About

Welcome

Welcome to Transitions Therapy International.  My name is Teri and I am a British qualified humanistic therapist, supervisor and coach working with clients from around the globe.  I am the founder and principal therapist of TTI. Over the years, I’ve experienced the complexities of a trailing spouse, through moving my family and business to different countries abroad, in order to follow my husband while furthering his career.  I have facilitated Third Culture Kids through acclimatizing to new cultures and navigating foreign educational systems.  As an existential therapist, who has lived and worked in different countries for many years, my specialism is working with expatriates, repatriates, third culture kids and adults.

The Expatriate Experience

I understand that Expatriates, such as students, international employees, military personnel, diplomats and others may find relocating to a foreign country a daunting experience. Culture shock and acclimatizing oneself to a new culture, alien registration, prior expectations, unforeseen circumstances, career anxiety and uncertainty, may prove more of a challenge than originally expected.  Suddenly, regular tasks present challenges & become complicated and difficult to perform. I recognize that endeavouring to cope with new cultural obstacles, language barriers, a shift in couple or family dynamics, foreign educational systems, the empty nest abroad and repatriation can feel overwhelming.  This can cause a strain on relationships and you may develop feelings of isolation upon realizing your usual support networks are thousands of miles away. As a result of my education, training and personal experiences, I have an understanding of the problems and range of emotions people may encounter within relationships, family dynamics, expatriation, foreign educational systems, repatriation and the empty nest stage of life.

I have a clear understanding of the joys and difficulties one can experience when making an international move and living in a foreign country.  As an expatriate  therapist, I facilitate an exploration into finding a way of living more resourcefully, through discovering new insights into how the choices you make could help you cope with the obstacles you encounter in your daily life.  As a personal coach, the process is more goal orientated – I facilitate people to explore their current situation, choose a focus and set goals prior to developing and incorporating strategies to attain their objectives.

Accompanying Spouse

I recognize the joys and difficulties of being an accompanying, or some might use the term trailing spouse.  Moving a business to a new country in order to accompany a partner can be a complicated process fraught with many obstacles.  And it can be even more difficult for accompanying or trailing partners to find themselves relocated to a country where they are not able to obtain a working visa. For some, not being able to work as an expatriate in the new country can feel like grieving the loss of a sense of identity – especially for those who have spent many years on training, education and climbing the ladder to attain their personal and professional goals.

Range of Emotions

I have worked with multicultural people from numerous countries with various backgrounds from around the world. Although we are all unique – we tend to experience some of the same range of thoughts and emotions when moving to and living and working in a foreign country.  Relocating to a new country can be exciting and joy filled at times – and it can also be stressful, filled with anxiety, frustrating, depressing, lonely and isolating.  Any difficulties, which were present prior to the move, can be exacerbated during and after relocation.  This can put a further strain on relationships when people find themselves hundreds or thousands of miles away from home without their usual support networks.  Counselling can facilitate people to explore their difficulties and develop strategies for coping and managing their lives.  My specialty is facilitating expatriate clients in ‘Transitioning to a more resourceful way of living and being’.

The Value of Talking Therapy

As we move into the 21st Century, individuals seem to be realizing the value of the talking therapies as a means of working through their difficulties and stressful lives.  Within the 50 minute session, the  focus is completely on the client (you).  For many, this is a completely new and welcome experience, and the beginning of transitioning to a more resourceful way of living and  being.

Counselling and therapy provide an opportunity to sit with someone who will be fully present for you.   A chance to be heard, understood, accepted and valued. A time to share your intimate thoughts and feelings without being judged or criticized.  The therapeutic  experience can provide a space for the  exploration  of  emotions, attitudes and behaviours at  your  own pace, in a safe, confidential and trusting environment.

Friends can be a valuable  resource to us during difficult times throughout our lives.  However, sharing our most intimate thoughts and feelings with a friend  can sometimes be too complicated, as friends are not bound by confidentiality. Qualified therapists adhere to a code of ethics, maintain objectivity, do not have a vested interest in your decisions, and are mindful of maintaining the highest level confidentiality available.

Beginning the Transition

Beginning the transition into a more resourceful way of living and being may be just a phone call or an email away. Even highly successful individuals may experience personal difficulties at sometime throughout their lives.  These difficulties may be brought on by a conflict, trauma, bereavement or related  to long-term stress.  If you have been experiencing emotional or physical distress such as a lack of motivation, sleeplessness, anxiety,low mood, or any other problem – then perhaps you may want to contact Transitions for support.

Transitions provides an opportunity for individuals to form a therapeutic relationship in a safe, trusting and confidential environment. The therapeutic process aims to empower individuals by facilitating the development of an increased self-awareness. An exploration of personal difficulties with a trained professional may help bring into awareness the possible range of choices available. This process may enable individuals to gain new perspectives and make more meaningful choices in order to live life more resourcefully.

Could counselling benefit you?

At Transitions Therapy the clients well being is of up-most importance. Whether accessing the service through a referral from a doctor, psychiatrist, social worker, chaplain, or you are a self-referring client, the intake process is very similar. An assessment is conducted at the initial consultation as a means of discovering whether therapy or counselling could be beneficial for you at this time.

Therapy may be helpful if you are in need of emotional support, or would like to develop new strategies for living  more resourcefully.   Working through your difficulties and  increasing  your self-awareness could help you to create or re-establish an equilibrium and improve your overall emotional,  psychological and mental well-being.

Therapy can be beneficial in helping  you to  work toward fulfilling your potential by developing solutions for yourself.   The therapeutic process is an exploration into finding a way of living more resourcefully through discovering  new insights into how the choices you make could help you cope with the obstacles you encounter in your daily life.

The therapeutic process can be beneficial for individuals experiencing difficulties with any of the following:

Anger                                                 Anxiety                                                 Assertiveness

Bereavement                                     Bullying                                                Burnout

Career Change                                  Depression                                          Divorce

Domestic violence                              Empty Nest Syndrome                         Expatriation

Gender Identity                                  International move                               Isolation

Lack of self-esteem                           Loneliness                                           loss of identity

Parents                                              Partner                                                Physical abuse

Pregnancy                                         Rape                                                    Redundancy

Relationships                                    Religious issues                                    Relocation

Repatriation                                      Self-confidence                                     Self-harm

Sexual abuse                                    Sexual Orientation                                Sexual problems

Sexuality                                           Stress                                                   Suicidal thoughts

Tension                                            Trauma                                                  Work Related issues