You’ve probably looked into getting help. Maybe you spoke to your GP and were told the waiting list is months long. Maybe you looked at private rates and found them out of reach. Maybe you’ve been managing – just about – and wondering whether that’s good enough.

It’s not a great situation. Ireland’s public mental health services are genuinely overstretched right now. There are good practitioners here doing their best, but the gap between the number of people who need support and the number of available appointments is real and documented.

I’m not based in Ireland. I’m a registered counsellor in South Africa, and I offer sessions online via Zoom. The time zone works well – South African mornings overlap with early to mid-morning in Ireland, which means sessions can happen before your working day begins if that suits you.

If you’re open to working with someone outside the Irish system, and if what you’re looking for is a consistent, ongoing therapeutic relationship rather than a waiting list number, I’d be glad to hear from you.

What I offer

I work with adults dealing with trauma, anxiety, depression, grief, relationship difficulties and life transitions. Sessions are one hour, via Zoom, and are built around what you’re actually going through rather than a fixed protocol.

I draw on two main approaches – person-centred therapy and narrative therapy – and adapt between them depending on what’s most useful for you. Narrative therapy is interested in the story you’ve been told about yourself, the one you’ve been telling yourself, and whether it’s still serving you. Person-centred therapy is the relationship those questions get explored inside – a steady, non-judgemental presence rather than a fixed protocol. Neither is the “default” – sessions aren’t clinical in feel, regardless of which approach is doing more of the work at a given point. We talk. We take our time. Nothing is rushed.

Is working with a South African counsellor right for me?

That’s a fair question, and I want to answer it honestly.

Online counselling with a practitioner based abroad works well for people who are motivated to engage, have a stable enough situation to commit to regular sessions, and are dealing with the kinds of difficulties described above – trauma, anxiety, depression, grief, transitions.

It’s not suitable for people in acute crisis, experiencing active suicidal ideation, or requiring clinical-level or inpatient care. If that’s where you are right now, your first point of contact should be your GP or, in an emergency, Samaritans Ireland on 116 123 (free, 24 hours).

My registration is with the Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA, Reg. PRC0023531). I am not registered with any Irish professional body. If you’re looking for a practitioner who can interact with the Irish HSE system or provide documentation for Irish insurance purposes, you would need someone registered locally.

If none of that applies – if you’re simply looking for good, consistent support at a time that works for you – then I think this could work well.

Session times and how it works

I’m based in South Africa (SAST, UTC+2), and South Africa does not observe daylight saving. My sessions run Monday to Friday from 9:00 to 16:30 South African time, and Saturday mornings from 9:00 to 13:00.

In Irish time, that’s roughly:

Monday to Friday: 07:00 to 14:30 Irish time (the exact offset varies slightly by season, since Ireland observes daylight saving and South Africa doesn’t)
Saturday: 07:00 to 11:00 Irish time

For most people in Ireland, this means morning or mid-morning sessions are the most natural fit – before work, or in a flexible window if your schedule allows it. We’ll confirm the exact time in both SAST and Irish time before anything is booked, so there’s no ambiguity.

Sessions are conducted in South African Rand and invoiced accordingly. See the pricing page for the current session fee.

Payment is by card online. A receipt is provided after each session.

What to expect

Getting started is straightforward. You send me a WhatsApp message or email from the contact me page. We agree a time that works for both of us. You complete a short registration form before the first session. And then we begin.

There’s no long intake process, no waiting list, and no pressure to commit to a specific number of sessions upfront. Some people know they want ongoing work. Others want to see how the first session feels. Either is fine.

What I ask is that you give it a real chance. The first session is often about getting oriented – understanding where you are and what you’re carrying. The work tends to deepen from there.

What brings people in Ireland to counselling

While the reasons people reach out vary widely, a few themes come up often:

A long wait for HSE or public mental health support, with difficulties continuing in the meantime
Anxiety – generalised, work-related, or connected to specific life circumstances
Depression and low mood, including the high-functioning kind that’s easy to keep pushing through
Grief and loss – of a person, a relationship, a job, or a sense of how life was “supposed to” go
Loneliness and isolation, which can be present even when someone’s life looks full from the outside
Trauma – from a specific event, or from something that built up gradually over time

If homesickness is part of what you are carrying, there is a short, free meditation for homesickness you can use any time, written for anyone missing a place they cannot easily get back to.

Why I have a page for Ireland

Honestly, because people in Ireland have been looking for what I offer and not finding enough of it locally. I started to hear from Irish clients through word of mouth, and it became clear that the gap between need and available support was significant enough that it was worth making myself more visible here.

I’m not suggesting I’m a substitute for a well-funded Irish mental health system. I hope that improves. But in the meantime, if online counselling across borders can be useful to you, I’m here.

Questions about booking or pricing?

Read about how sessions work or what it costs — or skip straight to asking. No commitment in making contact.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need to be Irish to access this?

No. This page is for anyone living in Ireland who is looking for online counselling – Irish nationals, immigrants, expats, students. What matters is where you are when you join the session, not your nationality.

What if I need to cancel?

There’s no charge for cancellations. I ask for 24 hours’ notice where possible so I can offer the slot to someone else, but I understand that life doesn’t always cooperate.

Is online counselling as effective as in-person?

For the kinds of difficulties I work with – trauma, anxiety, depression, grief, life transitions – the evidence suggests online counselling is comparably effective to in-person work for most people. What matters most is the quality of the therapeutic relationship, not the medium. Some people actually find online sessions easier because they can be in their own space.

What platform do you use?

Zoom. All sessions are conducted in a private, password-protected meeting room. I recommend using a personal device and a private space for the duration of the session.

What therapeutic approach do you use?

Person-centred (Rogerian) therapy as the relational foundation, with narrative therapy as the primary working lens – see the “What I offer” section above for more detail.

How much does a session cost, and how do I pay?

Sessions are invoiced in South African Rand and paid by card online before each session. See the pricing page for the current session fee.

Online Counselling in Ireland