Claudia Balica

Clinical Psychologist in Brussels, Schuman area

Welcome!

I am a clinical psychologist offering individual psychotherapy for adults and adolescents in English, French, Romanian, Spanish and German.

I work with a wide variety of issues such as anxiety, phobias, depression, low self esteem, emotional intimacy, self-defeating behaviours, relational difficulties, personality disorders, adjustment difficulties, bereavement, psychosomatic disorders, eating disorders, issues related to fertility, pregnancy and parenting, PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress).

About Me

I hold a Clinical Psychology degree from Ecole de Psychologues Praticiens de Paris as well as a Bachelor’s and a Master’s Degree in Social Science from the University of Chicago. I am currently finishing a 3-year ISTDP core training certification program with Josette ten Have-de Labije, PsyD, Robert Neborsky, MD and Kees Cornelissen.

I have worked in institutional settings in psychiatry and social work as well as in departments of human resources. Since 2008 I have been working in private practice in Brussels. I am registered with the Belgian Commission des Psychologues (registration number 682206275).

 

Therapeutic Approach

I provide a confidential and non judgemental setting for discussing what hurts...

The process of psychotherapy is about internal change. We cannot change people around us but we can work on changing certain things within ourselves. This internal personal change can in turn influence those around us in a positive way. Therefore, when deciding to start therapy, it is important to be motivated to change.

I use ISTDP (Intensive Short Term Dynamic Psychotherapy) as a psychotherapy method. It is an evidence based structured therapy approach that requires a high level of involvement on the part of the therapist and of the patient.  This means that both the therapist and the patient are active and work. 

We work on current difficult situations but we also make links to patterns from the past. We learn how to identify internalised unhealthy patterns from childhood and how to change them for healthier ones.

Work on anxiety is one of the main focus in ISTDP therapy. Some people are aware that they have anxiety before coming to therapy and some people have never thought about it or do not know what anxiety is. Together we learn about all the manifestations of anxiety and we learn how to regulate anxiety in a healthy way. 

Subsequently it enables us to work on identifying, experiencing and expressing emotions in a constructive way as well as making the necessary links between present and past situations.

About ISTDP

ISTDP is an evidence based psychotherapy based on a psychodynamic framework and attachment theories  but using techniques, tools and knowledge from short term therapies such as CBT, learning theories, neuroscience,  relaxation and mindfulness techniques.

The aim in ISTDP therapy is to unlock the unconscious and treat root causes (psychodynamic framework) but the sessions are structured and the therapist plays an active role, often guiding and teaching the patient techniques to overcome internal obstacles (like CBT).

One of the specificities of ISTDP is that we do longer sessions but we allow more time between sessions. This allows us to go more in depth during the session and then it allows the patient to have more time to work between the sessions. The minimum duration of an ISTDP session is 90 minutes but it is also possible to have 3 hour (240 minutes) sessions once a month.

ISTDP is an accelerated method of psychotherapy designed to accomplish more rapidly than traditional therapies long lasting change. Current research and clinical studies have confirmed that ISTDP is an effective method of psychotherapeutic treatment.

How it works

You can make an appointment either by phone or by e-mail.

I work most frequently with 90 minute sessions every two weeks. This frequency  can be adjusted according to individual needs . 

In traditional psychodynamic therapy usually the therapist suggest having  4 sessions before committing to regular psychotherapy sessions. These are introductory sessions that allow therapist and patient to get to know each other, to define the problem and see how they can proceed together.

In ISTDP we follow the same principle but we prefer to do it in a more condensed way. For a first session we recommend a 3 hour session if possible, if it is not possible then two times 90 minute sessions. It gives us the possibility to already do a lot of therapy work in this long session and to see if this is the right therapy for you and to see precisely if I can help you and then define a common working objective.

You are welcome to contact me with any further questions.