Sharon Lenihan, BACP

Sharon Lenihan is an integrative counsellor with five years of experience who has worked since 2021 with a Sexual Survivors Trust supporting adults and young adults affected by sexual violence and trauma. She creates an accepting, non-judgemental space where people can feel heard and believed while they explore the difficulties that affect their wellbeing.

Her practice is warm, compassionate, and collaborative. She adapts therapy to each person’s needs, drawing on person-centred methods, cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), psychodynamic ideas, and mindfulness-based techniques so that the work fits the individual rather than requiring the person to fit a model. Sessions proceed at the client’s pace with care and respect for previous experiences of threat or mistrust.

Sharon helps people process overwhelming or painful memories, develop practical coping strategies, and rebuild a sense of safety, self-trust, and resilience. Many of the people she supports experience shame, anxiety, low mood, relationship strain, or the lasting effects of trauma, and she aims to offer a steady, supportive presence as they make sense of those experiences.

Before training as a counsellor she worked for many years in safeguarding roles, supporting individuals and families through crisis, risk, and complex systems. That background contributes experience in holding sensitive material and providing trauma-informed support during highly stressful circumstances. Sharon holds BACP membership - the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy - and she works with people seeking to understand the impact of past events, manage strong emotions, navigate relationships, or simply find a space to be genuinely listened to and taken seriously.

Evidence-based approaches for online support

Sharon commonly integrates cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) as a practical approach that helps identify and change unhelpful thinking and behaviour patterns; it is often used for anxiety, low mood, and stress-related difficulties. She also draws on person-centred methods that prioritise a compassionate, client-led relationship where the therapist offers empathy and acceptance to help people explore their feelings and values. Mindfulness-based techniques are used to help people develop present-moment awareness and gentle self-regulation skills, which can reduce rumination and support emotional grounding.

Deciding which approach to use is part of the therapeutic process. Sharon works collaboratively with each person to explore their goals, preferences, and needs, and she tailors the combination of techniques so the work feels like a good fit for the individual.

Online therapy with Sharon is offered by video call, phone session, live chat, or text-based messaging to provide flexibility in how people access support. These options make it easier to fit therapy around work, family, or other commitments and can increase accessibility for those outside her local area while allowing registered professionals to maintain an ongoing therapeutic relationship.