Isla Donaldson, NCPS

Isla Donaldson helps people who are struggling with stress, anxiety, relationship difficulties, trauma and abuse, low self-esteem, and depression. She aims to make therapy straightforward and practical. Isla keeps sessions focused on what matters to the person in front of her and works at a pace they can manage.

She creates a calm, collaborative space and listens for what feels most urgent. Isla moves alongside clients with both support and gentle challenge. She pays attention to feelings, bodily sensations and life events to build understanding and practical ways forward.

Her work draws on client-centred principles that trust each person's capacity to grow. That means the person’s own needs and timing guide the direction of sessions. Isla also uses somatic methods to notice how emotions show up in the body and to help with regulating strong states.

Isla has five years of clinical experience in settings that included people living with trauma, self-harm and suicidal thoughts, as well as those facing grief, low mood and anxiety. She has helped people with attachment and abandonment issues, communication problems, body image, guilt and shame, loneliness, life purpose and end-of-life concerns.

Her credential is NCPS, which she holds alongside ongoing professional training. Isla works in the United Kingdom and offers therapy in English. To begin, people complete a short matching questionnaire then arrange sessions that suit them.

How Isla’s methods translate to online therapy

Client-Centred Therapy places the person's experience at the heart of sessions. The therapist listens with curiosity and follows what matters most to the client, helping them name feelings and decide the pace of work. This approach suits people who want a respectful, non-directive space to make sense of their life.

Somatic Therapy focuses on bodily sensations as a route to understanding emotion. It uses simple attention to breath, posture and internal sensations to help notice how stress or trauma shows up in the body and to develop practical ways to self-soothe and regulate strong states. This can be useful for people struggling with anxiety, trauma responses or overwhelming emotion.

Finding the right approach is part of the work and will be decided together. The therapist will discuss goals, preferences and what feels most helpful, then adapt methods as the relationship develops. That collaborative process makes it easier to try different ways of working until a good fit is found.

Online formats such as video calls, phone sessions, live chat and text-based messaging offer flexibility. Video calls allow face-to-face connection and visual cues, phone sessions need less bandwidth and can be easier for short check-ins, while chat or messaging suits ongoing support between calls. These options help people fit therapy around work, family and daily life.