Area of work
Couples and family counseling
I work with couples and families at my office in Kartal, Istanbul, and online, in English or Turkish. We look for the problem not in one person but in the patterns of the relationship.
Working with couples and families
Relationships are the smallest yet most complex systems we live in. Every couple and every family has its own story. Within that story, unnoticed repeating patterns, unheard needs and silently carried burdens often build up.
In couples and family work, we walk together to understand what is stuck in the present: What did you carry from your family of origin? Which roles were assigned to you? What kind of language did the things you couldn’t say to each other create between you? Together we work out what works, what brings you closer, and what will bring peace to each member of the family.
Approaches
Systemic/Experiential Family Therapy
Systemic and Experiential Family Therapy looks for the problem not in a single person but in the patterns of family relationships. Distress in one family member is often part of the balance of the whole system. The systemic lens makes these patterns, roles and intergenerational transmissions visible, while the experiential approach uses what is felt in the session as the vehicle of change. Couples and family members can then experience relating to each other in new ways within the session itself.
Narrative Therapy
Narrative Therapy is based on the idea that people make sense of their lives through the stories they tell about them. The problem is treated not as the person but as something separate that affects the person’s life: instead of “I am depressed” we ask “What is depression doing to my life?” This makes room to rebuild one’s relationship with the problem and to see strengths and choices that have stayed in the shadows of the story. It pays particular attention to how social and cultural discourses shape our stories.