The Team.
Compassion refers to our sensitivity to suffering, along with a commitment to try and relieve suffering. Often we can be very compassionate towards others, but struggle showing compassion to ourselves. There is a growing scientific base for the mental health benefits of compassion, particularly in a group format.
This group is a unique offering, giving clients an opportunity to share a safe, comfortable space and explore what it means to be compassionate to oneself. Over four weekly sessions, group members will learn about the theory behind compassion, how we regulate our emotions, and how compassion-focused skills can be used to reduce distress and improve quality of life. We will also consider evidence-based self-care strategies, using the shared wisdom and experience of the group to explore what works for whom.
Dr. Sarah Nicholson
Consultant Obstetrician & Gynaecologist | Founder
Dr. Sarah Nicholson is a Consultant Obstetrician & Gynaecologist with a PhD from RCSI and over a decade of experience caring for women across the full spectrum of reproductive and hormonal health. She founded GIRL Health because she believes women deserve more than a rushed ten-minute appointment. They deserve answers, a plan, and someone in their corner.
Her clinical interests span gynaecology, fertility, pregnancy, menopause, and hormonal health, and she has a particular passion for the areas that tend to get dismissed or underserved: unexplained symptoms, hormonal disruption, perimenopause, and the quiet erosion of wellbeing that so many women are told is just part of life.
Sarah is also trained in medical aesthetics. She understands that how women look and how women feel are deeply connected, and she brings the same evidence-based, whole-person lens to skin health, injectables, and aesthetic medicine that she applies to everything else she does.
Her approach is grounded in real listening, because the full picture matters. Whether you're navigating a complex diagnosis, seeking clarity on your hormones, or simply ready to feel like yourself again, GIRL Health exists to meet you there.
Jessica Harrison
Holistic & Aesthetic Therapist
Jessica combines advanced aesthetic treatments with holistic therapies to support women's wellbeing from the inside out.
Drawing on her background in physiotherapy studies, she takes a personalised approach that balances clinical knowledge with intuitive care.
Every treatment is tailored to help clients achieve healthy, radiant skin while feeling relaxed, confident, and supported.
Jessica is passionate about creating a welcoming experience where women feel comfortable, cared for, and empowered.
Hannah Nicholson
Platform & Operations Manager
Hannah Nicholson is Platform and Operations Manager at GIRL Health, with a background spanning beauty therapy, clinic management, and healthcare administration. She trained in beauty therapy at the Georgina Price College of Beauty Therapy in Galway, holding ITEC, CIBTAC and CIDESCO diplomas, and has since built a career across clinical environments, patient-facing roles, and operational leadership.
Before joining GIRL Health full-time, Hannah spent several years managing clinic operations at one of Canada's largest dental groups, overseeing everything from patient experience and scheduling to billing, staff coordination, and front-of-house leadership. That grounding in how a well-run clinic actually feels, from the inside and the outside, is something she brings directly to GIRL Health.
Her role here spans the day-to-day running of the clinic, HR and onboarding, operational workflows, and the integration between the clinic and digital platform. She is the person who makes sure every woman who comes through the door feels welcomed, comfortable, and well cared for from the very first interaction.
Hannah is also co-host of the upcoming Hormonally Yours podcast, where she brings her own perspective on women's health, wellness, and the conversations that deserve more space than they usually get.
Vera Nicholson
Platform & Operations Manager
Vera Nicholson brings a wealth of experience to her front-of-house role at GIRL Health. A medical laboratory scientist by training with a distinguished career in public health leadership within the HSE, she understands healthcare from the inside out.
At GIRL Health, she is the warm, familiar face that greets every patient and keeps the clinic running with quiet efficiency.
Dr Ciara Banks, DClinPsy
Senior Clinical Psychologist
Dr Ciara Banks is a Senior Clinical Psychologist with a Doctorate in Clinical Psychology from King's College London. She works across the HSE and in private practice, with a clinical focus on trauma, depression, anxiety, and OCD.
Ciara completed advanced training in Compassion-Focused Therapy directly with Professor Paul Gilbert, the founder of the approach, and has delivered CFT interventions in both the NHS and HSE.
At GIRL Health, she brings a deeply human, evidence-based lens to the psychological dimensions of women's health, the parts that don't always get the attention they deserve.
Susan Stephenson
Clinical Specialist in Pelvic Health Physiotherapy | BSc (Hons), PG Cert
Susan Stephenson is a Clinical Specialist in Pelvic Health Physiotherapy and founder of Haven Pelvic Health in Sligo. She trained at Keele University in the UK before building her clinical experience across Australia and Ireland in maternity, gynaecology, urology, and outpatient settings. She holds a Postgraduate Certificate in Continence Physiotherapy from the University of Bradford and has been mentored by internationally recognised pelvic health pioneers.
Susan is one of a small number of physiotherapists in Ireland with expertise in pessary management, and is a tutor on the Advanced Practitioners Pessary Course for the POGP in the UK. She has presented at both national and international conferences and was the first to establish a Gynaecology Triage Physiotherapy post in Ireland.
At GIRL Health, she provides specialist pelvic floor assessment and treatment across the full spectrum of women's pelvic health, from pregnancy and postnatal recovery to prolapse, incontinence, and sexual pain.