Melike Kayhan
Melike KAYHAN, Psychoanalyst (CP-UK), Psychoanalytic Psychotherapist (UKCP, PA), Couples Therapist, Psychosexual Therapist, Counselling and family therapist (MSc), EMDR practitioner
About me:
I was born and raised in Istanbul. I moved to Britain in 1992 and was based there for the next 20 years. I completed all my psychoanalytic training in London, and practised as a therapist in Hampstead for many years.
I set up Face to Face Therapia after returning to Istanbul in 2013. Psychoanalytic psychotherapy is not easily accessible in Istanbul, and I wanted to create a welcoming centre offering this valuable form of psychotherapy. Prior to this I worked as a Couples and Family Therapist at Istanbul's Marital Therapy institute.
I have a special interest in relationship difficulties and issues concerning sex and sexuality. I also have extensive experience helping adults and teenagers suffering from depression, anxiety, panic attacks, obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) and schizophrenia. In addition, I am qualified in EMDR, a groundbreaking technique used to treat trauma and other anxiety-related conditions.
For me, psychotherapy is a way of freeing us from self-destructive patterns of thought and behaviour. These behaviours would have been adopted in response to situations that were physically or emotionally threatening, and are usually formed in childhood. Unfortunately, if we carry them into later life, they can hamper our growth, our creativity, and our capacity to form emotionally fulfilling relationships.
As a therapist I help people become aware of these behaviours, and to understand that they no longer need to be shackled by them. When we understand what's harming us, and why, we're no longer 'stuck'. We become free to change, and to pursue the things that make us truly happy.
Training:
I completed my training in Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy and Psychoanalysis at the Philadelphia Association (www.philadelphia-association.org.uk) in Hampstead, London. Founded by R.D. Laing and others in the 1960s, the association questioned orthodox views on the causes and treatment of mental illness. The Philadelphia Association continues to teach and work in this tradition.
Qualifications & Memberships include:
College of Psychoanalysts-UK (CP-UK), Registered Psychoanalyst
UKCP accredited training in Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy, Philadelphia Association
Member of Council for Psychoanalysis and Jungian Analysis College
Member of United Kingdom Council for Psychotherapy (UKCP)
For more information, or to make an appointment with Melike, please get in touch.
Elif Söylemez Yılmaz
Elif Söylemez Yılmaz graduated as the top of her class from Koç University’s Psychology Department (2007-2010), receiving the Vehbi Koç Honorary Award. She then completed her Master’s degree in Clinical Psychology at Doğuş University with a thesis on "Examining Accumulative and Hoarding Types in Anxiety Disorders" (2012). After completing her Master’s education, she pursued Couple and Family Therapy Training at Bilgi University (2014). She has also received specialized training in Psychological Trauma and Crisis Intervention (EMDR – 2012), Alcohol and Substance Dependency (SAMBA – 2012), Gottman Couples Therapy (2018), and Sexual Therapy (CETAD – 2018). Currently, she is continuing her training in Psychodynamic Supportive Psychotherapy under the supervision of Prof. Dr. Cem Kaptanoğlu (2023-2026).
She has completed internship programs at Balıklı Rum Hospital, Psychiatry & Alcohol and Substance Dependency Services (2008), Surp Pırgiç Armenian Hospital, Psychiatry & Alcohol and Substance Dependency Services (2009), Doğuş University Psychology Education Laboratory (2011), and Bakırköy Mental and Nervous Diseases Hospital Women’s Psychosis Service (2012). Following these internships, she worked as a therapist at Balıklı Rum Hospital (2013-2014), Algı Psychological Counseling and Education Center (2013-2019), Seyir Psychology (2019-2021), and Psiko Aden (2021-present), providing therapy for adolescents, adults, and couples / families.
Her areas of expertise include depression, anxiety disorders, trauma, alcohol and substance use, communication problems, and conflict resolution. In individual therapy, she follows the Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and EMDR approaches, while in couples therapy, she utilizes a systemic approach combined with Gottman Therapy.
Vincent Sienkiewicz
Vincent SIENKIEWICZ, Clinical Psychologist, Psychotherapist
About me:
I specialise in existential-humanistic psychotherapy. This form of therapy places the individual, and his or her needs, at the centre of the therapeutic process.
My role as a counsellor is to help my clients gain a greater understanding of who they are, and the person they truly want to be. Existential-humanistic psychotherapy is collaborative, and many insights are gained through the therapeutic relationship itself. Using the client's goals as a guide, we explore emotional issues in the context of the human condition, and the individual's sense of his of her place in the world.
Background and training:
I earned my doctorate in Clinical Psychology at the American School of Professional Psychology, and have worked with adults, adolescents and children suffering from problems including: depression , , panic attacks, substance abuse, relationship difficulties, and issues triggered by new life circumstances.
For more information, or to make an appointment with Vincent, please get in touch
Naciye Ersözlü Çitil
Naciye Ersözlü Çitil, Clinical Psychologist, Psychotherapist
I have finished my M.A. in Clinical Psychology in California, U.S.A. The graduate program I have attended was focused on Marriage and Family Therapy as well as individual therapy. During my internship, I had an opportunity to work with couples, families, and individuals at New Beginnings Counseling Center and with substance and alcohol misuse at Prototypes Women’s Center. I have been seeing a similar client profile for more than a decade.
In recent years, Polyvagal Theory has been embraced by psychotherapists. This theory provides a better understanding of the vortex of trauma and addiction. Using Polyvagal theory’s therapeutic applications in my practice has been becoming one of the greatest tools that I have.
While I was working on clients with addiction problems, I saw that marriage and family counseling increases the effectiveness of addiction therapy. Between 2012 and 2013, I served as a Clinical Psychologist at Balıklı Rum Hospital Anatolia 1 Addiction Service and had an opportunity to include the families and spouses in the therapy process. The positive consequences I have obtained in almost all cases confirmed my observation. In 2015-2016 I was a clinical director in Avcılar Belediye Baskanlıgı C4 Recovery Solutions Counseling and Follow-up Center.
Even though I prefer the Psychodynamic Approach generally, I should admit that I am quite impressed by the methods of Latin American psychotherapist Salvador Minuchin in the case of family counseling. The communalities between Latin American and Turkish families have a part in my positive impression.
I believe that the discovery of the distressful points of a family structure and the problems these points seem to cause is a very special journey for both the therapist and the family.
For me, replacing whatever is not functioning in the systemwith a new and functioning element and witnessing how a family tries this new element and gets satisfactory consequences forms the climax of this journey.
In the case of couples therapy I generally adopt an Emotionally Focused Therapy. I find it very efficient and meaningful to support each member of a couple in the process of admitting and understanding their own feelings and getting ready to share them.
I have developed an interest in helping LGBTT individuals as an intern, and I continue providing counseling services to them as a volunteer. I am quite concerned with the problems they encounter in Turkey, and I feel lucky to get to know some members of the LGBTT community at Kadın Kapısı.
Qualifications as a Psychotherapist:
A good command of Psychodynamic Approach
A good command of Polyvagal Theory and its implications in therapy.
A good command of Marriage and Family Therapy Methods
Experience in Substance and Alcohol Addiction Therapy
Trauma Informed Therapy
Experience in Group Therapy
Experience in helping adults with sexual identity issues
Sensitivity to issues concerning diversity
Experience in Somatic Therapy (from the viewpoints of Hakomi, Gestalt and Mindfulness)
Supervision
Tuba Alkan
Tuba Alkan, Psychologist, Psychotherapist
About me:
I am introduced to Psychoanalysis after studying Manufacturing Engineering at ITU (Istanbul Technical University). My interest in psychoanalysis led me to pursue a career in mental health, and got a full scholarship to study psychology at Nisantasi University. Following my carrier as a white-collar engineer, I then graduated from Psychology. Since completing my psychology degree, I have been working as a psychotherapist at the Face to Face Therapia Psychotherapy centre in Levent, İstanbul. My therapeutic approach is psychoanalytic psychotherapy.
Psychoanalytic psychotherapy is an approach based on talking about childhood experiences and dreams and making free associations. According to the psychoanalytical approach, the unconscious influences thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. Psychoanalytic psychotherapy helps you to become aware of unconscious/hidden meanings or patterns in what you do or say that might contribute to your psychological problems. Rather than offering temporary quick solutions, this technique aims at a deeper study of mental health problems to understand the underlying causes of the difficulties and create a deep understanding of psychological conflicts, and offers fundamental change and transformation.
I am a founding member of the Psychoanalysis Research Association. I teach at the association and give seminars on Lacanian psychoanalysis. I am one of the translators of Sigmund Freud's book "Papers on Technique" from English to Turkish. I have also contributed to some books such as; Love, Desire and Jouissance in Perversion, La cité et ses maîtres fous, Fundamentals of Psychoanalytic Technique.
For more information, or to make an appointment with Tuba, please get in touch.
Deniz Arslan
Deniz Arslan, Clinical Psychologist, Psychotherapist
About me:
I completed my degree education at the department of Psychology at Bilgi University with a full scholarship in English and with an honors degree. During my undergraduate education, I did internships in several institutions, and at the same time, I participated in various projects within the country and abroad as a volunteer. Owing to this process, I have gained extensive experiences in multicultural environments in my professional life.
I completed my master's degree at Bahçeşehir University in the department of Clinical Psychology. My thesis was 'Living with Contamination Obsessions and Cleaning Compulsions in the Covid-19 Pandemic: A Qualitative Study. I studied how patients diagnosed with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) experience Covid-19, how their symptoms influence them, and how they make sense of this process. I have reached the conclusion that being understood and listened to without any judgment has a psychologically healing effect on the person. In addition, I also had the opportunity to discover that every person is unique in their own way, even though they experience the same psychological state. During my clinical internship at the French Lape Hospital, I had the opportunity to communicate with patients with various experiences and witness their clinical processes.
Currently, I provide online and face-to-face individual therapy to adults at the Face to Face Therapy Center. My psychotherapeutic approach is psychodynamic, which focuses on the client's unconscious materials and how they make sense of their experiences in order to analyze the issues brought to the therapy in more depth. Through this authentic relationship between the client and the therapist, the person is able to process and restructure various patterns and conflicts in their life rather than trying to get rid of the symptoms.
For more information, or to make an appointment with Deniz, please get in touch.
Kübra Arıkan
Kübra Arıkan graduated from Istanbul Bilgi University with a full scholarship in the Department of Psychology, as a high honor student and the second-highest-ranking student in her class. Following her undergraduate studies, she began her master’s education in Developmental Psychology at Koç University with a full scholarship and completed her thesis titled “From Parental Control to Child’s Self-Control: The Role of Parental Stress and Well-Being” under the supervision of Prof. Dr. Ayşe Bilge Selçuk. She then pursued a second master’s degree in the Clinical Psychology program (Child-Adolescent track) at Istanbul Bilgi University and completed her thesis titled “Investigating Mechanisms of Change in Mentalization-Based Treatment for Children (MBT-C): Do Gains in Emotion Regulation Predict Decreases in Internalizing Problems?” under the supervision of Assoc. Prof. Dr. Sibel Halfon.
During her undergraduate years, she completed internships at Ekip Norma Razon and Balıklı Rum Hospital. She volunteered with various non-governmental organizations and associations, including TEGV and World Human Relief (WHR), and contributed to community-based projects focusing on the prevention of violence and trauma through the Bilgi Open Door student club. In 2017, she volunteered with WHR under the leadership of Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ayten Zara, providing psychosocial support to children under protection and participating in sustainability-focused community work in Uganda. In 2021, she contributed to psychosocial support efforts for individuals and children affected by the wildfires in Marmaris. More recently, in 2023, she took part in psychosocial support work for earthquake survivors in Kahramanmaraş through the “Earthquake Psychosocial Solidarity Network” (DEPSDA) project initiated by the Turkish Psychological Association.
In addition to her fieldwork, she has worked as a research assistant on various academic projects. Her research interests have led to the publication of several articles in both national and international journals.
She conducted psychotherapy sessions under supervision with children, adolescents, and their families at the Istanbul Bilgi University Psychological Counseling Center, using play and/or talk therapy approaches. She also conducted cognitive and emotional psychological assessments. In addition to individual psychotherapy, she facilitated group programs called Child, Mother, and Father Development Workshops (ÇABA) aimed at improving children’s social skills while simultaneously enhancing parental skills.
As part of her graduate education, she received training in play therapy, psychodynamic case formulation and technique, and psychological assessment of children’s emotional and cognitive functioning. She is also a certified practitioner of Regulation-Focused Psychotherapy for Children (RFP-C), a therapy developed for children with externalizing behaviors such as frequent anger or defiance, trained directly by its founder Tracy Prout.
She has completed the following additional training programs:
- “Embodied Interaction Skills for Psychotherapists” by Assoc. Prof. Dr. Zeynep Çatay, focusing on the use of nonverbal interventions in therapeutic communication,
- “DIR Floortime 101” training,
- “Parent Consulting for Professionals” by Clinical Psychologists Şeniz Pamuk and Dr. Damla Til Öğüt,
- “Trauma and Expressive Arts Therapy: Approaches for Disaster Relief” by Dr. Cathy Malchiodi,
- “Mentalization-Based Treatment for Families (MBT-F)” by Dr. Holly Dwyer at the Anna Freud Centre,
- “Transference-Focused Psychotherapy” by Prof. Dr. Doğan Şahin.
She is a certified administrator of the MOXO Attention Test and the WISC-IV (Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children).
She works with children, adolescents, and their parents who experience emotional, behavioral, and relational difficulties, using a psychodynamic orientation. In her play therapy sessions with children, she incorporates mentalization-based and emotion regulation-focused interventions. She also adopts a psychodynamic approach in her work with adults.
Deniz Buğdaycı
I graduated from Strasbourg University, where I earned my bachelor's degree in psychology and my master's degree in clinical psychology. I lived in France for seven years, during which I actively sought to enrich my education through various internships in both Turkey and France, exploring different schools of psychology. Throughout my undergraduate and master's studies, I gained experience working with diverse age groups. I addressed issues such as addiction, autism, dyslexia, Alzheimer’s disease, and various cognitive and emotional disorders. My work extended to adolescents and children who had experienced violence and bullying. Additionally, my research explored the dynamics of romantic human relationships.
During my undergraduate education, I interned at Bakırköy Psychiatric Hospital and Istanbul Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Hospital in Istanbul. Under the guidance of Prof. Eva Commisaire, I wrote my undergraduate thesis on "The Differences in Emotional Reactions According to the Language Used in Bilingual Individuals."
I pursued my master's degree in "Psychoanalysis-Oriented Clinical Psychology" at the University of Strasbourg. In Strasbourg, I had the opportunity to study Alzheimer’s disease through interviews and workshops with elderly patients at the Emmaüs Diaconnesses and Les Colombes care homes. I gained further experience working with adult patients at La Toussaint Clinic, a private medical center.During my second year, I worked with adolescents at the CIO Counseling Center in Haguenau, conducting therapy sessions with adolescents and children who had been exposed to violence and bullying. I also supported children with autism and dyslexia and engaged with their families.
Simultaneously, I worked with mentally disabled adults at the Sonnenhof Aid Organization. These diverse experiences allowed me to observe the application of psychodynamic perspectives across various human profiles. My master's research focused on relationship dynamics within romantic interactions. With a keen interest in this area, I wrote my thesis on "The Impact of Being with a Jealous Partner in Romantic Relationships" under the supervision of Prof. Mélanie Jacquot. This curiosity also led me to research "The Romantic Relationships of Polyamorous Individuals," examining how romantic relationships and emotional states are experienced within human consciousness.
Currently, I am seeing adults and adolescents both online and in-person, employing a psychodynamic psychotherapy orientation. I hold the belief that truly understanding an individual arises from comprehending their unique thought processes, emotional world, and personal experiences. Together, we can illuminate your journey toward self-understanding, drawing insight from your unique path in life.
Betül Kanbur
Betül Kanbur currently provides psychotherapy services for children and adolescents aged 3-18, as well as counseling for parents. She also works as a psychologist at a private preschool, focusing on supporting and assessing the cognitive and emotional development of children aged 2-4.
She graduated as the third highest-ranking student from the Psychology Department of Boğaziçi University. During her undergraduate studies, she worked as an assistant in laboratories focusing on infant and child cognitive development and participated in volunteer projects with children under government protection. She completed one semester at Universiteit van Amsterdam in the Netherlands. In 2024, she completed her Master’s in Clinical Psychology at Istanbul Bilgi University with a thesis examining the relationship between children’s drawings and attachment characteristics.
During her master’s studies, she conducted individual psychodynamic therapy sessions with children and adolescents at Istanbul Bilgi University’s Psychological Counseling Center. She also worked as a co-therapist in the Children, Mothers, and Fathers Development Workshops (ÇABA), focusing on the social skills development of primary school children and their parents. Additionally, she served as a teaching assistant at the university, teaching courses on the emotional and cognitive assessment of children and adolescents.
In 2022, she obtained the TPD-certified practitioner certificate for the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children - IV (WISC-IV) and has been conducting comprehensive assessments of cognitive development, attention, and learning difficulties in children aged 6-16. She specializes in Psychodynamic Play Therapy and has become a practitioner of Regulation-Focused Psychotherapy for Children (RFP-C), designed for children with externalizing and behavioral problems, under the supervision of its founder, Tracy Prout. Furthermore, she completed Parent Counseling training with Psk. Dr. Damla Til Öğüt and Expert Clinical Psychologist Şeniz Pamuk, offering counseling services for parents.
