“Embracing what is hidden, changing what is unwanted and moving forward compassionately”
All human beings are thrown into an unpredictable world, carrying with them their givens of family, culture and circumstance. Some of us are more protected than others, some of us are more safe than others, but all of us spend time seeking a human connection that could help us heal and feel safe. Yet, what we have been through can make not only finding these connections difficult but maintaining them can be challenging too. Genuine, honest and safe connections are essential for wellbeing (and therapeutic success) and my aim in therapy is firstly to establish such a connection. With this, the aim is to help you embrace what is hidden and difficult, change what you feel you no longer need or want and to help you move forward with self-compassion and openness so that life feels safer and more fulfilling.
About Me
Expertise
Experience
Research & Publications
I am a Chartered Counselling Psychologist who has studied and trained in psychology since my late teens. My passion for both science and philosophy has guided me to develop a deep understanding of the human condition (that life is an unpredictable challenge which brings worry and anxiety) and to ensure I offer clients evidence-based interventions, which combine into a deeply intuitive integrative approach. I have extensive experience working with individuals, couples, and families, who have experienced a wide range of life challenges, changes and life cycles. I have expertise in helping individuals to overcome depression, anxiety, phobias, loss, addiction, complex trauma, sexual violence, body dysmorphia/gender dysphoria, eating disorders and issues around immigration, cultural adaptation and racial inequality. My single aim in therapy is to develop an honest and transparent relationship with my clients, so that they feel comfortable to explore their lives from a place of safety, openness and vulnerability. Three aspects I believe are essential for therapy to be successful and for my clients to fully uncover their needs and motivations.
Zeljka is trained in a number of evidence-based psychological therapies, including Cognitive-Behavioural Therapy (CBT), Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT), Cognitive-Analytic Therapy (CAT), Mentalisation-Based Treatment (MBT), Jungian Analysis, Existential/Phenomenological Analysis, Compassion-Focused Therapy (CFT) and Family Systems Therapy (FST).
Zeljka has worked with many individuals seeking help for a wide array of psychological and behavioural challenges, ranging from depression, anxiety, phobias and addictions, body dysmorphia/gender dysmorphia, ADHD to psychosis, schizophrenia, obsessive-compulsive disorders, Bipolar Disorder I and II, personality disorders and complex PTSD.
Zeljka’s expertise includes her sensitivity around her clients’ personal lives, cultural context and social and economic status. She has extensive experience working with the psychology of immigration, cultural adaptation, racial inequality, and complex psychological/behavioural and contextual presentations.
In addition to Zeljka’s interest in helping people achieve self-understanding and healing from traumatic events, she also has an interest in helping those working within demanding professions (such as medicine, psychology, healthcare) and offering professionals a way to cope with the demands of their work through reflective practice.
Zeljka has 15 years’ experience working in the NHS, charity and the private sectors. She has worked for a Perinatal Mental Health Team (NHS), supporting the multi-disciplinary team with a psychological perspective, and treating mothers in therapy who were struggling with life challenges, pregnancy and birth. She worked for MIND in Newham and Tower Hamlets and in private practice. Her doctoral research was focussed on NHS doctors, and she has extensive knowledge of the NHS system and policy, and factors which affect doctors’ mental health and wellbeing, and that are connected to their training and working environments.