- Language
- Turkish · English · French
- Format
- Online sessions
- First session
- Free
- Time
- Turkey time, UTC+3
Why speak in your own language?
Psychoanalysis is a practice of speech. The analysand says whatever comes to mind, as freely as possible; the analyst listens not only to what is said but to how it is said: to the slip of the tongue, the word that keeps returning, the silence that appears in the middle of a sentence. The language spoken is therefore not an instrument outside the work but the very material of it.
Many people living abroad notice that even after years of conducting daily life in another language they return spontaneously to Turkish when they are angry, in love or afraid. The mother tongue is the language of childhood, of mother and father, of first pleasures and first fears; some memories and feelings surface only in it. For others the reverse is true: Turkish is the language of the family’s expectations, of shame and silence, and the way to speak freely passes through another language. In the sessions you can speak Turkish, English or French, and move between them. These passages are often themselves something to speak about. I discuss the psychoanalytic background of this question in detail in the essay Exile and the Mother Tongue.
What is often talked about in the sessions
Everyone’s life far from home is their own; the headings below are not a classification but a list of the questions people living abroad often bring to the sessions:
- Loneliness, belonging, and the feeling of being “neither there nor here”
- Growing up between two languages and two cultures; the questions of identity of the second and third generations
- The relation with the homeland and the family left behind; the debt and guilt felt towards them
- The illness or loss of a parent far away; mourning for someone whose funeral one could not attend
- Relationships, marriage, and life built with partners from different cultures
- Worries about which language and which values to raise one’s children in
- Anxiety, sleeplessness, exhaustion and distress that finds expression in the body
- The undecidable choice between staying and returning; the second foreignness of those who return
How do the sessions work?
The first session is free and carries no commitment. We talk about what brings you, your expectations and your questions. The frequency of sessions, their length, the fee and the platform to be used are decided together in this first session.
Times are arranged according to the time zone where you are. Turkey uses UTC+3 all year and does not move to summer time. For this reason the time difference with Europe changes twice a year.
Insurance. Health insurance abroad generally does not cover sessions with a practitioner working outside the country where you live. If this matters to you, I recommend that you speak to your insurer before starting.
Confidentiality is the condition of the work. I ask that you not send detailed personal or clinical information by e-mail; we can talk about these things in the first session.
Time differences
| Where you live | In winter time | In summer time |
|---|---|---|
| Germany, Austria, Belgium, France, the Netherlands, Switzerland | Turkey is 2 hours ahead | Turkey is 1 hour ahead |
| United Kingdom, Ireland | Turkey is 3 hours ahead | Turkey is 2 hours ahead |
| USA and Canada, east coast | Turkey is 8 hours ahead | Turkey is 7 hours ahead |
| USA and Canada, west coast | Turkey is 11 hours ahead | Turkey is 10 hours ahead |
| United Arab Emirates | Turkey is 1 hour behind, all year | |
In the weeks when summer time begins and ends the differences may change briefly; countries do not always make these changes on the same day.
In an emergency
These sessions are not an emergency service. If there is a danger of harming yourself or someone else, or if you are thinking of ending your life, please call at once the emergency number of the country you are in (112 in the European Union and Turkey) or one of the crisis lines below. Most of these lines are free and can be reached at any hour of the day.
- Germany · TelefonSeelsorge0800 111 0 111 · 116 123
- Austria · Telefonseelsorge142
- Belgium · Zelfmoordlijn (Dutch)1813
- Belgium · Centre de Prévention du Suicide (French)0800 32 123
- France · Numéro national de prévention du suicide3114
- Netherlands · 113 Zelfmoordpreventie113 · 0800 0113
- Switzerland · Die Dargebotene Hand / La Main Tendue143
- United Kingdom and Ireland · Samaritans116 123
- USA and Canada · Suicide and Crisis Lifeline988
- Australia · Lifeline13 11 14
By country
Migration from Turkey to Europe has a different history, a different language and different practical conditions in each country. On the pages below you will find these histories, the time differences, the insurance systems and the local support lines country by country.
- GermanyFrom the agreement of 1961 to the third generation
- The NetherlandsFrom the Atatürk hostel in Amsterdam to today
- BelgiumThe Limburg mines, Emirdağ and two languages
- AustriaLiving in Freud’s city
- FranceLacan’s city; sessions in French too
- Switzerland“We called for workers, and people came”
- United KingdomLondon, Freud’s last stop
If you live in a country not on this list, from the USA to Canada, from Scandinavia to the Gulf states or Australia, the sessions are conducted in the same way.
Frequently asked questions
I live abroad; can I start the sessions?
Yes. The sessions are held online and times are arranged according to the time zone where you are. The first session is free.
My Turkish is weak, or I find it easier to say some things in another language. Can we still meet?
Yes. The sessions can be held in Turkish, English or French, and it is possible to move between languages. Which language you want to speak in is itself a question that can be talked about.
Does the health insurance of the country I live in cover the sessions?
In most countries health insurance does not cover sessions with a practitioner working outside that country. If this matters to you, I recommend that you ask your insurer before starting.
Which platform are the sessions held on?
The platform to be used is decided together in the first session according to your circumstances. It matters that you find a quiet place for the session where no one can hear you.
Doesn’t the time difference make the sessions difficult?
For sessions from Europe the difference is between one and three hours and generally causes no problem. For more distant places such as America or Australia, we look together for a time that both sides can keep up regularly.
To arrange a day and time for the first session, or to ask the questions on your mind, you can write to me. It makes things easier if you give in your message the country you are in and your time zone.
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