therapeutically with with individual yoga practices and counselling interventions equips clients with the tools to balance and regulate the movement between sympathetic and parasympathetic responses helps to build “vagal tone”, this means the clients nervous system has the capacity to develop more resilience and tolerance to internal and external stressors.
If you recognise individually or a combination of any of the above therapeutic yoga will equip you with the skills to address and self regulate the stress response in bodily systems and physiology and move from "fight/flight" (sympathetic NS) to "rest and digest" (parasympathetic NS).Home practice between sessions is an essential part of the process of restoring homeostasis in the body and effecting lasting change.
Training, qualifications & experience
Therapeutic Yoga for Mental Health & Trauma 2023
Adlerian Approach to Family Counselling 2019
COSCA Certificate in Counselling Supervision 2013
Advanced Diploma in Therapeutic Counselling 2008
Diploma in Stress Management 2006
Member organisations
school Registered / Accredited
Being registered/accredited with a professional body means an individual must have achieved a substantial level of training and experience approved by their member organisation.
COSCA is the professional body for counselling and psychotherapy in Scotland, and seeks to advance all forms of counselling and psychotherapy and the use of counselling skills by promoting best practice and through the delivery of a range of sustainable services. COSCA Counsellor Accreditation is a pathway to entry onto the UKRC. It is a requirement of all individual and organisational members of COSCA to abide by its Statement of Ethics and Code of Practice and be accountable to the Complaints Procedure. Accredited by the Professional Standards Authority.
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
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.
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.
Areas of counselling I deal with
Therapies offered
Fees
£60.00 per session
Additional information
Individual counselling £60
Family Counselling £75
Individual supervision £60 per hour
Group supervision POA
When I work
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Glasgow - Monday 10-4, Thursday 10-4.
Shotts - Tuesday 9-3.30, Wednesday 9-3.30.
