Private practice for self-pay clients · worldwide · in German or English
Depth Psychology Online: Understanding What Shapes You
Some feelings, conflicts, and relationship patterns keep repeating themselves, no matter how often you resolve to do things differently. Psychodynamic counseling addresses precisely that: the forces that control you without your realizing it.
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What's Happening Beneath the Surface
Much of what you experience today predates the situation in which it arises. Early relationship experiences continue to influence you, usually unnoticed, and manifest as patterns: how you allow yourself to get close to others, how you deal with criticism, and how you think about yourself.
Some inner beliefs sound like this: I’m only valuable when I’m needed. Such phrases are rarely conscious. They were once a sensible solution and continue to function long after the situation has changed.
This counseling is about recognizing and integrating what you are currently struggling with, rather than trying to get rid of it. In my experience, the solution to the problem lies within the problem itself.
How Counseling Works
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Making what steers you tangibleFirst, what has been working unnoticed until now becomes concrete. Not as a diagnosis, but as a connection between what is weighing on you today and where it comes from.
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02
Making it something you can experience in the here and nowWe don’t just talk about problems. What emerges between us becomes an immediate experience; my Gestalt therapy attitude ensures this. An old pattern encounters a different response than it did back then.
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03
Letting what was missing matureStructural deficits take time and a reliable relationship. Where old wounds still have an effect today, I work in a trauma-informed, gentle way and at your own pace.
Energy that was previously tied up in keeping difficult feelings at bay becomes free again in the process. You decide how many sessions this will be, not an expert reviewer.
Psychodynamic Psychotherapy and Gestalt Therapy
My name is Aris Hägermann, and I am a licensed psychological psychotherapist. I completed my training in depth psychology-based psychotherapy from 2011 to 2016, and my training in Gestalt therapy from 2000 to 2004. I have been working in my own practice since 2016, and before that, four years in psychosomatic clinics.
As a young man, I thought meditation was the solution to my problems. It gave me a sense of connection, but it barely touched my inner conflicts and traumas. I found depth psychology-based psychotherapy combined with Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) to be significantly more helpful. That’s why I work the way I do today.
Since early 2024, I've been traveling a lot and offer counseling exclusively online. I see my own therapist online, and I find it enriching.
What Brings People to Me
- Recurring conflicts that cannot be resolved
- Tension that narrows everyday life bit by bit
- Distressing periods that keep coming back
- Exhaustion, despite a balanced life
- Old wounds that still have an effect today
- Doubts about one's own worth that extend into one's work
- Patterns you've long since figured out, yet still find yourself repeating
Hardly anyone gets in touch at the first sign. Usually, this sentence comes first: “I should be able to handle this on my own.”
How Online Counseling Takes Place
A standard counseling session lasts 50 minutes; an in-depth session lasts 100 minutes. We meet online in a secure consultation room via an encrypted European video platform. You can choose to keep your camera on or off, and you decide this anew from session to session.
If video doesn’t suit you, the counseling is done by phone. Some people speak more freely when they can look out the window while doing so. It doesn’t take much: a stable connection and a place where you won’t be disturbed. The legal duty of confidentiality applies, online as well as in person. Whether confidentiality in counseling rests on the law or on a contract depends on who provides the counseling. Because I run a private practice for self-pay clients, no application is filed and no diagnosis is recorded in your medical record.
Video-based counseling is not a stopgap measure. It follows the same guidelines as an in-person session and is the format I have been using exclusively since early 2024. It is by no means coaching: it is not about setting goals and implementing them, but about what lies beneath them.
This service is psychological counseling, not psychotherapy. It is not intended to diagnose, cure, or alleviate illnesses.
Time to Address Your Concern
Online Psychological
Counseling
Your First Counseling Session
Initial Consultation
50 minutes
We'll focus on what's on your mind right now, take a look at your situation together, and discuss what might help you moving forward.
- Sorting out your current concern together
- Incorporating a psychological perspective
- Summarizing the key points at the end
€150
Can be booked individually. You can decide on additional sessions afterward.
More Time to Get Started
In-Depth Initial Consultation
90 minutes
Time to describe your situation calmly, consider the bigger picture, and work on what is especially important to you.
- Understanding your situation and key background information
- Finding a focus together
- Discussing initial perspectives and next steps
€270
Can be booked individually. You can decide on additional sessions afterward.
Further Sessions
After the initial consultationSingle Session
1 × 50 minutes
Another look at a current concern. Or a session from time to time, if you’d like support.
€150
per session
Five Sessions
5 × 50 minutes
Explore a topic in depth, draw on everyday experiences, and work together to determine what helps you.
€700
€140 per session
Ten Sessions
10 × 50 minutes
Regular support over an extended period of your life, with room for your personal concerns and new developments.
€1,300
€130 per session
All prices are final. No VAT will be charged.
If this arrangement doesn't work out for you, I'll refund you the amount for the remaining package sessions.
Good to KnowLearn MoreClose
What does “initial consultation” mean?
The initial consultation is a 50- or 90-minute counseling session for which a fee is charged. We’ll get to know each other and begin working on your concerns right away. Afterward, you can decide whether you’d like to schedule additional sessions.
Do I need to book a package afterward?
You can leave it at a single session or book additional appointments individually. A package is another option if you’ve decided to have multiple sessions. It begins after the initial consultation, which is billed separately.
How do I prepare?
You don’t need to write anything out in detail. If you’d like, you can jot down what’s on your mind and what you hope to get out of the session. For the video call, you’ll need a quiet place, a stable internet connection, and a camera and microphone.
What does the counseling agreement cover?
Before your first paid session, you will receive information regarding services, fees, payment, canceling appointments, and confidentiality. The agreement also explains how personal data is handled and how the relationship is terminated. You will decide on additional sessions and packages separately.
Does health insurance cover the costs?
This counseling service is available to self-pay clients. I do not bill health insurance for this service.
Client Testimonials
“I found Mr. Hägermann to be clear, direct, compassionate, and encouraging. It was especially valuable that I was never pressured.”
Norman · Read the full testimonial
“Working with Mr. Hägermann was incredibly meaningful to me. During a difficult phase of my life, I felt safe and supported right from the start. That sense of security allowed me to open up, engage with my issues, and accept all aspects of myself better. I found Mr. Hägermann to be clear, direct, compassionate, and encouraging. What was particularly valuable was that I was never pressured, but instead received gentle pointers on where it was worth taking a closer look. This has inspired me in a lasting way, in how I treat myself and in my relationships. I always felt that he was right there by my side. I’m just so incredibly grateful for that!”
“Mr. Hägermann was an important source of support during an extremely difficult time in my life.”
Lutz · Read the full testimonial
“Mr. Hägermann was an important source of support during an extremely difficult time in my life and helped me see what matters in life. I would rely on his help and support again at any time. Thank you so much for that.”
More Testimonials
Birgit “From the very beginning, I felt taken seriously and in good hands.”
“The therapy really helped me understand myself better and develop new perspectives. I especially appreciated Mr. Hägermann’s respectful, calm manner and his professional support. From the very beginning, I felt taken seriously and in good hands. His empathetic manner and clear, helpful input supported me greatly and helped me in a lasting way. Thank you very much for that.”
H. Y. “I really appreciated his experience and down-to-earth nature.”
“Mr. Hägermann was able to support me very well during an important phase of my life. I really appreciated his experience and down-to-earth nature! I would recommend that everyone work on their own issues at regular intervals. There are always some. I searched for a long time before I found the right therapist for my needs and expectations. Thank you so much for the good support! An appointment was available very quickly. Great!”
Frequently Asked Questions
Does the approach actually have a different name?
In everyday life, most people say “depth psychology,” which is why that word appears at the top of this page. What I mean is the way of thinking I come from: your present has a history, and that history is at work, too.
Based on this, I offer psychological counseling. Depth psychology-based psychotherapy is a guideline-based approach covered by health insurance providers and is provided by colleagues with a statutory health insurance license. How the approach relates to psychoanalysis is explained here: the difference from psychoanalysis.
How does psychodynamic psychotherapy differ from behavioral therapy?
Behavioral therapy focuses primarily on current behavior and the thoughts that underlie it. Depth psychology-based work also asks where a pattern comes from and what purpose it once served.
Both approaches are effective, and neither is the right fit for every concern: the comparison with behavioral therapy.
Does health insurance cover the costs?
No. Psychological counseling is not covered by health insurance; you pay for it yourself. Conversely, this means: no application, no diagnosis in your medical record, no waiting time for a spot, and no expert reviewer who decides on the extension.
How much an online session costs and why there are differences among providers: what an online psychologist costs.
How long does counseling take?
It depends on the issue. Someone who comes with a specific question often needs less time than someone whose entire life has been shaped by a long-standing pattern. After the first few sessions, we’ll assess together where we stand and whether to continue.
How long psychotherapy may last in the statutory health insurance system is explained on the page about depth psychology-based psychotherapy.
Does it work the same way via video as it does in person?
What I observed myself: During the pandemic, 29 out of 30 of my patients switched to video or phone and stayed with it. Once in-person visits were possible again, all but one returned to the practice.
So the online format worked, yet many still preferred the in-person setting. Here’s what research says about working via video and where the limits lie: whether online psychotherapy is a good idea.
How do I make an appointment?
Send me an email, or select an appointment for an initial consultation directly from the options above. I usually get back to you within 24 hours.
There’s no questionnaire beforehand. We’ll talk, and then you’ll decide whether we’ll work together.
Where Counseling Ends
In the case of a mental illness, treatment is the right path, and I will help you look for it. In acute crises, in cases of danger to yourself, or when close psychiatric care is needed, an online service is not sufficient. In Germany, please contact the emergency number 112, the on-call medical service at 116 117, or a hospital near you. That’s not an overreaction; it’s the right reaction.