Find your therapist

Hello there dear reader, my name is Hal, short for Haldun Hüseyin Musazlioglu (just call me Hal, everyone does).

When people ask me how I got into psychotherapy, I usually say it got to me first:
I was 12 years old when I first had to see a therapist. People near me (ironically not my parents) noted already back then my permanent gloomy and melancholic outlook on life – even this in Germany where I was born, by all means not a country known for its ‘cheerio!’ attitude. Years later, I was diagnosed with dysthymic depression and finally had to be put on anti-depressants aged 30 after a preceding psychotic episode (my way of a mid-life crisis: not blowing a lot of money, but instead losing gradually touch with reality). It was also around this time when my aunt in Turkey shared that the entire matrilineal side of our family had prolonged battles with depression. Thanks, mum.

On top of this, our Muslim upbringing didn’t aid much to my family’s mental health. It also doesn’t do much for you if you realise you’re gay, and you eventually need to come out. As I had to. And did. My mum cried for three months, realised eventually her son will never be the imagined prim solicitor/doctor with wife and kids, so reverted instead to hate my tattoos.

By age 19, I had properly felt sick and tired of that kind of constrained upbringing, also of the Germans, so moved to London (though frankly, now I feel like that with the English, but this is for a different forum…)

After several more years bumbling through various underpaid customer service jobs,  I studied Art & Design/more or less useful degrees (Furniture Design. Yes, seriously.) and tried myself out among other things as a film extra and a Stand-up comedian (memorably, I died in a North-London pub in front of an audience that consisted of my ex-boyfriend and Russell Brand), I looked finally into how I could use my own experiences with depression, inter-cultural clashes, emerging kink-sexualities, an HIV+ status and a fanatical liking for Heavy Metal, so I eventually studied counselling.

By 2012 I started my counselling studies and after around 5 years, including one failed year of CBT (blowing finally a lot of money after all), I decided to stick with the humanistic school of therapy of Person-Centred counselling, developed by Carl Rogers. From the 1940ies on, already being a bit of a hippie and believing that everyone is innately ‘good’, he decided to emphasise the non-hierarchical alliance between client and therapist, while maintaining an “unconditional positive regard”.

And I soon found it worked for me – and for my other job, which is in mental health rehabilitation.

Then in August 2019, I also started my MSc degree in Psychology with Arden University. My plan after I finish in around three years’ time, is to fall into a very relaxing coma.

Until then, I genuinely find a lot of fulfilment through my work, so please don’t hesitate to ask me questions about whatever life has thrown at you.

Das alles übrigens gerne auch auf deutsch!  ; )

Please note that  all of my sessions are currently delivered by telephone or Skype.
I firmly believe that it’s never too late to learn how to be happier in your personal life and relationships, or enjoy success and fulfillment in your career.
I wasn’t born a Psychologist/Counsellor and I know what it means to live and work in the real world: I am a creative therapist with a background in Law & Finance and a professional experience gained both in the public and private sectors, at different hierarchical levels, working with people from all walks of life.
I have trained with Albert Ellis, the creator of Rational Emotive Behaviour Therapy (REBT) and one of the most eminent psychologists of all times; with Deanne Jade, one of the UK’s leading experts in eating disorders; and with Prof. Stephen Palmer, the father of coaching in the UK.
Since the summer of 1991, I am a man with a mission: to help people lead healthier and happier lives.

I can help you if you are experiencing any of the following: Stress, Eating Disorders, Obsessions, OCD, Phobias, Self-harm, Abuse, Anxiety, Bereavement, Depression, Loss, Post-traumatic stress, Trauma, Health related issues, Cultural issues, Identity issues, Men’s issues, Self esteem, Sexuality, Spirituality, Relationships, Anger management, Redundancy, Work related issues. I also provide Career coaching, Life coaching and Development coaching.

Hello! I am a psychologist registered with the British Psychological Society.I enjoy helping people in their desire to close the gap between where they are right now and where they want to be in the future.

I am passionate about counselling,I have experienced and witnessed the many benefits that talking to an experienced counsellor can bring.I have a foundation in different therapies but I work from a PERSON CENTERED approach.

I will help you to realise what resources and support are available to you that you can use to work through your own issues, build your self-confidence and appreciate that you always have options.I will treat you as the expert on yourself, as no-one else knows exactly what it’s like to be you.

I will not judge you, no matter what you bring to the session. This helps build a trustworthy relationship in which you can feel free and supported to disclose whatever is troubling you. Eventually it will lead you to discover your own abilities and autonomy, so that you can cope with current and future problems.