âIn our sessions, people find a safe space â regardless of their life circumstances, identity, background or sexual orientation.â
A warm welcome!
If youâve visited the Traumahilfe-Bremen website, youâre probably looking for outpatient therapy. Perhaps youâve been encouraged to seek help, or perhaps youâve simply reached a point where you feel you canât carry on like this. In any case, taking the step to look for a therapist always requires a bit of courage to embrace the unknown. [By the way, if youâve landed here simply out of interest, by chance, or because youâve heard of Traumahilfe-Bremen â likewise: itâs great to have you here, please do have a look!] You may have had previous experience with therapy; our patients often tell us about people, about therapists, with whom they have worked wonderfully. Therapy was often cut short because of life changes, moves or similar events, or because therapists retired. Sometimes, even after years of therapy, a point was reached where it simply became a matter of habit. In many cases, there were also difficulties with the health insurance provider. The reasons for ending therapy are varied. Rarely, however, do we hear from people here who have successfully completed years of therapy. The simplest reason: why would these people come to us if there is no need at all? Letâs leave it at that with one final remark: here in the practice, we meet many people with prior therapy experience, and only about a third of our patients have never had any experience with psychotherapy before.
To be seen and heard!
So many things that cannot be taught in a degree course, but which can be learned through many years of practice and experience with individuals, couples, and small and large groups. When you are with us, we know you are here because there is something that matters to you, and that is precisely why we take you seriously â regardless of whether other people, from their perspective, view your concern as big or small, important or unimportant, as a drama or a trifle; for you personally, it has meaning, and it is precisely this meaning that we see. We stand by your side, form a team with you â we call this a therapeutic relationship â and in this way address the reason for your visit. When you are here, your concern is our sole focus; you receive our serious and sincere, undisturbed and full attention. After 50 minutes, you wonât hear the phrase âThe hourâs upâ; we know itâs unprofessional, but here, 50 minutes per session usually turn into 60 minutes, often 70 minutes. We donât charge for the extra time, but we sometimes need it because itâs important â for you, for us, and for the success of the therapy.
Overview of the standard procedure
If your health insurance covers psychotherapy and you have found a suitable practice with a therapist with whom a good therapeutic relationship has been established, everything is fine and we are delighted for you! The process begins with a psychotherapeutic consultation (1 x 50 minutes, max. 3 x 50 minutes). A decision must then be made: either for acute treatment (12 x 50 minutes or 24 x 25 minutes â subject to notification) or for short-term or long-term therapy. Whilst acute therapy is merely notified to the health insurance provider, short-term therapy must be notified to the health insurance provider and approved by them before it begins. (Acute therapy sessions reduce the hourly quota for a requested short-term therapy). For long-term therapy, where the maximum number of hours depends on the selected guideline procedure (form of therapy), an application must be submitted to the health insurance provider and an anonymised expert opinion must also be commissioned. Both short-term and long-term therapy must be preceded by a so-called trial period of 2 to 4 sessions of 50 minutes each (these do not need to be applied for or approved; they can simply be billed). Important note: For short-term therapy, an extension of a further 12 sessions can be applied for.
Individual therapy at Traumahilfe Bremen
âŚand this is how it works at Traumahilfe Bremen: You will be given an appointment for an initial consultation very soon (free of charge). This is followed by the trial phase (medical history, diagnosis, psychoeducation, discussion of therapy, therapy planning) of up to 5 x 50 minutes (free of charge). We then discuss together whether you would like to begin therapy at Traumahilfe Bremen and whether the treating therapist also believes successful therapeutic work with you is possible. Up to this point, all services have been and remain non-binding and free of charge â just as they would be for you if billed through your health insurance. Only then do we discuss the costs of treatment in a private practice: for those on an average income, the charge is âŹ46 per 50 minutes. Recipients of basic income support / citizenâs income are subsidised from our in-house fund at âŹ17 per 50 minutes and pay a co-payment of âŹ29 per 50 minutes.
Victims of crime
Rest assured, we will handle the matter with great sensitivity and at your own pace, and, in consultation with you, use the gentlest possible therapeutic methods. You will find understanding and empathy here! But here too, of course, we must discuss administration and costs: For victims of crime, we offer support with applications under SGB XIV (victim compensation); whilst the application is being processed, our own fund covers the costs upfront, so that therapy can begin without any financial risk to the patient and without delay. If the application for victim compensation is rejected, the Traumahilfe-Bremen fund covers the full costs. Incidentally, in special cases, this also applies if, despite meeting the requirements for SGB XIV, an application for victim compensation is not an option for you. We would be happy to explain the details of this during the initial consultation.
Tip
Please do take a look at our âIn a nutshellâ page â we have a wealth of experience here in individual, couples and group therapy, as well as various forms of treatment. Sometimes the conditions are slightly different, such as with couplesâ therapy, which is charged at âŹ46 from the very first session, or group therapy, which only takes place once a certain number of participants has been reached, with the cost of the group session being shared among them. If you have any further questions, please feel free to give us a call, send us a message or get in touch via this website. Weâll get back to you as soon as possible.