When the past holds your professional self back

Old wounds don’t stay in the past. They show up in how you lead, respond under pressure, and relate to those around you at work. I help professionals gently untangle those patterns — and step into who they’re capable of being.

DOES THIS SOUND FAMILIAR?

You’re capable. So why does it feel like something keeps getting in the way?

Many professionals reach a point where insight alone isn’t enough. You understand the problem intellectually — but the same reactions, self-doubts, or tensions keep resurfacing. It’s a sign that there is something which needs your attention. Now could be the time to give it that space.

Deep-seated experiences from the past quietly shape how we show up today: in meetings, in relationships, under pressure. Until we address those roots, the patterns tend to persist.

You might be experiencing…

  • A recurring sense of not being good enough, no matter your achievements
  • Difficulty receiving feedback — or giving it — without it feeling charged
  • Stress and anxiety that spills between work and home life
  • A feeling of being stuck or on autopilot, despite wanting to change
  • Tension in working relationships that you can’t quite resolve
  • A nagging sense that there’s more you could be, if only you could get out of your own way

THE APPROACH

Internal Family Systems - A different kind of therapy

Internal Family Systems (IFS) is a compassionate, evidence-informed approach developed by Dr. Richard Schwartz. Rather than seeing difficult thoughts or feelings as problems to suppress, IFS treats them as inner ‘parts’ — each carrying their own logic, history, and protective purpose.

When we understand what those parts are trying to do, we can begin to work with them rather than against them. The result is genuine, lasting change — not just managed symptoms.

IFS is widely respected among clinical psychologists for its depth and effectiveness, particularly for complex, long-standing patterns. It’s also remarkably well-suited to the professional context, where performance, identity, and personal history are deeply intertwined.

The client gains the opportunity to study, maybe for the first time, rather small bits of automatic and habitual experience with curiosity and openness. This is very different from talking about experience, or analysing experience in an attempt to figure something out.

Richard C. Schwartz, the founder of Internal Family Systems (IFS).

Why IFS Works for You

Compassionate

Every part of you has a reason for existing. IFS begins from a place of curiosity and non-judgment — no part of you is the enemy.

Evidence-Informed

IFS has a growing evidence base and is used by therapists and psychologists worldwide as a primary treatment approach.

Lasting Change

By addressing the root causes rather than surface behaviours, the shifts you experience tend to be deep and durable.

Workplace-Ready

Supported by Occupational Psychology, this practice bridges therapy and the realities of professional life.

What my clients are saying…

I tried IFS for the first time a few months ago when I was feeling quite overwhelmed and it was a truly positive experience. Hannah made me feel at ease throughout every session with her calm and reassuring approach.

From the very first session, I felt a real sense of release and emotional relief. I have felt such a peace from that first day.

I would highly recommend Hannah to anyone considering this kind of therapy

IFS has been extremely helpful for me. Unlocking certain areas of healing and discussion that average talk therapy hasn’t been able to do.

I found Hannah to create an incredible safe space to explore all sorts of topics with, from lighter to heavier ones. Together with her ease to guide me through the process so gently. I highly recommend Hannah’s IFS therapy, whether you have tried other modalities or this is your first experience of therapy.

ABOUT ME

I came to this work through a long career in workplace psychology.

For over 20 years, I’ve helped organizations and individuals with performance, wellbeing, and leadership — focusing on stress, career dilemmas, interpersonal conflicts, and self-esteem. Often, workplace difficulties spill into family life (and vice versa); your sense of well-being in one area of your life can affect everything. 

In conversation after conversation — giving feedback, supporting development, coaching through challenges — I kept noticing the same thing: it’s not the technical skills holding people back. It’s the deeper patterns: self-doubt under pressure, old wounds making conversations tense, feeling trapped in unhelpful patterns of behaviour or automatic reactions.

That’s what drew me to Internal Family Systems. I’ve trained extensively with leading experts and spent a year gaining experience through free client sessions. Now, I work with professionals ready to do the deeper work that surface-level approaches can’t reach.

What impressed me most is how many highly qualified psychologists shift to IFS or integrate it into their practice after training. It’s powerful — sometimes hard to explain until you experience it.

I work online, so wherever you are, we can work together.

WHO I WORK WITH

Built for Professional Life

I work with individuals navigating the intersection of work and wellbeing — people who want to perform well and live well, and sense that both are connected.

  • Performance & Self-Sabotage
    When you know what to do but something keeps getting in the way — procrastination, perfectionism, imposter syndrome, or fear of not being enough in some way.

  • Stress & Burnout
    When the pressure of work has become chronic, and you’re looking for more than coping strategies — you want to understand what’s driving it.

  • Transitions & Identity
    Career changes, promotions, new leadership roles, or redundancy — periods where your sense of who you are is being renegotiated.

  • Workplace Relationships
    Difficult dynamics with colleagues, managers, or teams that feel disproportionately difficult or where the same tensions keep recurring.

  • Work–Life Tension
    The boundary between work and home life isn’t always clear. I work with people when one is affecting the other in ways that are hard to separate.

  • Anxiety & Low Confidence
    For professionals whose anxiety, self-doubt, or self-criticism is rooted in deeper experiences that affect both work and life outside it.

HOW IT WORKS

Simple, Straightforward, Online

01

Free Consultation

A 15-minute call to understand what’s bringing you here, answer your questions, and see if we’re a good fit — no pressure, no commitment.

02

First Session

We spend some time to identify what’s happening, what you want to change, and then we go straight into using the IFS approach, so we can begin to find healing from the start.

03

Ongoing Work

Sessions are typically weekly or fortnightly, approximately one hour each, for as much or little time as you feel you need. The pace is always led by you — this is collaborative, not prescriptive.

04

Lasting Change

Many clients notice a real shift from the first session — in how they feel, respond, and how you the approach the areas of life that matter most. The impact, from the outset, is often met with surprise, particularly with individuals who have tried other types of therapy in the past.

READY TO START?

A 15-minute conversation costs nothing

If something on this page has resonated, the best next step is a short, informal call. We’ll talk about what’s going on for you, and you can decide if this feels right — no obligation either way.

Online sessions only  ·  Flexible scheduling  ·  All enquiries are confidential

Highly recommend- I’ve had a couple of sessions with Hannah and have felt like I’ve shaken off some baggage both times.
Pippa, Spain