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You may choose to use counseling for:
Counseling is not a medical profession and the support I give you is not a substitute for the advice of a medical doctor or psychiatrist. Counselors do not diagnose mental health conditions or prescribe medication.
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Counseling room at Berlin Counseling
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Initial consultation
It's important to find the right counsellor and the right approach for you. That's why we start with an initial consultation. In the initial consultation I will ask you to tell me more about what's going on for you at the moment and about what you would like from counseling.
Then we can explore together your options for different ways of working. I want to find out how I can tailor my skills and experience to working effectively with you as an individual. So the initial consultation will be your first step in getting the right support for you.
It's important to find the right counsellor and the right approach for you. That's why we start with an initial consultation. In the initial consultation I will ask you to tell me more about what's going on for you at the moment and about what you would like from counseling.
Then we can explore together your options for different ways of working. I want to find out how I can tailor my skills and experience to working effectively with you as an individual. So the initial consultation will be your first step in getting the right support for you.
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About me
I trained as a counselor in the UK and I've had my private practice in Berlin for 9 years and have enjoyed working with expats here from all over the world. There are so many ways to approach counseling. I find it important to meet with you and get your input into the best style of counseling for you. The way we work together is going to depend on your goals from counseling and on what feels helpful for you as an individual. For some people counseling can be a helpful space to explore who they are, where they're heading and can help them to understand themselves better. For others, it is more helpful to be much more focused on targeting a specific change they want to see in their lives. Some find it helpful to talk through difficult episodes in their childhood or at other times in their life, whereas for others it makes more sense to focus more on goals for the future. Whether you're looking for ongoing support to work on things over a longer period of time, or for just a few sessions to get things going in a more helpful direction in your life, I will work in a way that supports you to make the sessions beneficial to you. So, for my way of working it is important to meet with you first and get to know a little bit about you. Then we will discuss how we might work together to best fit your needs. |
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Not sure if counseling is right for you? Some common concerns:
I don’t feel good enough to come:
Sometimes when people are feeling low they don’t feel that they deserve to get help. It’s common to feel like you should stay at home and feel bad on your own. This is a normal feeling. My counseling service is a place where you are welcome to come. Together we will try to find a way forward, however bad you feel.
My problems aren’t that bad:
Many people use counseling to help them work through smaller difficulties in their lives, become happier, or to make decisions. Many people just find it useful to talk to someone who is not involved in their lives. You don't have to be feeling bad enough to 'deserve' to speak with a counsellor, wherever you are at in your own journey through life I want to help and it's ok to ask for help. It's ok to be lucky/privileged and to ask for help.
I’m not sure about opening up to a stranger:
The idea of talking about personal things with a stranger can seem strange. Part of a counselor's role is to build a relationship of trust so that you feel able to share your thoughts and feelings. How much you share is always up to you and there is no pressure to share more than you want to.
At the same time, it is also part a counselor's job to be able to hear even the most difficult things, so you can use counseling sessions as a place to talk about things which you don’t feel able to share with your friends or family.
If there are things you don't want to share right away, it's totally ok. It's not strange or wrong to hide things from your counselor sometimes. It's absolutely fine to wait until you feel enough trust before you share some things and it's ok to come to counseling even if you are not sure that you will ever be able to talk about some things.
Not a native-level English speaker?:
About 70% of my clients are not native English speakers. You don't have to have perfect English for us to have a helpful counseling relationship. Even if you think your English isn't enough, you are welcome to give it a try anyway in a supportive space.
If you have any other questions or concerns, please ask: katie@berlincounseling.com
