Counsellor, manager, human

Before retraining as a counsellor, I spent 15 years working in the scientific field. I began my career in active research, completing a PhD in biosciences at the University of Frankfurt/Main, before moving into research funding at the Ministry for Science and the Arts in Wiesbaden.

Over this period, I lived and worked in Germany, New Zealand, and — since 2015 — the southwest of England. Most recently, I served for several years as Co-Director and Manager of a major metamaterials research centre and its national network within the Department of Physics at the University of Exeter, UK. In this role, I had the privilege of supporting PhD students, academics, professional services staff, and industry partners, helping to nurture a vibrant and collaborative community.

Alongside this, I founded and led a UK-wide national network for Professional Research Investment and Strategy Managers (PRISMs). It is still a pleasure to watch my successor and former colleagues build on my work and continue to strengthen the community, addressing three key challenges central to the role: career progression and professional development; recruitment and job security; and recognition and a sense of belonging.

Eventually, working at the intersection of higher education and industry led to some important personal realisations that ultimately prompted my own professional shift:

• Unresolved personal crises, the pressures of demanding work and interpersonal conflicts are quite common in the workplace. They affect our ability to live our life to the fullest, to do our job well and to be the best team player and/or team leader we can be. Causes of negative impact on us and our ability to thrive include:
  • Relationship problems in private life;
  • Team conflicts caused by difficult colleagues or supervisors;
  • Stress leading to burnout;
  • Isolation and loneliness;
  • Struggles with major life changes—whether planned or unplanned—such as moving house, pregnancy, job transitions, or bereavement.
• For some, these challenges are short-lived and manageable. For others, they can cause long-lasting emotional strain. This may show up as persistent anger or aggression, despair, mood swings, feeling lost or stuck, anxiety, grief, lack of autonomy, low self-esteem, depressive symptoms, or ongoing lack of motivation and decreased performance at work.
• Leading a team well requires time and energy — both for the team as a whole and for each individual. Motivated and effective employees benefit from attention, autonomy, recognition, opportunities for growth and a healthy work environment. As a manager, one can easily find oneself torn between the demands of performance and the reality of human challenges.

In my previous leadership role, I could only offer limited support to my staff, as day-to-day deadlines and performance pressures still had to be met. In 2019, this led me to shifting the focus of my career and further development opportunities, including:

• ILM Level 3 Certificate in Leadership and Management
• Change Management Foundation (APMG International)
• Advance HE: AURORA (Leadership development initiative for women),
• In-house course on „Handling challenging conversations“
• NCEF Award in Counselling Skills and Theory

Through this journey, I came to realise that people had become the true focus of my work and that I wanted to dedicate more time to individuals and their personal development.

Since then, I successfully applied to the two-year “Advanced Professional Diploma in Counselling Theory and Therapeutic Practice” at Exeter College in South West England (UK) and graduated with a final thesis rated “outstanding” by the external examiner. The course is accredited by the National Counselling and Psychotherapy Society (NCPS) and focuses on person-centred therapy, with additional training in Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), Internal Family Systems (IFS), and the psychodynamic approach (PDA).

Until returning to Saxony in 2023, I worked with clients aged 18 to 74 in Exeter, helping them navigate a wide range of emotional challenges. During this time, I also completed additional training in both online and outdoor therapeutic work, allowing me to respond more flexibly to the needs of my clients and make use of diverse therapeutic settings.

Today, I live happily with my family in my chosen home city of Leipzig and look forward to meeting and supporting you in my counselling practice.

Counselling is a well-established branch of psychotherapeutic support in the UK. Learn more about the therapeutic concept…