What is psychoanalysis?
Psychoanalysis is a theory of the human mind and a scientific method of treatment, which was founded by Sigmund Freud at the end of the 19th/beginning of the 20th century and has since been further developed by psychoanalysts from all over the world. In psychoanalysis, one comes into contact with one's associations, memories, fantasies, fears, desires and dreams and thus with the unconscious mental processes of one's psyche. Reasons for pattern-like thoughts, feelings, behaviours and situations that occur like automatisms, which one gets into again and again without consciously wanting to and from which one suffers, can thus be made conscious and an attempt can be made to understand them. In addition to the present, psychoanalysis often deals with the past, which, however, has not been understood so far and thus shapes the here and now as well as the future with all its effects. Psychoanalysis is an intense, sometimes rocky path, but one that can change you permanently and reward you with more freedom. By making unconscious processes conscious and understandable in psychoanalysis, a person can decide more freely which path they want to take. It can help a person to discover their individual development and potential. To get an idea of what psychoanalysis is exactly and what it feels like, it is the best way through experiencing it.
For whom is psychoanalysis or a psychoanalytic therapy approach suitable?
The reasons for seeking a psychotherapy with a psychoanalytic approach can be very different. Often this includes people who have tried many things before without achieving the desired result in a sustainable way; or they may be very curious people who dare to embark on this journey. Psychoanalysis as well as psychoanalytic psychotherapy and brief therapy are suitable for people who find themselves in repetitive behaviours or situations that inhibit them in their personal development and potential, as well as for people who find it difficult to feel comfortable in their environment, interpersonal relationships and love relationships, or who fail to find success and real fulfillment in their work. Thus psychoanalysis or a psychoanalytic therapy approach can be suitable for people in crises, with anxieties, depressions, burn-out, obsessive-compulsive symptoms, neuroses, learning or work related disorders, sexual problems, relationship problems, self-esteem problems, identity problems, psychosomatic complaints, among others.
My career path
For adults I offer the following methods:
Introductory sessions
Psychoanalysis
Psychoanalytic
psychotherapy
Psychoanalytic short-term therapy
(up to 40 sessions)
Method and setting
Psychoanalysis stands in contrast to the fast-paced nature of today's world. It takes time to understand the predominantly unconscious processes of the soul and to break out of entrenched patterns. It cannot be predicted exactly how long the duration of a psychoanalysis will last, as the process is highly individual. Psychoanalysis takes place with three up to five sessions per week in a lying down position on the couch, which distinguishes it in intensity from psychoanalytic psychotherapy as well as psychoanalytic short-term therapy. In the latter two therapy modes, sessions take place once or twice a week, usually in a sitting position. Psychoanalytic short-term therapy consists of a maximum of 40 sessions (about one year) and focuses more on specific topics.
In rare cases, and if you wish, additional medication treatment is possible, although this is not the focus of the treatment and may, after joint consideration, be carried out by an external doctor.
The introductory sessions serve as a getting-to-know and decision-making phase and usually take place in one up to three sessions. The aim is to begin to understand your situation and to work out your expectations, wishes, and needs for a psychotherapy together with you. In these sessions, I will provide you with professionally substantiated feedback and a recommendation as to whether treatment is reasonable and, if so, which treatment method and setting would be most suitable for you. It may also happen that you and I conclude, that another approach than a psychoanalytic one (e.g., a cognitive-behavioral approach) would be more appropriate for you and your symptoms, in which case I would discuss the next possible steps with you.
Therapy via video calls or phone calls
In certain cases, and if you wish, I offer the option to conduct psychoanalysis as well as psychoanalytic psychotherapy and short-term therapy virtually, i.e., via (video) calls. For more detailed information in this regard, please feel free to contact me. In these cases, the costs are covered privately.
My career path:
Medical school at the Goethe-University in Frankfurt am Main, Germany.
Internships and research stays at the University of California San Francisco (UCSF) and the University of California San Diego (UCSD), California, USA.
Medical licensure and dissertation in medicine at the Goethe-University in Frankfurt am Main, Germany. Training as a specialist in psychiatry and psychotherapy FMH at the University Hospital Zurich, Clinic for Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, as well as at the Psychiatric University Hospital Zurich, Clinic for Psychiatry, Psychotherapy, and Psychosomatics.
Board certification as a specialist in Psychiatry and Psychotherapy.
Specialist in psychiatry and psychotherapy (FMH)
Senior Physician
Psychiatric University Hospital Zurich
Senior physician at the Psychiatric University Hospital Zurich, Clinic for Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics.
Senior Physician
Münsterlingen Psychiatric Clinics
Senior physician at the Psychiatric Clinics Münsterlingen, Clinic for Psychotherapy.
Psychoanalytic training and further education
Freud-Institute Zurich
Training in Psychoanalysis according to the statutes of the Swiss Society of Psychoanalysis at the Freud-Institute Zurich
Psychodynamic training and further education and lecturer
Münsterlingen Psychiatric Clinics
Psychodynamic training and further education and lecturer in transference-focused therapy at the Psychiatric Clinics Münsterlingen
Memberships
Languages:
German, English
Costs
Costs covered by your health insurance or privately (by arrangement).
Please note that during the clarification consultation phase, cancellations of sessions under 48 hours will be charged at the session rate.