English-speaking counseling for people in Geneva’s international community. Online wherever your work takes you, in person in Geneva on request.
Book Free 20-Min Intro Session
Life in international Geneva
Geneva is a small city that the whole world passes through. The European headquarters of the United Nations is here, together with the World Health Organization, the World Trade Organization, the International Committee of the Red Cross and a long list of NGOs and permanent missions. CERN sits just outside town. Private banks and commodity trading houses bring in yet another group of international staff.
Inside many of these offices the working language is English. The street, the commune office and the school gate run in French. Plenty of people who work in Geneva live across the border in France or further along the lake in Vaud, so home, work and friends can end up in three different places.
Then there is the rhythm of the work. Contracts are often fixed-term. Colleagues leave for the next duty station just as you get to know them. Missions and field trips cut the weeks into pieces. Many people here do work they believe in, and that can make it harder to admit that the work is wearing them down.
What tends to bring people here to counseling
- Exhaustion after years of high-stakes or humanitarian work
- Worry about the next contract, the next posting or a permit tied to a job
- Friendships that keep ending because people move on
- Feeling like a guest in a city you have lived in for years
- A relationship stretched by travel, distance or one career taking priority
You do not have to be in a crisis. Wanting one steady place to think, while everything else keeps moving, is a good enough reason.
I write about these themes in more depth on Counseling for expats in Switzerland. Because most of this work happens on screen, Online counseling in Switzerland explains the practical side.
Sessions that travel with you
Counseling with me is online by default. We meet for 50 minutes on a secure, encrypted video platform. You need a device with a camera, a stable connection and a room where nobody can overhear you. That room can be your flat, a hotel on mission or a borrowed office.
If you would rather sit in the same room, an in-person session in Geneva is possible on request. I am based near Lake Zurich, so we plan these meetings ahead. Bring it up when we first talk, and I will tell you what can be arranged.
One session costs CHF 120. The 20-minute introduction costs nothing and commits you to nothing. Basic health insurance in Switzerland generally does not pay for counseling. If you are paid in another currency, prices can also be shown in EUR or USD.
I work in English, Ukrainian and Russian. I do not offer sessions in French.
A counselor, not a psychotherapist
When people in Geneva search for an English-speaking therapist, many of them want someone to talk things through with. That is what I offer. I am a psychosocial counselor, a member of the Swiss Association for Counselling (SGfB), and I hold an MSc in Psychology. A psychotherapist or psychiatrist treats mental illness; I do not diagnose, treat psychiatric conditions or prescribe medication. If you are unsure which one you need, start with Counseling vs. psychotherapy in Switzerland.
“Calm, comfortable atmosphere. The homework assignments can be used daily for self-regulation. I felt there was light at the end of the tunnel.”
D.P., Data Analyst
Further reading for Geneva
- Feeling temporary while building a life in Switzerland
- Why emotions can be harder to explain in a second language
- How to prepare for an online counseling session
Not in Geneva for long? The overview of English-speaking counseling across Switzerland shows the other places I cover.
Questions people in Geneva ask
Is it possible to meet you in person in Geneva?
Yes, on request. Video sessions are the standard because they fit irregular schedules. If meeting face to face in Geneva matters to you, say so in the introduction call and we will look for a date and a suitable place.
I travel a lot and work across time zones. Can counseling still work?
It can. Your sessions are not tied to a location, so we can meet while you are on mission or visiting family, as long as the connection is stable and the space is private. We agree each appointment in Swiss time and adjust when your calendar changes.
Do you speak French?
No. I work in English, Ukrainian and Russian. Booking, payment and all messages are in English too, so you will not need French at any step.