MARY JOHNSTONE SNEDDON

Mary Johnstone Sneddon

My name is Mary Johnstone Sneddon. I am a Registered Member MBACP (Accred) and I work to their ethical framework Ethical Framework for the Counselling Professions 2018 (Word 0.2MB) and in addition to this, I am an EMDR UK and Ireland accredited practitioner

If something has led you here and you know for sure you want to feel better, it could be you need someone to listen and walk alongside you. As you face this difficult and challenging time, you may be thinking of reaching out and asking for help. Often this first step into the unknown can be the hardest, most anxiety provoking part, leaving you with questions and uncertainties that you need answers too. Please be assured if you do contact me, and you need to leave a message, I will get back to you as soon as I can and, I will endeavour to answer any questions you may have about the therapy I provide.

Reaching out for help -Sometimes life can really feel like a challenge. Things can happen to us, or we can make decisions that we feel people will judge us on; we can find ourselves thinking, we have no one too whom we can turn, and this can throw up difficult emotions that are hard to cope with. At such times, this painful and lonely place may lead to us retreating further from life activities and those around us. Sometimes this action increases the very emotions we do not want to feel, and so we can feel trapped and unable to make any decisions, which might lead to one feeling more uplifted, empowered and in control of life.

If you feel your quality of life has deteriorated; if you easily feel overwhelmed and are finding it hard to cope; if you need to feel heard and accepted, you need to talk to someone who can listen confidentially and is not shocked by your story. As a counsellor, this is and has been my role with my clients, for many years - To hear, accept and not judge you, to travel alongside you, at a difficult time, holding what you share with me when we meet, whilst knowing I am not involved in any other part of your life.

A Little About Me –

My interest in counselling took me into training in the 1990's. My initial training favoured the Person-Centred approach, with its emphasis on the 'the therapeutic relationship’. As my experience grew, so did my interest in working with trauma and in the last 15 years, I have developed a private practice in FIFE and GLASGOW, offering long and short-term counselling to clients. The frequency and length of appointments is reached in discussion with individual need.

My labradoodle Woody accompanies me to work, and his presence is often found to be comforting.

As a counsellor my client work has shown how the drip, drip effect of smaller traumas can over time, add up to post traumatic stress, just as a major traumatic event can. An example of trauma for one person could be that they have been subjected to bullying, ridiculed, or made to feel they do not exist, whilst for another person, a trauma could be surviving a serious assault or car crash. Either could be experiencing difficulties coping on a day-to-day basis, with concentration, sleep, relationships, work, feeling constantly emotionally overwhelmed, hyper vigilance, anger, numbness, detachment; suffering from horrible physical symptoms such as panic, anxiety, flashbacks or nightmares; Sometimes these experiences can have occurred years or months earlier and yet it can feel as if the event has just happened.

Experience has shown me, when someone just needs to stop feeling so physically and emotionally overwhelmed; collaborating with a Counsellor can help...With your knowledge of self and my training, we will work at your pace and with greatest respect for the skills that have helped you to survive your story, so far. I aim to offer a safe place, where you are in control of what you share, and what it is you need support with; a place that values your life experiences and wisdom, with no investment on my behalf, about what you should or should not do. Together we will move forward and learn what brings you relief, from difficult and troubling physical and emotional symptoms.

Besides trauma I work with an array of different issues, (please see below, however this list is not exhaustive).

What may bring you to counselling

Abuse, Anger, Anxiety Addictions
Bereavement, Bullying
Career issues
Carer counselling
Depression, dissociation
Family issues
Generalised anxiety disorder
Loneliness, low self-esteem.
Miscarriage
Obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD)
Panic attacks, phobias, post-traumatic stress disorder PTSD)
Relationship issues
Self-harm, separation and divorce, stress suicidal thoughts
Trauma
Work related stress

Additional information - I have 30yrs plus, working in the helping professions, which extends to working with the Health Board, Social Work Department, Kingdom Abuse Survivors Project Kirkcaldy, Falkirk District Mental Health Association, Perth Association for Mental Health, EAP work and a Private Therapy Practice spanning more than 15years. I have been an assistant tutor on a Diploma in Counselling course, and I have experience of working both long and short term with clients. I provide supervision to trainee and practicing counsellors and consultation / supervision to individuals not practicing as counsellors, but in workplace settings working with individuals. I am also available to deliver workshops on request.

I am fully insured as a practising therapist and in line with the BACP codes of ethics, I attend regular monthly clinical supervision and annually meet each professional bodies requirement, for continued professional development. I am a registered data controller which requires me to legally keep your personal information, in line with the guidelines set out by the information Commissioners Office (ICO).

ICO – guide to the General data Protection regulation (GDPR)
https://ico.org.uk/for-
organisations/guide=to=the=general-data-protection-regulation-gdpr/
Data protection act 1998
http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1998/29/contents

Qualifications, training, and therapies offered

Diploma in Humanistic Counselling -MBACP (Accred) Therapist
EMDR Europe Certificated EMDR (Accred) practitioner
Brain spotting Phases 1&2& Pain Management
Somatic Trauma therapy
Complex Resource Model for working with complex trauma.
Counselling Children and Young People - Post Graduate Certificate
Counselling for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder- Post Graduate Certificate
Deep Brain Reorienting
Person Centred Supervisor Post Graduate Certificate

Humanistic therapies
Person-centred therapy
Existential therapy
Integrative
EMDR
Other therapies

My Availability

Glasgow - Monday between 9.30am – 8pm
Glasgow - Tuesday between 9am – 3pm
Kirkcaldy - Wednesday between 12pm – 8pm
Kirkcaldy - Thursday between 9am – 5pm
Kirkcaldy - Friday between 9am – 12 noon

Types of Session Offered

In Person
Online
Phone

Types of Clients seen

Young People
Adults
Older Adults
Employee Assistance Programme
Private Insurance

Fees

I offer a free no obligation 20-minute phone consultation, to discuss what brings you to counselling and if I am the right therapist for your needs.

For fee paying customers I offer a sliding scale and within that, you determine what you pay. I also offer a few discounted places, and should you need, I will happily advise if I have any such availability.

Professional Memberships

EMDR UK & Ireland
British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy MBACP
United Kingdom Register of counsellors and psychotherapists UKRCP
EEMDR Association United Kingdom and Ireland EMDR UK
European Society for Trauma and Dissociation ESTD

Complaints

If you have any issues with your experience of the therapeutic relationship or the work that we do, please be encouraged to raise them with me. Disagreements and misunderstandings are a normal part of being human, and whilst I will do my best to promote a positive experience of therapy, it is possible that something could trouble you about our encounter. Should this happen, it is better spoken of, rather than left unspoken. Facing a disagreement, can be a positive event and it is important for you to feel able to feedback to me, your experience of the therapeutic process and relationship. This can help you feel more in control of your process, whilst also helping to steer the therapy in the direction of what best fits your needs. If you feel you have been harmed, or treated unethically, then please consider making a formal complaint to the BACP

Contact Mary