Ruslan Spartakov

My therapeutic style is best described as integrative and person-centered at its core. I don't believe in applying a fixed method to every person. Instead, I start by genuinely listening and trying to understand who you are, what you're carrying, and what kind of support will actually serve you. From that foundation, I draw on a range of evidence-based approaches, adapting fluidly to what each person and each moment calls for. Theoretically, I'm most at home in humanistic psychology. I believe that people have an inherent capacity for growth, self-understanding, and change, and that the therapeutic relationship itself is one of the most powerful vehicles for that. This means I place a lot of weight on the quality of our connection, on you feeling genuinely safe, respected, and understood before anything else. At the same time, I bring a strong neuroscientific perspective into my work. I find that many people benefit enormously from understanding what is actually happening in their nervous system when they feel anxious, shut down, overwhelmed, or stuck in patterns they can't seem to break. This helps reducing shame, building self-compassion, and giving you a map that makes your inner world feel less chaotic and more navigable. When you understand why your system responds the way it does, you stop fighting yourself and start working with yourself. From there, I integrate tools from cognitive-behavioral therapy, mindfulness-based approaches, and somatic or embodiment practices. The cognitive layer helps with patterns of thinking that keep you locked in unhelpful cycles. The mindfulness layer helps you develop a different relationship with your inner experience, one of observation rather than identification. And the somatic layer, which I consider particularly important and often underutilized in traditional talk therapy, brings the body into the room. Through my background in yoga and calisthenics, I have developed a genuine sensitivity to how the body holds stress, trauma, and emotion, and how movement, breath, and physical awareness can be powerful entry points for psychological change. Where it feels relevant and welcome, I actively incorporate this dimension into our work together. Practically speaking, sessions are collaborative. I'm not here to tell you what to do or to hand you a five-step plan. I'm here to think alongside you, to offer perspectives and tools when they're useful, and to challenge you gently when that serves your growth. Some sessions are more structured and focused on concrete strategies. Others are more exploratory and open-ended, following wherever the most alive and important material happens to be. I try to stay flexible and responsive, because what works in one phase of a process may not be what's needed in the next. I also believe strongly that change doesn't only happen inside the therapy hour. Part of what I enjoy doing is helping clients find ways to integrate what we explore in sessions into their actual daily lives, whether that's through small behavioral experiments, mindfulness practices, movement routines, or simply paying attention differently. The goal is never dependency on therapy, but growing capacity: more resilience, more self-understanding, more freedom to live in a way that feels genuinely yours. A first session with me typically involves getting to know your current situation, what brings you here, and what you're hoping for. There's no pressure to share everything at once. We move at your pace. Over time, the work tends to deepen naturally as trust builds, and I'm committed to being honest with you throughout, about what I'm noticing, what might be worth exploring, and also about the limits of what I can offer. I think that kind of transparency is part of what makes the therapeutic relationship genuinely useful.

Psychologist, Hephata Diakonie, Marburg (Sep 2025 – present) Individual psychological consultations and biweekly group sessions for apprentices in vocational rehabilitation, focusing on stress regulation, resilience, and psychosocial support. Online Psychologist, BetterHelp (Jul 2025 – present) Individual online counseling via chat, text, video, and phone with clients from diverse cultural backgrounds. Psychologist, date up healthcare GmbH, Remote (Jul 2024 – Sep 2025) Home-based psychological support for clients with Post-COVID, depression, anxiety, and neurological conditions. Clinical intake, diagnostics, individualized rehabilitation planning, and interdisciplinary case coordination. Research Assistant, Philipps-Universität Marburg (Nov 2023 – Jun 2024) Empirical research on anxiety processing and motor control. First author of an interdisciplinary journal article in collaboration with TU Darmstadt. Psychologist, Integral gGmbH, Marburg (Nov 2022 – Oct 2023) Short-term interventions and crisis support for clients with depression, addiction, PTSD, ADHD, and personality disorders. Group workshops on stress management, resilience, and self-regulation.

M.Sc. Psychology, Philipps-Universität Marburg (2020–2022) Specializations: Neuroscientific Psychology and Clinical Psychology B.Sc. Psychology, Philipps-Universität Marburg (2014–2020) Specializations: Work & Organizational Psychology and Clinical Psychology 200h Yoga Teacher Training (Vinyasa, Hatha, Ashtanga, Yin), Vinyasa Yogashala, Rishikesh, India (2024)