Nir Yehudai
Clinical Social Worker
Psychodynamic psychotherapy in English and Hebrew for expats, immigrants, international professionals, and Israelis living abroad. Available online and in person in Leiden.
I specialise in:
About me
As a licensed clinical social worker (LCSW) and psychodynamic therapist, I have undergone comprehensive training in the treatment of depression, anxiety, eating disorders, psychotic illnesses, addictions, and a broad range of emotional and interpersonal difficulties. Over the course of my career, I have worked in psychiatric hospitals, outpatient clinics, residential treatment facilities, and private practice.
As an Israeli therapist who spent eight years living and working in the United States and now lives in the Netherlands, I have developed a particular interest in working with expats, immigrants, international professionals, and others whose lives span more than one culture. I also work with Israelis living abroad who are looking for psychotherapy in their native language. I offer therapy in both English and Hebrew and work with clients both online and in person.
While every person's experience is unique, my own experience of building a life outside my country of origin has given me a particular appreciation for some of the emotional and practical complexities that may accompany living abroad: questions of identity and belonging, maintaining relationships across distance, building a life in a different culture, and carrying connections to more than one place at the same time.
Having lived and worked in diverse communities, I have enjoyed working with people from many different cultural, religious, and social backgrounds. I welcome adults who seek help not only with immediate emotional difficulties but also with understanding themselves more deeply and the patterns that shape their lives.
I speak:
Location:
Approach
There are many ways to think about psychotherapy. For me, it is essentially a learning expedition of the self, conducted through an unusual form of conversation within a singular kind of relationship. The purpose of therapy, as I understand it, is to alleviate emotional suffering by gaining knowledge about ourselves.
My work is primarily informed by traditional and contemporary psychoanalytic thought and by psychodynamic psychotherapy. Together, we explore recurring patterns, emotional conflicts, and relationship difficulties that may lie beneath current symptoms. My aim is not to fit people into a theory but to use theory in the service of understanding the individual.
At times, a more practical and solution-focused approach may also be appropriate. Depending on a person's needs and circumstances, concrete interventions and skills-based techniques can be helpful in addressing specific difficulties. I do not see these approaches as contradictory but as different ways of thinking about human problems that may become useful at different moments in the therapeutic process.
I am not here to tell you what to do or what to think. I do not know you better than you know yourself. Rather, I try to listen carefully and without judgment, so that together we can better understand the experiences, conflicts, and desires that shape your life.
The more we understand ourselves, the greater our freedom becomes to make different choices outside the consulting room. Many of the difficulties that bring people to therapy appear irrational or senseless at first, yet they often have a history and an internal logic of their own. By exploring that logic thoughtfully and openly, new possibilities for living can emerge.
If you would like to learn more about my background and my approach to psychotherapy, I invite you to visit my website.
I invite you to read more on my website: https://www.niryehudai.com/about-1/
Experience
2015-Present: therapist in private practice. 2019-2020: Clinical social worker at Yale New Haven Psychiatric Hospital, New Haven. 2016-2019: Clinician at “Integrated Wellness Group” out-patient clinic, New Haven. 2014-2015: Clinician at the Eating Disorders unit, “Ha’Notrim” Clinic, Ra’anana, Irael. 2013-2014: Clinician at the Anxiety and Depression unit, “Ha’notrim” clinic. 2013-2014: Residential counselor at “Emtsa Haderech” eating disorders rehabilitation home, Hod-Hasharon, Israel. 2012-2013: Clinician at “Shalvata” psychiatric hospital, Hod Hasharon, Israel.
Education
PhD. the School of Philosophy, Linguistics and Science Studies, Tel-Aviv University (2022). MSW, Master of Clinical Social Work, Yeshiva University, New York (2014). BA, Psychology, Tel-Aviv University (2012). BA, History and Political Science, Tel-Aviv University (2005). Professional Training: 2016-2018: Psychodynamic Psychotherapy training program at the Western New-England Psychoanalytic Institute, New Haven. 2016-2018: Psychoanalytic theory studies, scholar’s program at the Western New-England Psychoanalytic institute, New Haven. 2014-2015: Eating Disorders treatment and diagnosis post-MSW training, The Weisfeld School of Social Work, Bar-Ilan University. Ramat Gan, Israel.
Services
Individual Session
Individual Session
Couples Session
Insurances
