Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) - Vitalis Coaching & Therapy

My approach is founded in both solid Western psychology and the wisdom of ancient Eastern traditions (especially Buddhist philosophy). The spiritual context gives our sessions a grounded calm, a deep and honest warmth and a profoundly inspiring energy. My clients describe me as calm, caring, safe, genuine, insightful and wise.

There are also my professional credentials that give you further reassurance. I have been working as a full time Life & Career Coach and Psychotherapist in the City of London and worldwide via video call since 2008 with a whole diversity of clients.

As a multi-disciplined practitioner I work as a qualified Psychotherapist and experienced Coach. These two modalities help you make sense of past experiences and heal what is no longer serving you, while working practically and purposefully in the present so your life begins to shift for the better, not someday, but straight away.

I’ve got a corporate background in Sales & Marketing at Heineken in The Netherlands and lived as an expat in France, Nepal, India, Argentina and the United Kingdom.

Working with me is pure, honest, compassionate, transformative, authentic and one of the biggest gifts you’ll give yourself. By you making space for yourself to reflect and reconnect with what matters most, there will be a wonderful ripple effect to those you love.

 Enjoy reading heartfelt reviews of previous clients.

My Coaching and Psychotherapy related qualifications are:

• Five years of in-depth training resulting in being a qualified Counsellor & Psychotherapist at the Centre for Counselling and Psychotherapy Education (CCPE);

• Degree in Transpersonal Psychotherapy which falls under a Humanistic Integrative approach. It includes modalities like Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT), Jungian, Gestalt, Transactional Analysis and psycho-somatic methods (body, breath-work and nervous system regulation);

• Registered Member of the British Association for Counsellors and Psychotherapists (BACP), practising in line with their ethical framework;

• Diploma in Professional Life Coaching from Achievement Specialists, accredited by the International Authority for Professional Coaching & Mentoring (IAPC&M);

• Certified in EMDR for trauma treatment;

• Courses in Psychological Dream Interpretation;

• Studied and practiced Buddhist philosophy, mindfulness meditation and compassion while living in India and Nepal.

I am sure you are aware that there are practitioners who ‘bought’ a qualification online with one weekend of training and zero practice hours. There are many ’helping professionals’ out there, and even though in most cases their hearts are in the right place, they have insufficient training to truly help you make sense of what is going on for you. And they haven’t done the work on themselves, which is in all honesty, potentially harmful. You deserve a trained, qualified, experienced professional to guide you to make the desired changes in your life, and to help you heal and transform from deep within.

Visit my LinkedIN profile.

Get to know me better.

My experience in working with clients as a Coach and Psychotherapist began in 2008.

• Full time private practice experience as a Life & Career Coach, Counsellor & Psychotherapist since 2008;

• Clinical experience within the Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust alongside a Psychiatric Consultant, supporting clients with complex mental health presentations and psychiatric diagnoses;

• Worked at HM Prison Wormwood Scrubs (the biggest male prison in London), offering emotional and spiritual support to inmates and their families;

• Buddhist practitioner, mindfulness, meditation and compassion since 2006. I lived in India and Nepal for 3.5 years while studying with the great meditation masters;

• Featured broadly in the media and press, for example in Psychologies Magazine, The Guardian, Reuters, Breathe Magazine, Cosmopolitan;

• Short-listed for a TEDx talk.

In a nutshell, I am highly trained, experienced and have studied Coaching, Psychotherapy and Spirituality (especially Buddhism) in depth, practised it for decades, and care deeply about the quality of my work and about your well-being. Your dreams become mine, and I treat them as such.

Visit my LinkedIN profile.

Get to know me better.

Crucially, I have done, and continue to do, my own inner healing work. I believe I can only accompany you as far as I have been willing to travel within myself: as deeply as I have allowed myself to feel, and as honestly as I have faced my own pain, trauma and shadow. That inner work has cultivated resilience, courage, grounded calm and a deep trust in myself, alongside a heart full of warmth and compassion.

I was in weekly therapy for five years during my psychotherapy training and still return for regular ‘top-ups’ when needed. I have completed two rounds of EMDR (a gentle and effective method to treat to trauma), and I am in ongoing professional supervision to ensure my work remains ethical, reflective and of the highest standard. Your safety and the integrity of my work matter deeply to me.

Get to know me better.

Life Coaching is different from Psychotherapy, but the unique thing of working with me is that I offer you the benefits of both modalities in the same sessions.

·        Life Coaching focuses on your present and future. It is practical, structured and forward-moving. You clarify your goals, strengthen your confidence, and take purposeful steps so your life begins to move in a direction that is right for you. Coaching is ideal if you feel stuck or indecisive and want momentum, accountability and clear direction.

·        Psychotherapy explores the deeper layers of your story. It helps you understand and heal past experiences, relational patterns or emotional wounds that may still be shaping your thoughts, choices and behaviours. Therapy offers space, depth and careful reflection, allowing lasting change from the inside out.

Because I am a multi-disciplined practitioner and work both as a qualified Psychotherapist and an experienced Life & Career Coach, you do not have to choose rigidly between the two. You can work practically towards your goals while also tending to what needs healing beneath the surface. You may focus purely on coaching, enter a longer-term therapeutic process, or combine both. You can adjust the depth of our work as your needs evolve. The benefit of receiving both at the same time is that you’ll get insight and action, healing and forward movement, all in one coherent journey.

Discover more about coaching vs therapy.

On an ethical note: If you hire me to be your Coach only (for example for short term work), I will not be giving you therapeutic guidance. This would not be in accordance with the code of ethics of my profession. If we both agree to incorporate the coaching and the therapy, I will make my entire skillset available for you. Whichever path we follow, it only happens with your explicit permission.

When we work together, you gain more than insights, you gain forward momentum and movement in a direction that is right for you. If you currently are feeling stuck, uncertain or at a crossroads, working together helps you untangle what is going on, understand what truly matters to you, and make clear, confident decisions about your next step in life.

You can expect greater clarity, emotional steadiness and a renewed sense of purpose. Clients notice stronger self-trust, healthier boundaries, more fulfilling relationships and a deeper connection to who they really are.

Our work creates lasting shifts in how you think, respond and choose. Instead of circling the same thought and behaviour patterns, you begin to act from a grounded, authentic place. Together we’ll build a life for you that feels aligned, meaningful and true to yourself.

Talking to a professional Life Coach or Psychotherapist provides something different compared to talking to a friend. A professional practitioner has spent years, decades even, exploring their own personal development while studying human behaviour, psychology, and personal growth. My own psychotherapy degree took five years of study, I saw a therapist weekly for six years in a row and still pop back in regularly, and have a daily spiritual practice to stay grounded, calm and balanced. I offer an objective perspective on your life that isn’t personally invested in your decisions and isn’t emotionally involved in the outcome.

It’s completely natural to turn to friends and family when you’re facing worries or challenges. Sharing what’s on your mind and showing vulnerability strengthen those relationships and offer comfort and support. Yet my clients tell me they at times feel emotionally manipulated or guilt-tripped by family members, or feel that they are burdening their friends by yet again talking about the same struggles. It’s a relief to be able to speak freely and explore all your possibilities with genuine curiosity and care.

Read more about how coaching isn’t the same as talking to a friend.

I will hold you accountable in a way that suits your personality and character. Some of my clients have a tendency to put too much pressure on themselves and need kindness and a lowering of the burden on their shoulders. Others clients have an issue with authority, want to be in control and dislike being told what to do, so they will benefit from understanding their resistance. Yet other clients have inner saboteurs disguised as low self-esteem, imposter syndrome or a fear of failure. There are also clients who benefit from learning not to complete tasks, because they are too much of a perfectionist, please others instead of practising healthy self-care, or find it hard to say no.

I look forward to getting to know you. My clients benefit from a bespoke approach that will help them understand how they are wired so they learn to motivate, encourage and care for themselves to reach their desired outcome in a compassionate, effective and sustainable way.

I’m really sorry to hear that. If coaching or therapy has not worked for you in the past, please know that this is not some kind of failure from your side. It might have been the wrong fit, the wrong approach or method, unclear goals, or simply not the right time. Healing, profound insights, transformation and positive, lasting change requires the right match between you and the practitioner, a method suited to your needs, and a full commitment to honest inner work.

When you are ready to try again speak openly about what did not work for you with the previous practitioner. Explore together what you truly want out of the sessions so you are clear and can recognise when your needs aren’t met. Be curious about different methods, styles, approaches and modalities. If talking alone doesn’t do the trick for you, search for someone who incorporates body-based (somatic) practises, creative imagination, nervous system regulation, breath-work or meditation into the sessions. I love all of those techniques and they are part of our work together.

Coaching and therapy is not a quick fix, it requires commitment to do the honest inner work, it can be uncomfortable at times, but with the right practitioner and method that suits your needs and it will be worth it.

For more information read The Ultimate Guide to find your way around different Life Coaching styles and approaches.

It’s common that starting coaching or psychotherapy brings a wave of self-doubt and vulnerability, despite knowing deep down that it is a wonderful gift towards yourself, for your personal growth and for the connection with those you love. Natural worries and fears that arise when embarking on a journey into tricky territory fall under the following categories:

• Doubts about your personal worthiness

  o Are my problems 'big or bad enough' as others have it so much worse?

  o What if I'm 'unhelp-able' or irreparably broken?

  o What if I do it wrong?

  o What if I don’t know what to say, or where to start?

• Fears of judgment and vulnerability

  o Will I be forced to talk about things I'm not ready to face?

  o What if things get worse before they get better?

  o What if opening Pandora’s Box makes me unable to cope?

  o What if the Coach / Therapist misunderstands me, or makes me feel bad about myself?

• Worries about the effectiveness of the process

  o What if this doesn't work for me?

  o What if I waste my time, money and emotional energy?

  o How do I know if I've found the 'right' person, someone who is actually good at what they do and can help me?

• Practical and commitment concerns

  o Why can't I solve this on my own?

  o What if I don’t have the time or energy to do it properly?

Recognise these thought patters? You’ll appreciate this blog I wrote about common fears about starting coaching and therapy.

If you are concerned about having it in you to make the positive changes you want to achieve during coaching and therapy then be aware that self-doubt can keep you stuck before you’ve even begun. You might wonder How to better myself as a person? What do I even want? Will the people around me support me? What if it is too hard? These worries are common, and are such natural questions. They don’t mean you’re incapable of change.

When you step into a bigger, greater version of yourself, it’s common for fear of failure and self-sabotage to arise. During the sessions you’ll get to know the part of you that is holding you back, and overcome its power over you. The sessions are compassionate and supportive to help you gain clarity, heal at your own pace, and move forward in a way that feels true to you. From my experience, I’ve seen that when the path becomes clear and what’s been holding you back begins to soften, meaningful change is not only possible, it’s absolutely within you.

It’s natural to feel preoccupied about what the coaching and therapy sessions might stir up, and it’s common to have this concern. It's partly a genuine fear as inconvenient stuff is inevitably going to come to the surface to be resolved and that’s not always totally comfortable. See it like a much needed spring clean; once you're free of the old unnecessary stuff, you'll feel so much lighter and there will be space for the new.

A question I hear a lot is “What if start digging in my inner world and things come up I am not ready for, or which will turn my life upside down?” Rest assured, you will not fall apart due to bringing up supressed issues. The things you fear have most likely already happened, and that is exactly what the sessions are going to help you heal.

Yes, feeling deeply and making changes can be unpleasant or inconvenient. Moving away from what we know is scary, even when it's not making us happy. If you are at peace with the way things are, then don't change. But if you wish that there is more out there for you, be courageous and take the plunge. One day you'll look back and you'll be grateful that you did.

You can trust that you will be held safely throughout the work together.

If you’re wondering if now is not the right time for you I can honestly say you may never really feel like it’s the perfect moment, as perhaps that right time doesn’t exist... Maybe you asking yourself this questions covers up a deeper concern, for example being afraid to change, not knowing what you want, or worrying it’ll be too hard.

One thing I do know is that there is part of us that is always longing for and working towards realising the best possible expression of ourselves. I know that we gain confidence by taking an active step towards creating a more positive future and I do know that when we avoid making our own inner work a priority, we can find ourselves frustrated, resentful and unfulfilled. I know that it’s far more likely that we regret the things we don’t do rather than the things we do and that agency and action create a positive spiral of confidence, momentum and change for the better.

And of course, when something truly matters to us we don't wait and see, we actively create time for it. When something is important, we always find a way.

The challenges when hiring a Life Coach or Psychotherapist arise when the practitioner lacks sufficient training, experience, or self-awareness. Some coaches unintentionally move into therapeutic territory without the qualifications to do so, overlook deeper emotional dynamics, or rely too heavily on giving advice rather than helping you develop your own clarity and confidence. A coaching relationship does not make you overly dependent on the coach’s guidance, but rather empowers you to trust your own insight, judgement and decision-making capacity.

Effective coaching, like good therapy, is emotional attuned and grounded in professionalism, ethics and clear boundaries. A healthy coaching relationship feels safe, respectful, inspiring and supportive of your pace and needs.

Read more about the risks and drawbacks of working with a Coach or Therapist.

When you wonder why you can't I solve this on your own it could be that you believe that needing help is a sign of weakness, failure, or that you should be stronger and independent. A strategy that might have served you well in the past, but is now working against you.

But please do try it on your own if you want to. Most of my clients tell me that they bookmarked my website ages ago, but wished they’d contacted me sooner. Try it by yourself, and then if you have another sleepless night spent worrying, you can contact me then. Or after the next party, where you avoided socialising as you hate the questions about your life, and everyone else seems to get on with their life, and you're judging yourself for not being ‘on track’. Or you can get in touch after your milestone birthday, when your life still isn't where you hoped it would be. Or you can contact me after your partner told you that they can't be with someone who feels so short fused, low, and disconnected anymore. Or you can reach out after you hear your children say to their friends that their mommy or daddy doesn't laugh out loud. Or, you can contact me today.

Life is precious, and so is yours. Make it count. Use it well. Working together helps you reconnect with what matters to you most.

The sessions take place weekly, especially at the beginning, except while on holiday. Less than weekly feels like heating a stew with a match, it’s hard to get the momentum for true transformation to take place.

How many sessions you need is a bit like replying to “How long is a piece of string?” The amount of sessions depend on the your desired destination, your current situation and the size of the gap between those two. Another factor to take into account is how strong the internal counter-force is. It’s common that when you want to move forward, there is another part of you that keeps holding you back. That part of you will need to be transformed as part of the work together.

As you’ll be working with a qualified Coach who is also a Psychotherapist, healing the underlying root of the challenges you are facing is a real possibility. This takes a little more time compared to working based on an exclusively coaching approach. Honouring, grieving and letting go of what is no longer serving you is not a quick fix.

Read more about the difference between coaching and therapy, and why at Vitalis Coaching & Therapy you can receive both at the same time.

The sessions with our Founder Karin Peeters take place remotely, via Zoom call from wherever you are in the world.

‍Vitalis Coaching & Therapy works together with a team of Coaches and Therapists, and their individual profile pages indicate if they work face-to-face, and if yes where (at different locations throughout London, or at other places in the UK). Every member of our team offers remote coaching and therapy via online video services. You can choose your sessions to take place online, face-to-face or even a combination of the two.

‍Please inquire, as some of the team members offer Walk & Talk sessions, which is a lovely option and brings some movement and time in nature too!‍

You will feel better relatively soon after starting to work together. Often reaching out in the first place already gives a huge boost, as you've finally taken the step to make positive changes in your life.

As unfortunately there isn’t a magic wand, there is no promise of fixing stuff overnight. You can trust that you won’t get short-cuts which make you feel pumped up in the moment, yet once back in the real world at a loss of how to go about changing things for the better. You also won’t receive sessions that only dwell on the past without tangible tools to improve your day to day situation. You’ll receive the real thing, and it will be an honour to walk with you for a while on this journey called life.

Besides the weekly one-to-one sessions (50 minutes each), you’ll receive optional online course material to help your self-reflection in-between sessions. The more space you give yourself to turn inwards, the more profound your insights will be. About two to three hours (including our session) a week will be plenty.

When you are ready to start working together you can purchase your sessions here.

I look forward to supporting you to move forward in life with clarity, confidence and ease.

Enjoy that instant feeling of relief as soon as you’ve decided to take the reins of your life back into your own hands.

Your sessions will start straight away. You receive immediate access to the first module of any supportive online course materials. Your first one-to-one session will take place at a moment that suits us both, usually within a week or two after your commitment to start working together, depending on availability.

That's a nice story, enjoy reading about our history.

During a spiritual sabbatical in India and Nepal an idea came to me while meditating at the same spot as where the Buddha got enlightened, inspiring me to give rise to Inner Pilgrim.

Visit Inner Pilgrim.