Frequently Asked Questions

1 . What can I expect from psychotherapy?

When stepping into this type of work, you are welcomed in a safe environment that allows you to share the most relevant aspects of the problem that has led you to look for help along with features of your current life-style. This will allow us to start gaining perspective on the whole of you and your present circumstances. From then on, although you may not be clear on where you want to go with the work, we can actually start envisioning therapeutic goals to work towards. Some of the general milestones of the process include the clarification of specific symptoms and associated patterns of thinking, feeling and behaving. An important part of this stage of the process involves reflecting on how these patterns influence the way you live your life, and the fact that it is possible to break free from them. How? you will be able to do so by learning and implementing alternative practices that lead to a life beyond discomfort, pain and specific symptoms, this in turn will give you the opportunity to enjoy and invest in other aspects of your daily living. At the core of these alternative practices is the process of integrating all aspects that make you the amazing person you really. Along the process we’ll be using useful tools from cognitive emotional therapy, Daring Way TM, healthy sleep protocol and Mindfulness.

2. Is psychotherapy only suitable for people with severe emotional problems?

There is real evidence that psychotherapy is helpful for people who are going through severe emotional and psychological pain.
But its scope goes way beyond that.

Psychotherapy can be of great help as a mean to work through moderate problems in that it facilitates the development of healthier habits and a significantly more resilient mental state.

If you are going through a particularly challenging period of your life and you rather prevent then remedy at a later time, psychotherapy might be the way to prevent your current struggles becoming unmanageable in the future.

There are many ways of changing the way we think, feel, behave and relate with ourselves and others, but psychotherapy is one of the most quick, effective and safe way to do it.

It is also true that the sooner we get help to deal with these issues, the quicker the psychotherapeutic process tends to be.

Psychotherapy is for all. In my experience, most adults start this work at a point where they have drained themselves emotionally, psychologically and physically.I’m sure that a significant part of their suffering would have been lessened had they looked for help at an earlier stage.

In the same way that so many of us wished they could work with a personal trainer to be in good physical health, the truth is that doing your life’s work (in the presence of problematic issues you have already identified) with a psychotherapist is an incredible opportunity. Doing this work will significantly potentiate your emotional and mental health. You will focus on your present problems and pain towards a resolution, and in doing so, you will be better prepared for the challenges ahead.

3. I have a really busy schedule, but doing this type of work (Coaching or Psychotherapy) through video call… isn’t it less effective?

Many people ask themselves this question.

I have been doing video call sessions since 2005, and I agree that there are many myths associated with it. So here are some facts you should know:

In a psychotherapy or Coaching video-call session, you will not be physically present in the hospital or in the private practice, but in a place of your choosing.
In my personal experience, a part for the fact that we are not physically present in the same space, there are no other differences to the work
we do when compared with face-to-face sessions, and I feel it is important to point out a few of the advantages of doing video-call sessions:

  • Accessibility – you don’t have to physically go to a formal location
  • Easy to use – the application VSee is as easy to use as facebook
  • Comfort – you are in a safe, familiar and comfortable space of your choosing, and it’s easier to find time in your busy scheduleYou will not miss another session in a time where you could really use the work! No more interruptions due to business traveling
    or family holidays.

Practicalities:
In order to have your video-call session, you have to ensure a space that is safe, calm, comfortable and where your privacy needs are met.
You also need to have access to a computer, tablet or smart phone with a camera and a secure internet line (we strongly discourage you to use unsecure internet-connections due to privacy concerns).

Once it is established that this modality fits your needs, you book your first session online (or send an email requiring a call back to help you with this process). Shortly after booking, you will receive an email containing:
– the psychotherapeutic contract to be signed and sent back before the session,
– the confirmation of the date and time of your assessment session (in case you haven’t had a face-to-face assessment session already)
– a link inviting you to download the platform used.

Note that by choosing to use this specific application (and not others that are also available and perhaps better known) we are making a conscious effort to protect the information shared during the session. We checked that the company responsible for the development and maintenance of VSee has gone through great lengths to assure its safety levels, privacy of its users and confidentiality regarding the entire
process. We have chosen to use VSee, an application that was especially developed in the USA to meet the requirements of tele-medicine.

A frequent question people have asked is if sessions can be recorded. The answer is NO. your privacy and confidentiality of the entire process is of crucial importance and the entire work we do is under the European protection act and will be dealt
according to the applicable professional code of ethics.

4. Do I have to do psychotherapy for many years in order to see some results?

It is not easy to determine how long a therapeutic process can take, where one important factor to take into account is what you are looking for and what you need. The process can take between 8 to 12 sessions, a few months (regarding problems of
anxiety and mild depression), and sometimes in the presence of a chronic psychiatric diagnose, trauma or abuse, it can take years.

The duration of the therapy is also determined by the type of psychotherapy the person you are working with is trained to do.
For example, a cognitive behavioural based therapy tends to be brief in its nature, whereas an analytical psychotherapy is a more lengthily process.

In my work (cognitive emotional behavioural therapy and the Daring Way TM), I recognize the importance of setting therapeutic goals from the beginning. In order to do this work, it has to be done collaboratively, where completion of assignments between sessions will facilitate the progression from an intellectual understanding gained in session to a change in your daily practices. I also place importance in monitoring the path already covered. I recognize the importance of identifying possible obstacles along the journey and towards the end of the process and find this an essential step to potentiate the maintenance of your progress long after we finished our work together.