What is Cognitive Behavioral Therapy?
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is the most scientifically studied therapy method for the treatment of mental disorders and problems. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy assumes that symptom formation is the result of an individual learning history and is maintained, among other things, by pathogenic conditions. In therapy, we try to work out the predisposing, triggering and maintaining factors and use interventions that target your thoughts and behavior in order to meet your therapy goals, so that ultimately you can feel better.
What is Online Therapy?
Online therapy is identical to on-site treatment, only the communication takes place via video. Studies show that cognitive behavioral therapy conducted online works just as well as regular therapy, especially for depression, anxiety, trauma and obsessive-compulsive disorders. On top of that it offers a lot of advantages including greater choice of practitioners since you are no longer tied to the practitioners of your region, saved travel time and easier scheduling. A lot of clients, for example those suffering from social anxiety, often find it easier to converse online. Other clients may find it difficult to leave the house but will be happy to speak to a psychologist on the internet.
At NW International Psychotherapy we use a video calling platform that is designed to ensure client privacy. It is ISO27001 and NEN7510 certified and compliant with AVG and PCI norms. You will receive a unique video calling link via email, which you can open in your browser (Google Chrome is recommended). All you have to do then is just wait for your therapist.
What is Intercultural Therapy?
Numerous scientific studies have shown that psychotherapy is twice as effective when administered in one’s native language. Culture-specific therapy, so treatment that considers the cultural background of the patient, is even four times as effective. This is why NW International Psychotherapy currently offers treatments in Polish, English and German. With no need for a translator and no cultural barrier between you and your psychologist, you can feel right at home.
What is EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing)?
Just as the body is able to heal from physical trauma, the mind can heal from psychological trauma. EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) is a fairly new therapy method that is used to activate the brain’s natural healing processes by first accessing and then processing traumatic memories in a specified, sequential way, so that they no longer cause emotional distress. EMDR is mainly known for the treatment of trauma, or Post-Traumatic-Stress-Disorder (PTSD) but can also be used to help with anxiety and depression.
Treatments
We treat clients with the following problems:
- Anxiety such as panic disorder (fear of panic attacks), social phobia (fear of others’ negative judgment), specific phobia (e.g. flying, escalators, heights), agoraphobia (fear of certain situations or fear of fear itself), generalized anxiety disorder (excessive worrying)
- Depression, burn-out (persistent feelings of sadness or emptiness, loss of interest, lack of drive)
- Compulsions (feeling of having to constantly check things/repeat things/wash yourself)
- Eating disorders (bulimia, anorexia – BMI above 15, binge eating)
- Support after critical life events
- Relationship and personality problems (behavioral patterns that create stress and lead to difficulties in relationships)
- Trauma disorders such as Post-Traumatic-Stress Disorder (PTSD)
- Psychosomatic complaints (somatic complaints with no known somatic cause such as irritable bowel syndrome)
It is our job to diagnose the possible presence of a mental disorder with the help of a detailed clinical intake. This happens during the clinical intake process.
If you are unsure whether psychotherapy is right for you, please feel free to contact us. We are happy to think along with you and answer any questions you may have.
We use the following evidence-based therapy methods:
- CBT (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy)
- EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing)
We currently offer treatments in the following languages:
- Polish
- German
- English
Contraindication
Since NW International Psychotherapy is an online practice, there are some disorders that we don’t treat. We do NOT treat patients with:
- Psychotic states
- Serious automutilation
- Dissociation
- Intellectual disability
- Suicidality
- Strong Personality Disorder
- Severe underweight
- Addiction
- Strong psychosocial problems
- Patients who are in a legal dispute, in which the psychological symptoms play a role
- Aggression problems
Online treatment does not provide the necessary framework for therapy in these cases.
Costs and Insurance Coverage
NW International Psychotherapy offers treatments in the Specialististische GGZ (SGGZ) and in the Generalistische Basis GGZ (GBGGZ). We currently have no contracts with health insurance companies. This has the advantage for you that the treatment can be based entirely on your needs instead of on the requirements of the insurer. You can find more benefits of treatment with a contractvrije psycholoog here. In order for the health insurance to cover the cost of your treatment, you first need a referral (verwijsbrief) from your family doctor. You will receive a monthly invoice from us that you can submit to your insurance company, which will then reimburse you for the costs of the treatment. Between 65 – 100% of the treatment costs are reimbursed by the insurance company. You can find more information under CVP Vergoedingen 2022. The exact percentage depends on your insurance package. A natura polis covers less costs than a zuivere restitutie polis. It makes sense to find out in advance about the cost coverage from your insurance company by contacting your insurer or looking it up in your insurance policy and to possibly change insurance to a zuivere restitutie polis at the turn of the year in order to get a 100% coverage of the treatment costs.
We handle the most yearly statutory maximum tariffs of the NZa. You can find more information on the website of the Nederlandse Zorgautoriteit: www.nza.nl and look up the tariffs for overige beroepen (basispsychologen), GZ-psychologen and psychotherapeuten in kwaliteitsstatuut sectie II in here.
You lose your eigen risico per calendar year, unless you have already paid for this in full for other health services (in the given calendar year).
You remain responsible for the choice of health insurer, the insurance package, the extent of reimbursement and the payment of the treatment costs.
No-show
If you have to cancel your appointment, we ask that you cancel in good time, i.e. at least 24 hours in advance. It is best to do this directly with your practitioner. You can also contact NW International Psychotherapy by phone (voicemail) or email to cancel your appointment. Don’t forget to state your name, the date and time of your appointment and the name of your psychologist.
If you do not cancel your appointment at least 24 hours in advance, we will charge you part of the appointment costs in the form of a no-show fee. The no-show fee is €70 and can never be reimbursed by the insurer.
Therapy Process
Step 1: Registration
Before a treatment can begin, we need a referral letter (verwijsbrief) from your family doctor. Your family doctor can send us the referral via zorgdomein or fill out the referral form on our website and send it to us via secured e-mail. If you live outside the Netherlands, are not insured in the Netherlands and/or would prefer to finance the treatment privately, you can get in touch with us directly.
After receiving the referral letter, we will send you the treatment agreement, which you are asked to read, sign and send back to us. Once, you have done that, we schedule our first appointment!
Step 2: Intake
Our first appointment is the intake interview. The aim here is to get to know each other, understand your symptoms and identify your goals for therapy. We will also ask you questions about your biography, as this information can be important to better understand your current complaints and thus to be able to treat them better. Formalities such as the costs of the therapy are also discussed and of course you have the opportunity to ask questions yourself. A therapy session lasts approximately 45 minutes. At least two sessions have to be planned for the intake interview. After that we schedule a diagnostic session, where we conduct a psychological test in form of a structured interview. This helps us understand the problems you are dealing with better and also serves as a tool to evaluate your treatment progress. The conclusion of the intake phase is formed by the evaluation session, where we discuss the result of the intake phase and make you a treatment offer. If we determine during the intake phase that treatment at NW International Psychotherapy would not be right for you, we will try to show you an alternative. You will be billed for the intake costs, regardless of whether treatment at NW International Psychotherapy is started or not.
Step 3: Treatment
At NW International Psychotherapy we make use of cognitive behavioral therapy and EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing). The treatments we carry out follow general guidelines and are all evidence-based. A treatment session usually lasts 45 minutes. The treatment frequency is jointly determined during the evaluation session.. It is difficult to estimate the duration of treatment because – just like with pharmacological treatment – we cannot predict how well you will respond to treatment. We conduct periodic treatment evaluations and adjust your treatment where necessary. In the best case, treatment is completed as soon as all of your therapy goals have been achieved. However, it can also happen that the treatment falters and therapy goals are not achieved. In this case, you and the practitioner will look for possible causes and take the necessary interventions.
Practical Information
Waiting times: There is currently no waiting time (both intake and treatment). The information on waiting times is considered to be an estimate. No rights can be derived from this.
Online therapy: In order to be able to take advantage of online therapy, you need a few things, including a stable internet connection, a laptop or a mobile phone with a camera and microphone function, an e-mail address under which you will receive the video link and a protected and private space where you can talk undisturbed.
Quality control: The professional title psychotherapist is protected and included in the BIG (Beroepen Individuele Gezondheidszorg). The purpose of the BIG law is to promote and monitor quality in the healthcare system. In addition, this law protects the patient from incompetent and careless actions of a healthcare provider. See https://www.bigregister.nl/. The quality requirements are met by my professional association (National Association of Freelance Psychologists and Psychotherapists, LVVP). This means that I take part in intervision, visitation and further training and that I adhere to the professional regulations of the LVVP.
Quality charter: Since January 1st, 2017, every healthcare provider has had a binding quality charter. It specifies the qualifications of the service provider and his working methods. Most of this information is already listed on this website. A full version can be found here.
Complaints Procedure
If you have any complaints, try to discuss them with your therapist first. This is difficult for some clients, which is why we also offer you the opportunity to send an email to our complaint manager with your suggestion, question or complaint at the address: complaints@nwpsychotherapy.com. In most cases a solution can be found. If this is not possible, you can address your complaint to the LVVP Complaints Committee, Maliebaan 87, 3581 CG Utrecht. As a member of the LVVP for complaints and disputes within the framework of the WKKGZ (Quality, Complaints and Dispute Settlement Act), a complaints officer is also available as a mediator if required. If this is not sufficient, the complaint can be submitted to an independent arbitration board, whereby the decision of this board is binding. More information can be found here.
Data protection
Your privacy is important to us. Here you can read how we try to ensure this.
Crisis
Existing clients can contact their general practitioner in the event of a crisis. Outside office hours, the huisartsenpost in your region is responsible for you.