Our Team.

 

Conal Harpur
(Practice Owner and Director)

I began my Cognitive Behavioural Therapy training in 2013 following the completion of my BSc in Psychiatric Nursing. During the course of his study, I developed a keen interest in research and worked alongside a Consultant Psychiatrist to develop an online training tool with the intentions of teaching mental health professionals how to deliver competent CBT. During this time I also worked in St James's Psychology Dept. treating and managing complex cases. It was here that I developed an interest and understanding of Psychodynamic and Integrative Psychotherapy. This background gives me an niche ability to understand the world of psychiatry and psychotherapy to bring the best possible evidence based therapy to bring real change to patients lives.

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Following the completion of my Master of Science in Cognitive Psychotherapy I  accepted a post in the Coombe Maternity Hospital where I developed the CBT Dept and is subsequently the only full CBT department in the Maternity Services in Ireland. 

 

I am currently completing my Doctorate in Psychotherapy in Dublin City University (DCU) with a primary focus on anxiety disorders and obsessive compulsive disorder. I aim to deliver relatively short courses of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy to clients suffering from Depression, Anxiety Disorders, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, interpersonal problems and people suffering from existential difficulties. I offer a non-judgmental therapeutic space that welcomes all clients. Over the course of my career I have completed over 6 thousand hours of psychotherapy treating patients in a wide scope of clinical complexity. 

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​​Dr James Sheerin
 

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James is a Clinical Psychologist with a passion for helping individuals with a history of trauma, relational difficulties, attachment issues, low mood, and anxiety. James completed his undergraduate studies at University College Dublin, where he earned his Bachelor's degree in Psychology. He obtained a Master's degree from Leiden University, specialising in Clinical Psychology. His academic journey culminated in the achievement of a Doctorate degree in Clinical Psychology at University College Cork. James is a graduate of the Psychosocial Society of Ireland, and strictly adheres to the ethical, and best practice guidelines.

 

With a firm foundation in psychological theory and practice,  James is well-versed in a variety of therapeutic modalities, allowing him to tailor his approach to the unique needs of each client. His primary focus is on helping clients achieve their highest level of psychological well-being. James’s therapeutic approach is founded in cognitive behavioural therapy, while also integrating other evidence-based psychological models (such as Schema Therapy, Emotion-Focused Therapy, Dialectical Behaviour Therapy, and Mindfulness) subject to client need.

 

James has experience in various child, adolescent, and adult services, and strives to provide targeted, practical support, while supporting clients to delve into comprehensive therapeutic work, aimed at enhancing their mental health, and overall well-being. In his doctorate, James completed specialist placements working with refugees and asylum seekers who experienced war-based trauma and PTSD, as well as forensic specialist placements working in the Irish Prison Service.

 

James’s doctoral research focused on people with intellectual disabilities and their perceptions of rights-restrictions in their daily care. He has published numerous scientific research papers. James is committed to continuous review of contemporary research and emerging scientific literature. This pursuit of new knowledge and dedication to ongoing professional development are testament to his proactive approach to staying abreast of the latest advancements in clinical psychology, ensuring that he continually integrates evidence-based practices into his work.

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Dr Aoife Clancy

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Dr Aoife Clancy is a Clinical Psychologist with an interest in anxiety, low mood, trauma, relational issues and health-based difficulties. Aoife’s studies began at University College Cork where she completed her Bachelor’s Degree in Applied Psychology. She obtained her Master’s degree in Psychological Science at the University of Limerick and completed her Professional Doctorate in Clinical Psychology at University College Dublin. Aoife is a graduate of the Psychological Society of Ireland, and adheres with best practice guidelines in her clinical work.  

She has experience working in child and adolescent services, community adult mental health teams, disability network teams and in various hospital and neuropsychology settings.  She has worked with diverse populations, including adults, children, couples and families facing challenging life events, trauma and various psychological difficulties.

In her work, Aoife incorporates a variety approaches, including Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, Schema Therapy, Compassion Focused Therapy, Mindfulness-based approaches, as well as attachment theory and polyvagal theory. Aoife believes in tailoring evidenced-based approaches to meet an individual’s unique needs and to help create meaningful change in their lives. She aims to help clients to develop a deeper understanding of their concerns, and move effectively toward their goals.

Throughout her career, Aoife has been actively involved in research and stays up-to-date with advancements of psychological knowledge. Aoife’s doctoral research focused on the delivery and evaluation of school based mental health and wellbeing programmes, and she has also completed research in the areas of infant mental health and arts-based therapy.

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Dr Aisling Tennyson

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Dr Aisling is a Clinical Psychologist with a passion for helping individuals with low mood, anxiety, relationship difficulties, and trauma histories. Dr Aisling completed her undergraduate studies at University College Dublin, where she earned her Bachelor's degree in Arts, Higher Diploma degree in Psychology, and later her Master's degree in Psychological Science. Dr Aisling completed further training in University College London for a postgraduate certificate in delivering Cognitive Behavioural Therapies. Her academic journey culminated in the achievement of a Doctorate degree in Clinical Psychology at University College Cork. Dr Aisling is a graduate of the Psychological Society of Ireland.

 

Dr Aisling has worked with diverse populations in various child, adolescent, adult and disability services. Dr Aisling aims to empower clients to make improvements to their mental health and overall well-being through comprehensive therapeutic work.  Dr Aisling prides herself in providing a person centered approach, with the ability to tailor interventions to the unique needs of each client while her main therapeutic approach is founded in Cognitive Behavioural Therapy. She integrates other evidence-based psychological models, such as Compassion Focused Therapy, Schema Therapy, Emotion-Focused Therapy, Dialectical Behaviour Therapy, Acceptance & Commitment therapy and Mindfulness.

 

Dr Aisling’s doctoral research focused on people with eating disorders and family based treatment. She has a special interest in third wave cognitive behavioural therapies, and has conducted various research projects in the area of Acceptance & Commitment Therapy, one of which was published in a scientific research journal. Dr Aisling is committed to a continuous review of contemporary research and emerging scientific literature to ensure that she continually integrates evidence-based practices into her work

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Dr Aoife Farrell

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Dr. Aoife Farrell is a Clinical Psychologist who is devoted to supporting individuals who have a history of trauma, relationship difficulties, anxiety and low mood. Aoife completed her undergraduate studies for 4 years in Dublin City University where she received a Bachelor of Science degree. She then went on to study her Masters in Applied Psychology in University College Cork. In recent years Aoife completed her PhD in Clinical Psychology through the University Of Limerick.

Aoife is a scientist practitioner meaning that she is passionate that her practice is evidenced by the latest research and gold standard practice guidelines. Ethical practice is at the forefront of the work Aoife carries out with her clients. She is a member of the Psychological Society of Ireland and Psychological Society of Ireland special interest groups in Perinatal Mental Health,  Trauma and Adversity and Autism. Aoife regularly attends professional development training in order to keep up to date with the latest research in the field of Clinical Psychology.  Aoife's Masters and Doctoral thesis studied the experiences of females in the context of health, well-being and career progression, highlighting Aoife's passion for equality.

Aoife has experience working across various contexts in child and adolescent, adult and disability services. In addition, she completed a specialist placement working with refugees and asylum seekers who have experienced war trauma and post-traumatic stress related issues. Therapeutically Aoife works from a cognitive behavioural approach whereby she also integrates various other therapeutic modalities such as Compassion Focused therapy, Narrative Exposure Therapy, Cognitive Analytical Therapy, Dialectical Behaviour Therapy and Mindfulness. Aoife formulates her clients difficulties in a comprehensive manner and individualises her therapeutic approach accordingly in order to support people to make changes in their life to promote happiness and overall well-being. In doing all of the above, she does so in a person-centred and compassionate manner.

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Dr Emma O'Byrne

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Dr Emma O’Byrne is a Clinical Psychologist with a special interest in anxiety, depression and relational issues. Dr. Emma obtained a BA Psychology from University College Dublin, an MSc Health Psychology from Middlesex University in London and her Professional Doctorate in Clinical Psychology at University College Cork.

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Clinically Dr Emma has a strong understanding of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy and other therapeutic modalities that are molded together to ensure the highest quality of therapeutic service.

 

She is a graduate member of the Psychological Society of Ireland (M13131) and works in line with best practice guidelines, as well as engaging in regular continuous professional development. Dr. Emma has a breadth of clinical experience working with a combination of adult and child/adolescent clients with a varying level of mental health difficulties from mild to severe. In all settings Dr. Emma has helped many clients come to an understanding of their problems and consequently has offered focused and practical support, as well as more in-depth therapeutic work, to improve the client’s mental health, wellbeing and overall quality of life.

 

Dr. Emma’s Doctoral Research was based on interventions that can support the attachment relationship and consequent psychological wellbeing of children and their caregivers. This work is published in the Journal of Infant Mental Health (O’Byrne, E., McCusker, C., & MacSweeney, S. (2022). The impact of the “Attachment and Biobehavioral Catch-Up” program on attachment related parent behaviour – a systematic review. The Journal of Infant Mental Health), and will be presented at the World Association of Infant Mental Health Annual Congress 2023. Dr. Emma describes her learnings and take homes from this research as: change in even the most challenging circumstances is possible with the right support.

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Dr Alison Clarke

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Dr Alison is a Clinical Psychologist with a passion for helping people with anxiety, low
mood, trauma histories and relational and attachment difficulties. Dr Alison completed her
undergraduate studies at University College Dublin, where she earned her Bachelor's degree
in Psychology. She then obtained a Master's degree in Psychological Science from University
College Dublin. Dr Alison’s academic journey culminated in the achievement of a Doctorate
degree in Clinical Psychology at University College Cork. Dr Alison is a graduate of the
Psychological Society of Ireland.

In her work, Dr Alison integrates a variety of evidence-based psychological models, such as
Compassion Focused Therapy, Psychodynamic Therapy, Cognitive Behavioural Therapy,
Dialectical Behaviour Therapy, Acceptance & Commitment therapy and Mindfulness. She
prides herself in providing a person centered approach, with the ability to tailor interventions
to the unique needs of each client. Alison has worked with diverse populations in various
child, adolescent, adult and disability services. Dr Alison aims to empower clients to make
improvements to their mental health and overall well-being through comprehensive
therapeutic work.  During her doctorate, Alison completed specialist placements in a
paediatric psychology service providing psychological support to children with medical
conditions and their families, as well as a forensic specialist placement working in the Irish
Prison Service.
 
Alison’s doctoral research focused on the experience of sound intolerance in adults with
Autism. She also explored the consequences of noise-attenuation devices among children and
adults with Autism. Alison has published numerous scientific research papers and presented
the results of her research at national and international conferences. Alison’s continuous
pursuit of new knowledge and review of emerging scientific literature are testament to her
proactive approach to ensure that she continually integrates evidence-based practices into her
work. She has also completed research in the areas of youth mental health, and suicide
prevention.

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Alan Dignam

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Alan is a highly skilled psychotherapist with a unique blend of gold standard clinical practice, lecturing and research. Starting with his BA in Integrative Psychotherapy before completing his Masters in Pluralistic Psychotherapy. Education is the key to delivering a high-quality psychotherapy practice to clients and this is one reason Alan is currently completing his Doctorate in Psychotherapy in Dublin City University. Academically Alan is heavily involved with therapist education and is a lecturer in psychotherapy IICP. Alan divides his time between his clinical practice and lecturing.​

Alan is a fully accredited Psychotherapist with the Irish Association of Counsellors and Psychotherapists(IACP) and have extensive experience treating and managing clients with complex mental health problems. Alan is also a keen researcher in mental health problems and has presented this research on numerous occasions to a national conference in Trinity College Dublin.

Alan has worked with hundreds of clients in over 2500 hours of clinical practice. During this extensive clinical experience Alan developed his specialty in treating anxiety disorders, low mood, and depression as well as relationship issues and developing a sense of purpose in his patients’ lives.

His clinical training is a combination of cognitive behavioural therapy through a pluralistic lens with psychoanalytic and other behavioural approaches. This allows Alan to draw on a wide range of psychotherapy techniques, skills, and insights to deliver a holistic and integrated treatment approach that is unique to each client.  Alan is a highly diversified and skilled clinician that works in a goal focused way to ensure clients achieve what they want from therapy.

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Niamh Brown

​(Child and Adolescent Specialist Therapist)

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Niamh Brown is a Psychoanalytic Psychotherapist with a special interest in anxiety, depression, postnatal depression and relational issues. In 2002, Niamh obtained her MSc in Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy from Trinity College Dublin. Niamh furthered her studies with the British Association of Psychotherapy in 2006 and in 2007 she qualified as a professional supervisor. In 2018, Niamh has spent 30 years working in Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services in the HSE treating complex cases including anxiety disorders, depression and OCD as well as working with parents to provide pscyhological support. Niamh typically uses a combination of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy and Psychoanalysis to treat her patients. Niamh obtained her certificate in Cognitive Behavioural Therapy from the University of the West of Scotland. In addition, Niamh is a qualified Infant Observation teacher and yoga teacher.  Niamh is a fully accredited Psychotherapist and Supervisor with the Irish Council for  Psychotherapy.  

 

Niamh has extensive clinical experience, treating and managing clients with complex mental health problems. Niamh teaches on the MSc in Child and Adolescent Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy training programme in Trinity College and she is a clinical supervisor for trainee psychotherapists. Niamh has a keen interest in the area of postnatal depression, she has provided psychotherapeutic psychotherapy to mothers' and their babies, some of whom had experienced war-based trauma and PTSD and were living in Ireland on international protection. Niamh delivered the mental health training course for professionals in the North Eastern Region, where she developed a care pathway for mothers suffering from postnatal depression, in collaboration with General Practitioners, Public Health Nurses and Adult Mental Health Services. Throughout her career, Niamh has networked with key personnel in the health service, to provide a holistic approach to her clients and she supervised public health nurses offering intervention to mothers suffering from postnatal depression. In addition, Niamh was chairperson of the North East Infant Mental Health Committee and proactively campaigned on the importance of intervening at this pivotal stage, as a preventative measure. Niamh has extensive clinical experience working with children, adolescents, their parents and adults. Niamh's training, experience and knowledge, enables her to integrate a wide range of psychotherapeutic strategies, skills, techniques and insights, to deliver evidence based psychotherapy treatment to her clients.