Deirdre MacNamara, BACP

Deirdre MacNamara is a BACP counsellor based in the United Kingdom. She offers a calm, respectful approach for people facing stress, anxiety, grief, trauma, depression and related concerns. Deirdre writes plainly and aims to make the first steps feel manageable for those who are worried or uncertain.

Her background includes five years of direct counselling in community health, education and independent practice settings. She has worked with people across different cultures and with first responder issues, and she describes her work as sensitive to multicultural factors. Deirdre has experience supporting people with eating concerns, anger, low self-esteem, compassion fatigue and ADHD, as well as longer-term health and caregiving challenges.

Deirdre draws on client-centred ideas, mindfulness and emotion-focused ways of working. She uses Acceptance and Commitment Therapy ideas alongside these approaches when it fits the person and their goals. In sessions she aims to be warm, honest and respectful while helping people notice what matters most to them.

Her practice emphasises collaboration. She invites people to set goals together and to shape the work around what feels useful and realistic. Practical steps, reflective conversation and simple mindfulness skills are commonly part of the sessions.

For someone facing life changes, loss or ongoing stress, her style is gentle and steady. She encourages small, achievable steps and supports people as they try new ways of coping and relating to themselves and others.

How her approaches translate to online counselling

Deirdre uses Acceptance and Commitment Therapy in a practical, values-focused way. ACT helps people notice what matters to them and take small steps towards those values even when difficult thoughts or feelings are present. It can help with anxiety, depression and motivation issues.

She also draws on Client-Centred Therapy which centres the conversation on the person’s perspective. This approach aims to create a compassionate, non-judgemental space where people feel heard and can make sense of their experience.

Finding the right approach is part of the work. The therapist will discuss goals and preferences and together decide which methods suit a person's needs. That choice can change over time as progress and challenges emerge.

If you are considering online therapy, confirm the current session options before booking. Online work can make it easier to fit sessions into a busy week, reduce travel time and allow shorter check-ins when needed. It can also make it simpler to continue therapy across life changes while keeping the focus on practical strategies, mindfulness exercises and emotionally focused conversations.