EAST EUROPEAN ASSOCIATION FOR EXISTENTIAL THERAPY

XIII International Conference

EXISTENTIAL DIMENSION IN COUNSELLING AND PSYCHOTHERAPY

Birštonas, September 11 – 16, 2026

PRELIMINARY PROGRAM

Working existentially with experiences of interpersonal trauma and dissociation

Marc Boaz is an existential psychotherapist, a visiting Professor of Mental Health and Psychotherapy at the University of Northampton (UK), a visiting Senior Research Fellow (Hon) at the University of Sussex (UK), and teaches Critical Psychopathology at the New School of Psychotherapy and Counselling (NSPC), UK. He is an author of works on interpersonal trauma, childhood adversity and neurodivergence.

The workshop will include a series of lectures, discussions, and experiential sessions supporting you to explore people’s experiences of interpersonal violence and trauma. We delve into contemporary existential theoretical understandings of trauma and sexual violence, before turning to consider the implications for practice. During the course of the two days, we will look at the more complex aspects of working with experiences of trauma and dissociation through an existential lens, including exploring our daimonics and the relational dynamics of humiliation. Finally, the workshop will conclude with an introduction to ontographic ways of working psychotherapeutically. Elements of the workshop will include non-verbal somatic and movement-based exercises drawing on the contemporary phenomenology of movement, and everyone will be invited to participate within their limits.

September 11 – 12

10:00 – 11:30 - seminar
11:30 – 12:00 - coffee break
12:00 – 13:30 - seminar
13:30 – 15:00 - lunch break
15:00 – 16:30 - seminar
16:30 – 17:00 - coffee break
17:00 - 18:30 - seminar

 September 13

10:00 – 11:30 - seminar
11:30 – 12:00 - coffee break
12:00 – 13:30 - seminar

September 14 – 16, 2026 Conference

Main speakers:

Marc Boaz: Existential (de)anchorage - What Traumatic Confrontations Tell about the Nature of Our Existence
Marc Boaz is an existential psychotherapist, a visiting Professor of Mental Health and Psychotherapy at the University of Northampton (UK), a visiting Senior Research Fellow (Hon) at the University of Sussex (UK), and teaches Critical Psychopathology at the New School of Psychotherapy and Counselling (NSPC), UK. He is an author of works on interpersonal trauma, childhood adversity and neurodivergence.

Matthew Henson: Existential Relationship Therapy
Matthew Henson - a UK based existential psychotherapist with 20 plus years experience of working with individuals and couples. I am Chair-Elect of the Society for Existential Analysis, due to take over the role of Chair in the summer.

Dida Mitchel: Some Serious Thoughts about Humour in Life and in Therapy
Dida has worked as a therapist and supervisor since 1994 and as a mediator since 2006. She was a visiting lecturer and supervisor at Regent’s University from 1995 – 2013. Dida is currently a visiting lecturer at the New School of Psychotherapy and
Counselling, London and Roehampton University, Surrey. She has facilitated yearly workshops in Bristonas since 2021 on Existential Supervision.

Ran Lahav: Philosophical Insights and What They Do to Us
Ran Lahav is a philosophical counselor and director of the Deep Philosophy School for philosophical counseling and practice. He received his PhD in philosophy and Master’s in psychology from the University of Michigan, then taught at several universities, and now teaches at Vermont State University. He has been active for three decades in the international movement of philosophical practice, has published many articles and books about the field, and has given numerous workshops around the world.

Natalia Artemenko: The Phenomenology of the “Post-Risk Society”: Configurations of Temporal Experience
Natalia Artemenko – Doctor of Philosophy (PhD); Visiting Professor at the Technical University of Dortmund (Germany); Visiting Professor at HEPI; phenomenologist and translator of works in phenomenology and hermeneutics from German and English.

Zoltán Kőváry – Creativity and Fate - Leopold Szondi's Fate Analysis: a lost Central European school of Existential Psychology
Zoltán Kőváry - PhD, clinical psychologist, assistant professor at Eötvös Loránd University Institute of Psychology, Budapest. Logotherapy and existential analyitic consultant and daseinanalytic consultant, litterateur and linguist and philosophy phd-student as well. An author of cca 100 publications and several books, my main work is “Introduction to Existential Psychology vol 1-2” published by Routledge/Taylor & Francis, 2024 december

Workshops

Dida Mitchel: Some Serious Thoughts about Humour in Life and in Therapy

Matthew Henson: Existential Relationship Therapy

Ran Lahav: Counseling and the Power of Philosophical Insights

Natalia Artemenko, Tatjana Dragan: Between Philosophy and Psychology –
Supervision at the Intersection of Disciplines

Julija Abakumova-Kočiūnienė, Tomas Sodeika: Group Therapy for Couples

Registration fee

One day of the conference (September 14-16) – € 90.

Working languages at the conference are Russian and English. Presentations and seminars are also translated to English or Russian, as necessary.

The registration fee can be paid:

• By cash.
• Wire transfer

account Nr. LT177044060001530840, SEB, SWIFT: CBVILT2X

APPLICATION

General Information

• The seminar and conference will take place at the Birštonas Kurhaus (B. Sruogos St. 2)
• For all questions regarding the seminar or conference, please contact: info@existentialtherapy.eu