Alumni Profile: Johanna

A graduate of our training in Psychological Therapies with Children, Young People and Families (M34), Johanna now works in a specialist service for young people who have experienced trauma and adversity.

In our new alumni profile, Johanna Mulligan reflects on her training as a psychodynamic psychotherapist, her work with children affected by trauma, and the question that continues to shape her practice.

From war zones to therapy rooms

Johanna Mulligan spent 17 years working across some of the world’s most challenging environments. Her career took her to the former Yugoslavia, Uganda and Sri Lanka, working for humanitarian organisations like the United Nations and Save the Children. She investigated war crimes before moving into child protection, supporting children recruited by rebel groups and those affected by armed conflict and sexual exploitation.

When she eventually left humanitarian work, she carried many questions with her — about ethics, impact and the limits of international intervention. But one question lingered above all others: how do child soldiers recover from unimaginable trauma? That question would ultimately lead her in a new direction. “That’s what led me to realise I wanted to work more clinically with children, young people and families in Ireland directly trying to help them recover from horrific experiences. I became quite keen on getting trained clinically,” says Johanna.

Training at the Tavistock

There was no shortage of options for where Johanna could pursue her training. But she wanted the best education available and enrolled on Tavistock Education and Training’s two-year Master’s Degree in Psychological Therapies with Children, Young People and Families (M34). The programme leads to accreditation with the British Psychoanalytic Council (BPC) and qualification as a psychodynamic psychotherapist.

“I wanted the best training available. I thought, where’s the best in the world? I felt it gave me an added benefit, to have studied somewhere that was considered the founder of modern psychoanalysis,” says Johanna. For Johanna, the course offered “just the right amount of reflection, personal therapy, and understanding of unconscious processes” and she has no hesitation in recommending it to others. The learning proved instrumental in preparing her for her current role at a highly specialised trauma clinic in Dublin, where she works with children, young people and families who have experienced significant adversity.

Understanding the child’s inner world

Johanna says the course’s focus on unconscious processes continues to shape her work today, particularly when helping foster carers understand behaviour that may appear irrational or difficult to explain. “The course was hugely helpful, especially the whole idea of the unconscious world as a driving force. It helps me support foster parents to understand the unconscious world of their children.” She recalls working with a foster parent who was struggling to understand why a child had stolen some food. “I’m trying to help them understand that what drives behaviour often sits beneath conscious awareness. Many of these children carry trauma memories and anxiety that they themselves don’t fully understand.”

The course’s adolescent development module was particularly valuable. “The adolescent module was massively helpful to me actually because I’d never really studied anything to do with adolescent development before. Understanding that world, together with early trauma, helps us support foster carers to make sense of children’s experiences in the context of ordinary adolescent development,” says Johanna.

Where trauma and neurodiversity intersect

At Johanna’s workplace, The Treehouse Practice in Dublin, clinicians specialise in working with neurodiversity and early trauma in children. In many cases, the two intersect. “A lot of the assessments that come in for the neurodiversity team have also got elements of early adversity and in some cases, early developmental trauma” she explains. “We also have a lot of cases for our children in care team of children and young people with autism. It’s difficult to know what difficulties belong to the early trauma, and which ones are due to neurodiversity… often it’s impossible to pinpoint, but the truth is, it’s really hard for kids who are both neurodiverse as well as in care, and we do have a lot of these cases”. The overlap presents both challenges and opportunities for clinicians trying to understand children’s experiences to tailor the right support.

Working with some of the most complex cases

Although Johanna no longer works in conflict zones, the emotional complexity of her work has not disappeared. “When a child has been taken into care, you’re often working with some of the most complex cases imaginable. Many do improve with support, but many do not, and that can take its toll,” says Johanna. Supporting children who have experienced profound trauma requires resilience, patience and realistic expectations. “It’s important not to let it grind you down, and try to not let it get to the point where you are feeling like there’s no point. You have to be careful not to let it get in on you.” For Johanna, effective training is essential, but so too is looking after yourself.

Looking after the people who care

At a recent team away day, she and her colleagues had a great team building experience – first, they spent an hour together running around a field, herding sheep, before taking part in a cooking workshop. “We’re quite good at looking after ourselves,” Johanna says with a smile. “It was great fun. We needed a release to laugh, run, share, cook and eat”. “I think it’s important in this work to do things that make you feel really good. It’s important in life, particularly when you’ve got a job that’s emotionally got the potential to really drag you down. You need to do something that really lifts you up.”

Asked what she values most about her work, Johanna pauses for a long moment before answering. “The best thing about the job is when you feel that you can give something of yourself to a child or teenager who doesn’t feel anyone has ever really cared about them. It’s an honour to be able to do that,” she says. She pauses again before continuing. “Whether it actually results in their lives being drastically better or not, it’s nice to think that someone, somewhere, once thought, that person really made me feel like I was a good person, and I was worthy of love and acceptance. That’s powerful.” For Johanna, these moments are what make the work worthwhile.

The question that still has no answer

More than a decade after leaving humanitarian work, Johanna still doesn’t have a definitive answer to the question that first drew her towards psychotherapy. Why do some children recover while others struggle despite receiving safety, care and support? “We still don’t really understand why some children respond well to safety and therapy and support after very adverse life experiences. Some can really take this in, where others struggle.” She believes future research may help us better understand resilience, adaptation and recovery, but for now many questions remain.

Working with children in care has reinforced just how complex recovery can be. “Some children can adapt themselves to a safe environment a little bit better and can recalibrate themselves and can take in good support. We might never really know why, but we still move forward in the work hoping for positive change”.

Life beyond the therapy room

Outside work, Johanna finds balance through singing with her community choir, paddleboarding and going to the gym. “We do all sorts of music from sacred music to jazz to Mozart. I feel very passionate about that. We’re going to a big music festival this summer together.” Johanna lives in Dublin with her husband, daughter and Cockapoos, Marge and Maisie.