By listening to ourselves, we find the path to what is truly valuable - and this is the wisest and most caring way to become happier.
Svetlana
ISMAILOVA
Counseling in the psychoanalytic approach
MIAMI (Florida)
I offer Russian-language psychoanalytic counseling online. I'm based in Miami, Florida, and work with people all over the world. I provide psychological support for anxiety, crises, and relationship difficulties.
ABOUT ME
I received an education in psychology and psychoanalysis, have extensive experience in psychotherapeutic work, supervision, personal psychoanalysis and rich life experience.
WHAT I WORK WITH
I help with situations that people face throughout their lives and development: life crises, self-doubt and lack of confidence in the future, loss of meaning in life, personal development, general dissatisfaction, anxiety, fears, death of a loved one, loss of relationships, phobias, panic attacks, depression, and relationship difficulties.
Anxiety and panic states
Anxiety may not only be a feeling signaling danger, but also a manifestation of an unconscious conflict that cannot be expressed in words. Panic attacks seem sudden and inexplicable, but at their core there is always an experience that has been repressed into the unconscious and is breaking through to the surface. In our work, we explore the meanings hidden behind anxiety and panic, and gradually restore the ability to withstand them and understand their origins.
Depressive states and loss of meaning
Depression is not just a loss of strength or sadness. More often, it hides “frozen” grief, the inability to live through a loss, to face a deep internal conflict or trauma. This condition can be expressed in a feeling of emptiness, loss of interest in life, the inability to hope and dream. In the process of work, a space is created where repressed pain can be recognized and gradually processed, opening the way to the return of living feelings and connection with life.
Lack of self-confidence,
guilt and shame
Insecurity and a sense of inadequacy often form in early relationships and become ingrained as an internal, cruel judge. Guilt and shame constantly accompany these experiences, becoming a way to keep oneself “in line” and at the same time a source of self-punishment, preventing one from making choices and trusting oneself. We carefully explore their origins, distinguish between real and excessive guilt and shame, and restore the person’s ability to relate to themselves in a more supportive manner.
Psychosomatic
manifestations
When unconscious processes remain unconscious and do not take the form of words, they are often expressed through the body. Physical symptoms - pain, spasms, organ dysfunction - become the language of the unconscious. Often the body says what the psyche cannot bear and process. In interaction, we learn to hear this language and understand what experiences lie behind the bodily symptoms in order to gradually regain the ability to express feelings and conflicts differently - through words and relationships.
Traumatic experience
The trauma experienced does not disappear on its own: it remains in the psyche and body, influencing the present even years later. Unbearable experiences can be repressed into the unconscious, but return in the form of obsessive memories, dreams, physical symptoms or recurring situations. A person seems to be drawn into the same pain over and over again - this phenomenon in psychoanalysis is called the phenomenon of obsessive repetition, an unconscious attempt to heal and correct a traumatic situation. The work creates a space where the traumatic experience can be gradually recognized and processed in order to stop determining life as a whole.
Crises and losses
Divorce, death of a loved one, emigration or drastic changes in work and relationships can destroy the usual supports and leave a feeling of emptiness, confusion and helplessness. At such moments, it seems that life has collapsed and the old ways of coping no longer work. A person is faced with the impossibility of relying on the past and with anxiety about the future. In psychoanalytic work, it becomes possible to endure this experience, to meet impossible feelings, gradually experience them, find new meanings and new forms of support.
Relationship
Relationship difficulties often manifest as recurring conflict situations, painful dependency, jealousy or fear of intimacy, when the desire to be close coexists with an equally strong fear of losing oneself. These experiences are rooted in unconscious scenarios and ambivalent feelings that a person involuntarily reproduces by choosing partners and reacting to them in a certain way. In psychoanalytic work, we explore these repetitions and look for an opportunity to break out of the vicious circle so that relationships become more vibrant, stable and supportive.
Personal development
and finding yourself
The process of working in psychoanalytic technique is not only working with symptoms, traumas and crises, but also space for internal growth. A person gradually discovers and understands himself, his desires and limitations, gains the ability to withstand difficult feelings and rely on them as a source of strength. On this path, there is an opportunity to grow, find new meanings and build more mature and living relationships with oneself and others, gaining greater freedom and internal integrity.
How is the work going?
The first 3-5 meetings are just getting to know each other.
You tell me about yourself: about what brought you to me, what worries you and what is difficult to cope with. It is also important for me to hear your story - about your family, childhood, important events, because it is from this that an understanding begins to form as to why today's difficulties arise.
These meetings are necessary for both of us: for you, to feel how this work is structured and whether you are comfortable with me; for me, to see more clearly your request, the direction in which we can move forward, and the format of the work – for example, how often we will meet.
PEOPLE'S STORIES
In their own words
Psychoanalytic work not only helps to cope with symptoms, internal conflicts and traumatic events, but also gradually changes life. People note that relationships become warmer and closer, they gain more confidence in themselves and in their professional activities, and there is room for creativity and love. Along with finding internal support, a sense of their own value and integrity, life becomes wider, freer and more fulfilling.
In a large study, The Melbourne Study of Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy III (Grady et al., 2023), people who had completed long-term psychoanalytic work were asked to describe their experiences. The same themes recurred in their words.
Changes in self-perception
Recognition and collection of experience
Relationships with loved ones
Many said they had a better understanding of themselves, their reactions, and their inner world. One participant described it this way:
For many, it became important to feel that their suffering was acknowledged and had meaning.
This experience gave a feeling of greater integrity and stability. People said that they were now able to withstand difficulties and not fall apart from internal tension.
The study participants emphasized that their relationships had changed. They had become less dependent, but also more open and capable of intimacy.
Some said they were able to set healthy boundaries and express affection without fear of losing love.
"For the first time, I was able to meet myself and not run away from it. I began to distinguish what I really felt and stopped being afraid of my own emotions."
"I was able to piece together the disparate pieces of my life that hadn't fit together before. Everything that seemed meaningless suddenly took on form and meaning."
"I stopped being afraid of rejection. I found it easier to be around others and let them be around me."
The emergence of a sense of the future
Many noted that before psychoanalytic work, the future was perceived as a threat or as emptiness, and after – as a space of possibilities.
Some said that thanks to this work they chose a profession, built a family, or were able to escape destructive relationship scenarios.
"For the first time, I began to think about the future not with fear, but with interest. I had a feeling that there was something ahead, and it could be mine."
Deep transformation
Most participants described psychoanalytic work as a profound and transformative experience. It changed not only the level of symptoms but also the very sense of self and the world.
"This job hasn't just helped me cope, it's changed who I am. It's not about eliminating symptoms, it's about finally living."
How to contact me
