Donna Mcallister

Donna Mcallister is a counsellor with a Bachelor of Arts in Therapeutic Counselling (HONS) and three years of professional experience. She works with people who are feeling overwhelmed by stress, anxiety or depression and offers calm, steady support as they think things through. Donna aims to create a trusting, respectful space in which clients can talk openly about what matters to them.

Her approach is practical and person-centred. She listens first, then helps people spot patterns in thinking and behaviour. Donna draws on Cognitive Behavioural Therapy to challenge unhelpful thoughts and on Acceptance and Commitment Therapy to clarify values and small steps forward.

She also uses Attachment-Based ideas to look at how early relationships influence current patterns. For emotional regulation and crisis skills she incorporates techniques from Dialectical Behaviour Therapy. Sessions focus on realistic tools people can use between meetings to manage mood, sleep and stress.

Donna has supported people with relationships, self-esteem, grief, trauma and issues linked to identity, including LGBT concerns. She has worked with a wide range of life challenges such as parenting strain, career uncertainty, addiction and chronic health problems. Additional interests include abandonment, attachment issues, neurodiversity and body image.

Sessions are conducted in English and she is open to working with international clients. To begin, clients complete a short matching questionnaire and then arrange sessions according to the scheduling process on the site.

Approaches that suit online counselling

Donna draws on Cognitive Behavioural Therapy to help people notice and change unhelpful thinking and behaviour. CBT often focuses on practical exercises and short homework tasks that support mood, sleep and anxiety management. Acceptance and Commitment Therapy is used to clarify what matters to the person and to encourage committed small steps toward those values while accepting difficult feelings. Attachment-Based Therapy looks at how early relational patterns affect current relationships and emotional responses, which can be useful for intimacy and trust issues.

Finding the right approach is a collaborative process. Donna listens to what the client hopes to achieve and suggests techniques that match their needs and preferences. Over a few sessions the pair decide together which methods feel most helpful and adapt the work as progress is made.

The biography does not specify session formats, so please confirm which options are offered before booking. Online work can make it easier to fit therapy around daily life, such as having shorter catch-ups during a lunch break or avoiding travel time. It can also allow people to use approaches that rely on written exercises, between-session tasks and regular check-ins that support steady progress.