satu marjatta massaly

Heilpraktikerin Psychotherapie and Couple Therapist

born 1959 in Lahti, Finland

As a Finnish native, I grew up in Germany and became at home in both cultures. Above all, bilingualism has enriched my life, but also the cultural differences have shaped my personality. In 24 years of marriage and partnership – with a muslim man from Senegal – I got to know and appreciate the complexity of communication. My concern is to support couples and families in finding “their common language”, developing their potential and enriching each other. I feel particularly connected to Family Therapy according to Virginia Satir. 

Since 2011 to today: Practice for intercultural couple counseling & single therapy in Cologne-Sülz

2022: Publications in German Media
Artikel auf Gentside.de „Eine Liebe, zwei Kulturen: Wenn die Beziehung zu kippen droht
https://www.gentside.de/leben/liebe/eine-liebe-zwei-kulturen-wenn-die-beziehung-zu-kippen-droht_art25183.html

2021: Publications in GermanMedia
WDR – TALKforYou, Sendung „Binationale Beziehungen“ am 19. November, YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5BT5NDC_V3M
facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WDRforyou/videos/591238738760373
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/p/CWa6PlVMYZZ/

2019: Publications in GermanMedia
 "Tatsächlich Liebe - Kein romantischer Weihnachtsklassiker" DLFnova: broadcast from 23.12.2019
https://srv.deutschlandradio.de/dlf-audiothek-audio-teilen.3265.de.html?mdm:audio_id=795971
„Liebe zwischen zwei Kulturen – Freude und Frust binationaler Paare“
Deutschlandfunk Kultur: Broadcast from 31.08.2019
https://www.deutschlandfunkkultur.de/liebe-zwischen-zwei-kulturen-freude-und-frust-binationaler.970.de.html?dram:article_id=457645
„Dating in Deutschland“ WDRforyou: Sendung vom 08.03.2019
https://www1.wdr.de/nachrichten/wdrforyou/deutsch/wdrforyou-dating-in-deutschland-de-100.html  

2018: Publications in German Media
Article at Jetzt.de „Der will nicht dich, der will nur deinen deutschen Pass“
https://www.jetzt.de/liebe-und-beziehung/binationale-paare-und-der-bezness-vorwurf

WDR TALKforyou, Talkshow „Binationale Paare – Geht das?“
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ARsTu99HQ1c

2013 – 2018: Head of intercultural couple, gender and biography workshops in Cologne

2016 – Juni 2020: Freelance work as a social and integration coach
at Fuwe GmbH, Cologne

2016: Head of intercultural couple, gender and biography workshops in Cologne Course management in Progressive Muscle Relaxation, Practice for physiotherapy Kirsten Seiler

2015: Freelance work as a social and integration coach at EuBiA GmbH Krefeld

2012 – 2014: Part-time work pedagogical assistant for people with mental illnesses at “Bonner Verein für gemeindenahe Psychiatrie”

2013: Course management in Progressive Muscle Relaxation, at the practice for physiotherapy Kirsten Seiler

2012: NLP Practitioner Certificate

Admission as a trainer for progressive muscle relaxation according to Jacobson (PMR)

2009: Admission as "Heilpraktikerin Psychotherapie" (alternative healing practitioner for psychotherapy), Wuppertal

2007 – 2009: Training in humanistic psychotherapy, Cologne

Developmental Psychology

Systemic Family therapy by Virginia Satir: 
She expresses her basic attitude in the "Five Freedoms": 1. To see and hear what is here 2. To say what one feels and thinks 3. To feel what one feels 4. To ask for what one wants 5. To take risks in one's own behalf

Client-Centered Therapy according to Carl Rogers: 
"With my clients and with myself, I have found that life is richest and most rewarding when it's a fluid process. To experience that is both fascinating and frightening. (...) Life is always in development." Excerpt from “A Therapist's View of Psychotherapy – On Becoming a Person”

Bioenergetic by Alexander Lowen: 
"To be alive through and through means to breathe deeply, to move freely and to feel complete." 
“Dependent love binds people together; real love encourages freedom and spontaneity, which are the very essence of lust. Extract from the book“ Bioenergetics” by Alexander Lowen

2006: Diploma in "Cultural Management", Verwaltungsakademie Köln (VWA)

1989: Diploma in Visual Communication, Fachhochschule Köln

Memberships

Seminars

Training

Linguistic Proficiency

Testimonials

 "A great intercultural couple workshop in Cologne. We are very happy to have taken part in this workshop and have partially rediscovered ourselves as a couple here and received new valuable ideas for dealing with our relationship. Pleasant workshop manager with a lot of experience and great warmth and empathy."

5/5
(may 2018) Italian woman, German husband (both approx. 40 y.)

"Intensive – exciting couple workshop. Surprised how much we could take with us for practical exercises / methods in a short time. Different methods, also from the body work, which I liked very much. New knowledge that brought me a new view of myself and my relationship – it opened my eyes."

5/5
(October 2018) German woman, Norwegian partner (both approx. 30 y.)

"As a binational couple, you are often faced with special challenges, but unfortunately there are few therapists who specialize in this field and have special skills in it. It was therefore a stroke of luck to find Ms. Massaly, who herself has intercultural experience, as well as provide good psychological counseling. Her advice has helped me to better understand my own bi-national relationship, to better perceive my “foreign” partner in his needs, but also to analyze my own role in the relationship. Through the conversations I was able to learn to better reflect on my own behavior and feel empowered to master problems better and to have a more balanced relationship.” N.N.

5/5
German woman, African partner (both approx. 30 years)

"A very valuable time in which I made progress that I never thought was possible and I often rediscovered myself. Every time I look forward to "my time" anew because I know that I am strengthened and enriched by some new impulses. For myself, it is particularly important to me that nothing is put on me from the outside. Everything that we work out already exists in me and is carefully and gently awakened or brought to light in various ways. I am fascinated by the well-founded approaches – especially the systemic in its simple clarity. More and more I manage to integrate what I have learned in the therapy into my everyday life and I experience many situations with other people in a completely different way. I'm glad I took this step, none of my previous doubts have been confirmed. In conversation therapy with Satu Massaly, I found exactly the companion that my soul had wanted for a long time."

5/5
German man (40 y.)

"The workshop was very good because we were able to meet each other on a completely different level as a couple and so we became aware of "new" things and we were able to gain new perspectives on ourselves."

5/5
German (43 years), Partner from Canada

"With her warm, supportive and ingenious nature, Satu helps people! She listens very carefully and also integrates very practical steps into couple and individual therapy."

5/5
Finnish married couple (both 50 years)

 "A practice-rich seminar that touches the heart and lets the partner appear in a new perspective. I take some impulses with me for everyday life. Thank you!"

5/5
(june 2019) German (34 years), Partner from Iran.

“Ms. Massaly offers various methods of counseling and coaching. Appointments are always kept reliably, appointments work perfectly and can be flexibly adjusted as required. The costs are communicated transparently and in my opinion are appropriate for the service provided."

5/5
German woman (35 y.)

"We are in the couple counseling for a few years now. Satu has become a fixed institution for us and our relationship. Even if there is no acute problem to discuss, a moderated discussion about our relationship is good for us, so that we always go home strengthened and satisfied. Satu is always well prepared for our "visit", very attentive, careful and sensitive in conversation. I got the impression that Satu has extensive methodological knowledge that can be used very flexibly and depending on the situation. "

5/5
German woman (42 years), Finnish partner (44 years)

Satu Marjatta Massaly

"Heilpraktikerin Psychotherapie" and Couple Therapist

Couple & Single Counseling
en_US