A few lines about me.
Life coach in the area of psychological counselling
Hello! I am Marita Helkimo-Hauser, independent life coach (Lebensberaterin) in the area of psychological counseling practicing in Familienzentrum Innsbruck.
Life coaches in Austria support and accompany clients in various challenges in life. The difference to psychotherapy is that Life Coaches offer their services to healthy persons in crisis, Psychotherapists treat clients with mental disorders.
Origins and Education
I come from Finland where I spent my childhood, adolescence and young adulthood. I studied International Economics at the Aalto University in Helsinki and graduated with an MBA degree. Later I completed pedagogical studies with a focus on adult education at the University of Helsinki. For many years until now, I have been living with my husband as an expat abroad, where our (now adult) daughters grew up in a mixed culture family as third culture kids. Over the years I grew accustomed to living and people in Austria, Poland, Russia and now Germany and then again Austria. I experienced different cultures and also learned the languages of my host countries.
Psychology – my passion
Psychology has been my passion since I was in high school. Therefore, my knowledge in psychology was already deep before I started my actual ecucation and training in psychological counselling. The idea to work as a counsellor with expat clients came to me during the time I lived in foreign countries where expats often could not speak the national language perfectly. Therefore, I understand that finding a suitable therapist or psychological counsellors who speaks English or their native language can become a difficult task.
As I have lived outside my home country most of my life, I know and deeply understand how living and moving abroad to a different culture can sometimes bring special difficult situations on the way: for expats in working environments, for their spouses (with or without career) and for kids and teens (at school, changing school and losing friends). You may also deal with family or couples’ problems where you may need special counselling or psychological help to cope with.
Working Experience and Positions of Trust
Before I started my independent private practice, I had professional experience in expat consulting, tutoring, embassy work, international marketing, sales management and banking. During my stay abroad, I’ve had the honour to work in several positions of trust in Finnish and German schools, International Women’s Clubs and Finnish Trade Guilds. I was also a member of Global Connection – an independent, international organisation that is exclusively dedicated to the well-being and success of expat partners.
Paracelsus School in Germany
I studied and received my diploma for psychological counselling and psychotherapy (according to the German „Heilpraktiker“ (HP) Law) from the renowned Paracelsus School in Frankfurt am Main. While I am not a psychologist, but an “alternative practitioner for psychotherapy”, I have still acquired the skills to offer psychotherapy and psychological counselling. My German state permission for psychotherapy after the HP Law was given to me after delivering written and oral examinations of the heatlh authority (Gesundheitsamt) in Frankfurt am Main.
As”Heilpraktikerin für Psychotherapie” (= non-medical practitioner for psychotherapy) I was a non-medical practioner for mental disorders including slight and moderate depressive moods, maladaptive problems as moving, work and school related issues, culture shock, divorce, loss and grief, personality disorders, anxiety disorders and problems with self-esteem.
In Germany I had a lot of international expat clients and their family members from financial institutes, international companies and international schools. Also many international university students visited my practice.
Private practice as Life Coach in Psychological Counselling and Couples Counselling in Innsbruck
Life coaching is a regulated profession in Austria and a part of the Austrian healthcare system.
In Austria I work with clients who are going through life crisis or have another challenges in life, but don´t have mentalhealth disorder diagnosis. In these cases I advise my clients to contact other professionals like psychotherapist, psychiatrist or other doctor.
To keep me up-to-date on these matters I continuously read professional literature and articles in different languages and am committed to regularly taking part in further education courses and seminars (which is obligatory in my profession).
Member of Professional Association for Counselling, Education and Psychotherapy as Educational Therapeutic Counselor Registered Association, membership number 21250)
Member of VFP Association of Independent Psychotherapists, Practitioners of Psychotherapy (Heilpraktiker) and Psychological Counsellors (Registered Association, membership member 23880)