Living abroad
Online Therapy for Expats, Immigrants & International Clients
Psychotherapy in English and Arabic for people living outside the country they came from, wherever the move has left them.
Psy. Moustafa Kamel, Psychotherapist. Online sessions of 50 minutes in English and Arabic.
The part of moving abroad that nobody prepares you for
The practical side of relocation is hard but finite: paperwork, housing, a bank account, a language course. The psychological side arrives later and has no clear end date. It tends to show up once the novelty has worn off and the ordinary week has settled in.
People describe it in similar ways. Competent at work and unsure of themselves everywhere else. Surrounded by friendly colleagues and still profoundly alone. Grateful for the opportunity and quietly grieving something they cannot name without sounding ungrateful. None of that means the decision to leave was wrong. It means a real loss happened alongside a real gain, and only one of them gets acknowledged.
What people usually come to talk about
- Loneliness that persists even when the days are full
- Anxiety that started or worsened after the move
- Low mood, flatness and the sense of running on reserve
- Homesickness, and guilt towards the people left behind
- Cultural adjustment and the exhaustion of operating in a second language
- Identity: feeling foreign here and no longer entirely at home there
- Work stress, insecure status and pressure to justify the move
- Relationship strain, long distance, and couples who relocated together
- Family expectations that follow across borders
- Big transitions: a new job, a birth, a separation, a death you could not travel for
Who I work with
Alongside private practice I have significant experience working with migrants and refugees, including people whose move was not chosen. That work shapes how I listen: displacement is not only a logistical event, and the difference between choosing to leave and having to leave matters clinically.
The people who tend to find this work useful
- Expats and international professionals on assignment or long-term contracts
- Immigrants building a permanent life in a new country
- International students and researchers
- Multicultural individuals who grew up between languages and countries
- Couples and families who relocated together
- People adjusting to a major change in circumstances, status or role
Why cross-cultural experience changes the session
A therapist unfamiliar with migration can mistake ordinary adjustment for pathology, or the reverse. Withdrawal can be read as depression when it is exhaustion from a second language. Family obligation can be read as enmeshment when it is a normal and valued structure. Silence about a subject can be read as avoidance when it is a cultural convention about what is discussed with strangers.
I have practised in Romania, the United Kingdom, Norway and Egypt with clients from widely differing backgrounds. My interest is in what your particular context means to you, checked with you rather than assumed.
Online therapy in English and Arabic
Sessions are held in English or Arabic, and bilingual clients often move between the two. Working in a language you feel yourself in is not a comfort feature. It changes what becomes sayable.
The other advantage of online work for people living abroad is continuity. Contracts end, cities change, people go home for a month. The therapy does not have to restart each time.
How sessions run, and where I can work
We meet by secure video, usually weekly at first, at a time set in your local hours. You need a private room and a stable connection. I begin with a proper psychological assessment and then propose an individualised plan, reviewed with you as the work goes on.
I work with clients across Europe, the United Kingdom, North America and further afield. Sessions are held online. Whether I can work with you depends on where you are living at the time of the sessions and on the professional and legal requirements that apply there, so it is worth telling me your location when you first write.
Starting, and what to do if things are urgent
Send a short message describing what is going on and where you are living. I will tell you plainly whether I think I can help. When you are ready, you can book a session directly through the scheduling page for your region.
Therapy is planned work, not emergency care. If you are in immediate danger, or you are thinking about ending your life and feel unable to keep yourself safe, contact your local emergency number or your nearest emergency department. Ongoing therapy can begin once you are safe.
Tell me where you are and what is happening
A short message is enough to begin with. I answer personally, usually within a working day.