Fiona Hannah

Biography

I hold an undergraduate degree in Psychology, followed by advanced training in counselling, mentoring, and teacher education. My postgraduate studies include a Graduate Diploma in Psychodynamic Thinking and a Masters degree in Child and Adolescent Psychodynamic Psychotherapeutic Counselling. These qualifications have provided the theoretical and clinical foundation for my ongoing research and practice. As Clinical Director of Teenage Mental Health, a private practice I established in 2019 in Ipswich, Suffolk, I oversee services that now provide psychotherapeutic support to more than 200 young people each week. This role has allowed me to integrate clinical leadership with the development of innovative, evidence-informed approaches to adolescent mental health. My current doctoral research at the University of Essex explores the therapeutic role of dogs within psychodynamic psychotherapy with children and young people. This work seeks to extend the theoretical understanding of animal-assisted interventions by situating them within psychodynamic frameworks, with a particular focus on how the presence of therapy dogs may support relational processes, emotional regulation, and symbolic communication in child psychotherapy. The study aims to make an original contribution to the academic literature by advancing knowledge of the psychodynamic mechanisms through which animal-assisted practice can enhance therapeutic outcomes, especially in contexts of social conflict and developmental challenge.

Qualifications

• Bsc Psychology University of Essex (2006)

• Graduate Diploma Psychodynamic Thinking University of Essex (2017)

• Ba Child and Adolescent Psychodynamic Psychotherapeutic counselling University of Essex (2019)

Thesis