Psychological Counselling & Art therapy in Berlin

I grew up in Italy before relocating to the UK and then Germany. This has been a defining experience for me as an individual and for my therapeutic work. In facing the changes and difficulties involved in migration, photography helped me in exploring and expressing my feelings and connecting with people.

This journey first started with the development of documentary projects and participatory photography workshops and continued with a Masters in Art Therapy facilitated by the director of the school and psychotherapist Oliviero Rossi and other outstanding Gestalt psychotherapists.

Art therapy is not about producing art; it is a therapeutic approach to facilitate self-awareness, development and growth. The creative process allows people to explore their emotions and take control over the narrative of their life stories.

Obtaining a degree in psychology and qualifying as a non-medical psychotherapy practitioner HPP helped me establish solid roots for my therapeutic work.

Since 2019, I have been using these tools to offer inclusive art therapy groups for people with and without disabilities, with and without migration histories.

Currently, I offer psychological counseling and art therapy sessions for individuals and couples in English, Italian, and Spanish in my studio in Berlin and online.

🔎 Click to know more about the method

Studies

Emotionally Focused Therapy 
with Dr Sue Johnson

BA Psychology
Uninettuno, Rome

Heilpraktiker für Psychotherapie
(Non-medical practitioner for psychotherapy)
Gesundheitsamt Tempelhof-Schönenberg, Berlin

MA Art Therapy focus on Photography, Video and Theatre
Pontifical University Antonianum, Rome.

BA Photography, Journalism & News Media.
Roehampton University, London.

I don’t feel happy,
I am sad,
I don’t feel understood
I don’t know what to do
I am not well and don’t know why
I always feel ….
I always meet….
But why does it always happen to me?
Other people/men/women are all…

Each symptom, behaviour or feeling, that is experienced as an obstacle, either to personal growth or simply to the enjoyment of everyday life, has either once been a useful way of coping with some challenge, or constitutes part of a condition, with which one can learn to relate effectively. 

We will address specific conflicts & inhibitions in your present life, focusing on your emotions.

By analysing the emotions we can reorganise the experience and discover the underlying historical patterns and dynamics. We will try to make sense of these and try to change those that are no longer beneficial to your well being.

You will define the goals while I take care of the process and methods in a context where you can feel safe and free to express yourself and explore your emotions.

If you decide to start this journey with me, we will meet once per week for 60m. In the first sessions, I will ask exploratory questions and make a first evaluation.

To facilitate dialogue with the different parts of your Self and to introduce different perspective we will work with both dialogue and creative methods (photographs, collages, drawings and guided imagery )

You do not have to be a creative type or have artistic experience or talents to benefit from a session. We will use these tools when necessary to facilitate reflection.

Whether you prefer face-to-face sessions in my studio in Berlin Friedrichshain or the convenience of online therapy , I am ready to help you on your journey. Sessions are available in English , Italiano , Español , making therapy accessible and inclusive for all.

Alternatively, private health insurances sometimes bear the whole or partial cost for the individual psychotherapy. Please investigate your own insurance situation.

Fees: 
An initial contact via email or phone to fix an appointment is generally free of charge. Any further sessions will be charged as depicted in the table.

*Often the art-therapy groups I offer are funded by organisations. In this case the proposal is free of charge for participants.
** CREA-LAB short sessions last 2 hours and the cost includes materials.

Healing activities are exempt from VAT according to § 4 No. 14 UStG. This means that there won’t be extra costs for you.

If you are unable to make the appointment, please cancel it at least 24 hours in advance or request an alternative appointment, otherwise a cancellation fee of 50% of the total cost will be charged.

Going to a non-medical practitioner and paying for your treatment
can have benefits for the whole process.

Anonymity
When treatment is privately-paid, no documentation of personal data and diagnoses are given to official administrations. Such documentation, routinely gathered during therapy paid for by insurance companies, could lead to future issues in terms of working life or in the provision of coverage by other insurance providers.

No long waiting times
Frequently, people have an urgent psychological strain, but cannot access help due to the long waiting times at psychotherapists that have been accredited by the public health system. In the worst case, long waiting times could contribute to emotional distress or make the problem chronic.

Less bureaucracy
When paying privately, you don’t have to struggle with a lot of paperwork and bureaucratic processes with the public health insurance provider. Also the counsellor/therapist has less formalities to handle, this leaves more resources for the actual work.

Free choice of the therapeutic method and the duration
In Germany, psychoanalysis, psychodynamic psychotherapy, and behavioural therapy are the only methods that are paid for by the public health system. When you pay the costs yourself, you can freely choose from a variety of methods, and select the amount and frequency of sessions that best fits your needs.

Tax benefits
Services by non-medical practitioners (for psychotherapy) can, depending on your income, be used as a deductible in your tax declaration. You can find more information about this issue (in German) for instance here (no liability is taken for the accuracy and completeness of the information).

Address
I am currently offering sessions for individuals online and
at Praxiskreis: Ebelingstraße 14a | 10249 Berlin-Friedrichshain
You can access the practice only upon appointment

► 3 Min. from the Tram-stop (Straßmannstr.) M10

►7 Min. from the Tram-stop (Landsberger Allee /Petersburger Str.) M5, M6 und M8

►12 Min. from S-Bhf. Landsberger Allee (S41, S42, S8, S9 ) 

►Car. Ebelingstraße is a one-way street (entrance from Petersburger Str.) and is located in a free parking zone.