Jacintha Canary, BACP

Jacintha Canary is a South African-born counsellor now residing in the United Kingdom, bringing more than 25 years of experience in counselling, mental health and wellbeing. Her practice is shaped by a person-centered outlook and a long history of working with family systems, couples, anxiety, domestic abuse, trauma, abandonment and addictions, as well as helping people adapt to life changes such as relocation, workplace shifts and cultural adjustment.

Faith is part of Jacintha's identity as a Christian, yet she supports people of all faiths, spiritual backgrounds and those with no faith. She believes in guiding clients toward a balanced and meaningful life and treats the therapeutic relationship as a collaborative journey rather than a one-way prescription. She describes her role as facilitating exploration so clients can uncover what they need to heal and grow.

Jacintha integrates evidence-informed frameworks into her practice, including the QSL and HEAL methodologies developed by Dr Carlo Monsanto, which use body mapping, attention to bodily sensations and reflective listening to promote self-exploration and the integration of past or present trauma. Her professional credentials include a Post Graduate Diploma in Person-Centred Counselling, a Certificate in the QSL Framework and Methodology, Teaching (Primary), Sports (Basketball) and community leadership qualifications, and she holds a BACP affiliation - a recognised professional counselling association. She has also completed many additional courses in resilience, forgiveness, anger and conflict resolution, mental health, mentoring and coaching. Having been a client herself, Jacintha brings personal insight and an authentic presence to her therapeutic relationships and welcomes people to get in touch to explore working together.

Therapeutic approaches and online support tailored to you

Jacintha works from a client-centered approach which places the person's experience at the heart of therapy - the therapist offers empathy, acceptance and reflective listening so clients can explore their values, relationships and life goals in a supportive setting. This approach is well suited to issues around self-esteem, relationship difficulties and navigating major life changes.

She also draws on trauma-focused therapy methods that help people process and integrate distressing experiences. These techniques support people dealing with trauma, abuse, dissociation or long-standing effects of overwhelming events by helping them make sense of their reactions and build coping resources.

Mindfulness-based techniques are used alongside these approaches to help clients develop present-moment awareness and calm physiological responses to stress and anxiety. Mindfulness practices can assist with emotional regulation, rumination and everyday stress management.

Finding the right approach is part of the therapeutic process and Jacintha works collaboratively with each person to identify methods that fit their needs, goals and preferences. She adapts strategies over time so the work remains relevant and effective.

Online therapy options - including video calls, phone sessions, live chat and text-based messaging - offer flexibility for people with busy schedules, caregiving responsibilities or mobility limits. These formats make it possible to receive consistent support from registered professionals and therapists regardless of location, and they can be combined to suit different moments in therapy.