What is Logotherapy?
Logotherapy is a type of therapy created by a pretty amazing guy called Viktor Frankl. It’s all about finding meaning in your life. The main ideas are:
- Finding Purpose: The main goal of logotherapy is to help people find a purpose or meaning in their lives. It’s like figuring out what makes your life important and worth living.
- Freedom to Choose: Frankl believed that no matter what happens to you, you always have the freedom to choose how you react. You can decide how you want to think and act, even in tough situations.
- Meaning in Hard Times: Even when things are really hard or painful, you can still find meaning. For example, going through a tough time can help you grow stronger or learn something important about yourself.
- Avoiding Emptiness: Sometimes, people feel empty or bored because they don’t see a purpose in their life. Logotherapy helps you find something that matters to you, so you don’t feel that emptiness
- Three Ways to Find Meaning: Frankl said you can find meaning in three main ways:
- Doing something creative or important: This could be anything from playing music, creating art, or working on a project.
- Experiencing something or connecting with others: Enjoying a beautiful sunset, spending time with friends, or appreciating nature.
- Changing your attitude: Even if you’re going through something really hard, you can find meaning by choosing a positive attitude and learning from the experience.
In short, logotherapy is about helping you find what makes your life meaningful, no matter what challenges you face. It’s about discovering what really matters to you and using that to guide your life.
What is Cognitive-behavioural therapy?
Cognitive-behavioural therapy (CBT) is a type of therapy that helps people understand and change their thoughts and behaviours to feel better. It consists of these main ideas:
- Thoughts, Feelings, and Actions: CBT teaches that your thoughts, feelings, and actions are all connected. For example, if you think negatively about yourself, you might feel sad and then avoid doing things you enjoy.
- Changing Negative Thoughts: One big part of CBT is learning to recognize and change negative or unhelpful thoughts. This is called cognitive restructuring. For example, if you think, “I always mess up,” CBT helps you challenge that thought and replace it with something more realistic, like, “Sometimes I make mistakes, but I can learn from them.”
- Behavioural Changes: CBT also focuses on changing behaviours that are not helpful. This might include facing fears, trying new things, or breaking bad habits. By changing what you do, you can start to feel better.
- Learning New Skills: In CBT, you learn practical skills to cope with different situations. These skills can help you manage stress, solve problems, and handle difficult emotions.
- Step-by-Step Approach: CBT often involves setting small, manageable goals and working towards them step-by-step. This makes it easier to make changes and see progress over time.
- Working with a Therapist: In CBT, you work with a therapist who helps guide you through the process. They help you identify negative thoughts and behaviours and teach you how to change them.
In short, CBT is about understanding how your thoughts affect your feelings and actions. It helps you learn to think in more realistic ways and make changes in your behaviour to improve the quality of your life. It’s like a mental toolkit for dealing with life’s challenges.
What kind of clients do I work with?
I work with such a wide range of people that it’s truly hard to give just one answer to this question. Many of my clients are young people (some are still in high school, but even more often they are university students) who are searching for meaning, struggling with anxiety, low mood, or challenges in building a social life. Others simply want support with personal growth or with navigating a difficult situation that life has brought them.
Similar — though adjusted to their stage of life — are the challenges of young adults who seek help when too many burdens start piling up, leaving them feeling suffocated and overwhelmed, as if life is simply too much. Together we explore their relationship with themselves, the world, and life itself, address unhelpful beliefs, and look for tools that can support them in these struggles.
I also often work with people facing challenges around infertility. Sometimes this means psychological support during medically assisted fertility treatments, sometimes it’s about understanding oneself in the midst of immense distress, sometimes it’s about re-examining one’s view of parenthood and the meaning of life when the journey takes a different turn, and sometimes it’s about coming to terms with a different kind of life than the one once imagined.
Some of my clients come because they find themselves in a relationship with a partner that may be full of love, but still causes deep pain. Others come with difficult questions — sometimes connected to career, sometimes to family and relationships, and at other times to personal growth or processing a traumatic experience. I stand by them professionally, helping broaden their perspective and creating a safe space where we can explore their life story together — and often even paint it in new colors.
There are countless more stories — each one as precious and unique as the clients who have ever sought my support.
How does a session with me look like?
It always begins in a similar way: by getting to know each other, uncovering the client’s story, and putting expectations into words. As a safe and trusting relationship slowly develops between the client and me, the process also deepens. The more safety there is in the relationship, the deeper we can look into the shadows of the soul — and stay there together.
A more “technical” answer to this question would be: I like to dedicate the first few minutes of a session to relaxed conversation so that we can attune to each other. After that, through dialogue techniques, we dive into the topic we want to open in that session. Sometimes the client brings it up, sometimes I suggest it, but the client always has the freedom to go only as deep as feels safe — and I am there to support them.
During sessions, emotional responses may arise (not only tears and pain, but also laughter, gratitude, or a sense of calm). Sometimes we find an answer to a deep question, but more
often we arrive at many small insights that continue to resonate in the client in the following days, helping them integrate new discoveries into everyday life.
For this reason, I often give “homework” — small tasks that help the client carry as much as possible from the session and encourage them to try out new perspectives, thoughts, and feelings in their daily life.
How long does it take to finish a psychotherapy process?
The answer to this question is as varied as the number of times clients ask it. 🙂 The processes with my clients can last anywhere from a few sessions to several years — it really depends on the client’s question, need, and personal story.
It’s sometimes popularly said that each of us could go to psychotherapy for our whole life. In my personal view, however, the role of a good psychotherapist is to equip the client for life and support their empowerment, with the hope that one day they will no longer need therapy.
On average, the number of sessions needed to open, explore, re-evaluate, and close a particular story usually falls between 10 and 20 sessions. But, as mentioned, every client brings a completely unique situation!
Why does my clients get a homework?
Can you imagine going to any sports training and trying out new moves only once a week, then completely forgetting them over the next seven days? Do you think your progress would be noticeable? It would probably be better than nothing, but how much faster would you improve if, between sessions, you practiced some strength exercises, stretched well, or repeated certain moves…
Psychotherapy works in a very similar way. Often, we discover new perspectives on life, re-evaluate thoughts, strengthen self-awareness, and explore behaviors different from those we’re used to. All of this takes practice to gradually become part of our daily life.
Moreover, “real life” happens outside the therapy session, and it’s important to actively bring it into our conversations. For all these reasons, my clients often receive some kind of “homework.” Sometimes it’s more challenging, sometimes lighter; sometimes serious, sometimes playful… but always thoughtfully chosen for them, with the goal of helping them grow as much as possible!
Does online psychotherapy really work?
I’ll be honest — when I first started offering sessions via video calls during COVID, I had many doubts. It felt like both my clients and I might miss out on everything that an in-person meeting can bring.
Today, after several years of conducting online sessions, I feel completely at ease. My experience shows that therapeutic processes can be just as high-quality, warm, engaging, and powerful through a video call as they are in person.
In fact, many clients tell me that they really appreciate being at home after a session — in their own safe space, without the stress of commuting. Online therapy can provide the same depth and support as in-person work, while also offering flexibility, comfort, and accessibility that often make it easier for clients to prioritize their mental health.
How does one know, which therapist to choose?
I think this question is very important! I believe that there needs to be a certain chemistry between a client and a therapist — that both feel comfortable and safe with each other. This doesn’t mean that the therapist won’t sometimes bring up difficult feelings or awaken painful memories during the process, but they will always remain present with a safe and supportive presence.
I like to invite anyone interested in working with me to schedule an initial meeting, where we can chat and get a sense of each other. After that, it’s important to take your time and reflect on whether you felt I’m the kind of person you would like by your side while exploring yourself. Because we are all so different, even the most skilled therapist may not be the right fit for everyone. So allow yourself to be honest with yourself and listen to your inner sense when choosing a therapist.
And remember: a therapist is not married to you! 🙂 If, after a few sessions, you realize “this isn’t the right fit,” don’t be afraid to voice that in the session, and if needed, find another therapist.
It’s also completely normal that a particular therapist may suit you perfectly at one stage of your life, but later you might need a different approach, personality, or working style. This is all normal, and a good therapist will usually help guide you to another professional who is better suited for your current situation.
How is psychotherapy connected with infertility?
Infertility can be an incredibly emotionally and psychologically challenging experience, often bringing feelings of stress, grief, anxiety, or self-doubt. These emotions can take a serious toll on mental health, especially when we don’t know how to navigate them — which is often the case while going through the already exhausting “trying to conceive” process. Psychotherapy offers a safe space to process these feelings, explore personal meaning, and develop coping strategies.
After a personal experience with this journey, I feel a profound passion for supporting people facing infertility, and I see this work as a calling. I also researched the topic extensively for my second master’s thesis, which deepened my understanding of the psychological impact of fertility struggles and how CBT can help individuals and couples navigate this journey with greater resilience and support.
Want to know more?
If you do not find enough information about your desired task here on my website, you are always very welcome to contact me.
Call me on the phone (+45) 25 27 76 55 or send an email to info@wholehearted-therapy.com. I will answer your inquiry as soon as possible.