Psychological Support

for adults, couples and international families

We cannot control everything that happens to us. But we can learn to understand what influences our decisions, what limits them, what we genuinely want, and which possibilities are still available to us.

The support I offer

• More

Background & Approach

Sessions & Format

About Dominic Ban

I am a Hungarian-born psychopraticien based in Brest, France.My professional background includes medical education and therapeutic training, together with many years of study in psychology, human behaviour, relationships, decision-making, spirituality and the ways people create meaning in their lives.My approach has also been shaped by living in several countries and cultural environments, and by studying a wide range of psychological, philosophical, symbolic and contemplative traditions.I am particularly interested in the ways people make decisions, adapt to difficult circumstances, understand themselves and the people around them,
and regain a sense of direction when life becomes unclear or constrained.Having lived across different cultures, I am also especially interested in the experience of people whose lives cross languages, countries, belief systems or established social worlds.I work in English with adults, couples and international families.

Contact

For individual enquiries or professional collaboration, please feel free to get in touch by email or telephone.Appointments can be discussed individually, including format, timing and practical details.In-person meetings are available in Brest, and online sessions can also be arranged.Dominic Ban
PsychopraticienBrest, France
+33 7 62 68 37 54
[email protected]
www.dominicban.com

What I Offer

I offer psychological support for people facing difficult decisions, periods of uncertainty, personal or relationship difficulties, major life changes, illness,
loss of direction, or the feeling that something in their life is no longer working.I also work with people who are not in crisis, but want to understand themselves more deeply, make meaningful changes, or move towards a life that feels more genuinely their own.An important part of this work is identifying not only what is difficult,
but also what you want.Your motivations, ambitions, wishes and long-term hopes matter.
We look at what may be preventing you from moving towards them, which limits need to be respected, which can be changed, and what realistic choices are available to you.The aim is not simply to reduce difficulty. It is to help you regain enough clarity and agency to move forward.

Decisions, Agency and Direction

I tend to understand psychological work through the lens of decision-making.
This does not mean that everyone is free to choose anything they want.Our choices are shaped by personality, circumstances, relationships, health, fear, habit, emotional reactions and many other constraints.Sometimes our room for choice can become very small.The question I am interested in is:Within the situation you are actually in, where does choice still exist?We look at what is currently making decisions in your life — consciously or unconsciously — and what may be limiting your ability to choose deliberately.At the same time, we explore what you genuinely want.The aim is to expand the space between impulse, circumstance and action wherever possible, so that your decisions increasingly reflect your own values, needs and direction.

Working With Couples and Relationships

When I work with couples, I look not only at the two people involved, but also at the relationship that exists between them.A relationship develops its own patterns, rules, tensions and ways of reacting.
In that sense, it can be useful to think of it as a third element in the room. Something created by both people, but not identical to either of them.I try to understand the internal logic of each person as well as the dynamics of the relationship itself.Being understood does not necessarily mean being right. The aim is to create enough space for both people to feel heard while identifying the patterns, misunderstandings and reactions that are maintaining the conflict.From there, we work towards a more coherent shared understanding of what is happening and towards decisions that both people can realistically live with.

Sexuality, Identity and Intimate Questions

Sexuality, identity and intimate relationships can be difficult to discuss, particularly when they involve shame, uncertainty, conflict, unusual desires or questions that a person has never felt able to speak about openly.These are not subjects I find uncomfortable or embarrassing.My role is not to decide what someone should want or who they should be. I am interested in understanding what a particular experience means for that person, how it affects their life and relationships, and whether it is helping or preventing them from living in a way that is coherent with their values and responsibilities.Where sexuality or identity becomes part of the question we are working on, it can be discussed openly and without unnecessary judgement.My experience in this area also includes work in HIV/AIDS care, writing in the field of sexual education, and teaching sexuality in higher education. These experiences have contributed to my comfort with sensitive questions of sexuality, identity, illness, relationships and intimacy.

Life Transitions, Illness and Difficult Circumstances

I have worked with people facing serious illness, chronic health problems, major life changes, uncertainty, bereavement and situations in which medicine or circumstances could not simply remove the problem.In these situations, psychological support does not mean pretending that everything can be fixed.Sometimes the task is to understand what remains possible when important things cannot be changed.This may involve decisions about relationships, priorities, fear, identity, family, meaning or how someone wants to live within the circumstances they have.I am comfortable discussing difficult subjects, including illness, dying and mortality, when they are relevant to the work.Psychological support is not a substitute for medical or psychiatric treatment.

• Back

How I Work

My approach is structured, draws on multiple systems of understanding, and is strongly educational.We begin by looking closely at the situation that brought you to me.I try to understand how you think, how you make decisions, what influences you emotionally, what you tolerate well and what you do not, what patterns tend to repeat, and how the people around you affect the situation.We then place the immediate problem within the wider context of your life.This often means looking at relationships, previous experiences, personal values, expectations, fears, habits, limits and motivations.From there, we begin to build a working model of the situation.I explain the psychological mechanisms I see, introduce alternative ways of understanding what is happening, and help you identify where your current reasoning or behaviour may be working against what you actually want.I do not expect you to simply accept my interpretation.Whenever possible, I prefer to guide you towards seeing the pattern yourself.

Understanding Before Change

Before challenging someone's assumptions, decisions or behaviour, I want to understand how the situation looks from their position.People rarely change because someone tells them they are wrong.Change becomes much easier once they understand why they have been thinking or behaving in a particular way, what purpose it served, and why it may no longer be producing the result they need.For this reason, our work often involves a great deal of discussion, explanation and reflection.I may disagree with you. I may point out contradictions or patterns that are uncomfortable to recognise.But the purpose is never to judge: everything we do or say is an information of a deeper mechanism.Once we can see it clearly, we have something concrete to work with.

Learning to Work Without Me

I do not see long-term dependence on a therapist as the goal of this work.A large part of what I do is teaching.I want you to understand the ideas and tools we use well enough to eventually apply them without me.You may be given things to observe, remember, write about or explore between sessions.Sometimes I use practical or symbolic exercises when they can help make an abstract problem easier to understand.What you do with these tasks — including when you do not do them — also gives us useful information about how you function.Over time, the aim is for you to recognise your own patterns earlier, notice familiar traps before you become caught in them, and know how to think through difficult situations independently.Ideally, the work reaches a point where you can say:I understand what is happening. I know what I need to do next. And I trust myself to do it.At that point, my role has largely done what it was meant to do.

Background & Approach

My background includes medical education and training in psychological and therapeutic approaches.Over the years I have also studied a wide range of philosophical, cultural, symbolic and contemplative traditions.These different perspectives have influenced the way I understand people, meaning, motivation and personal change.My work itself remains centred on the person in front of me.When appropriate and when the client is comfortable with it, symbolic or reflective methods can sometimes be used as additional tools for exploring a question from another perspective.

• Back

Sessions & Format

Sessions are offered in English.I work primarily with adults and couples.Sessions are conversational but structured. Their direction depends on the question we are working on and on what emerges during the process.Some people need only a small number of sessions around a specific decision or difficulty. Others choose to work for longer.There is no expectation that you continue simply because you have started.If I believe there is more we could usefully explore, I will tell you.The decision to continue always remains yours.

When My Work May Not Be the Right Fit

My work is best suited to people who are able and willing to participate actively in reflection and decision-making.There are situations in which specialised medical, psychiatric, neuropsychological or emergency care is more appropriate.Where necessary, I will say so clearly.If there is an immediate risk of serious harm to yourself or another person, psychological support of this kind is not a substitute for emergency or
specialist care.

• Back

Legal Notice

In accordance with Articles 6-III and 19 of French Law No. 2004-575 of 21 June 2004 on Confidence in the Digital Economy (LCEN), the following information is provided to users of the website www.dominicban.com.Website Publisher
Name: BAN Domonkos
Status: French micro-entrepreneur
Business address: 73 rue Jean Macé, 29200 Brest, France
SIREN number: 924 883 317
VAT status: VAT not applicable – Article 293 B of the French General Tax Code
Email: [email protected]Nature of the Activity
The website provides psychological support and integrative therapeutic services in English.Hosting
Hosting provider: Carrd Inc.
Address:
231 Public Square
Suite 300
Franklin, TN 37064
United States
Website:
https://carrd.coIntellectual Property
All content on this website is the exclusive property of the publisher.
Any reproduction, distribution or use, in whole or in part, is prohibited without prior written permission.Liability
The information provided on this website is for general informational purposes and does not constitute individual medical, psychiatric or psychological advice, diagnosis or treatment.Psychological support offered by Dominic Ban does not replace medical, psychiatric, psychological or emergency care where such care is required.No therapeutic outcome or specific result can be guaranteed. Each person's situation, circumstances and response to psychological support are individual.If you are experiencing an immediate risk of serious harm to yourself or another person, or require urgent medical or psychiatric assistance, please contact the appropriate emergency services or healthcare provider.While reasonable care is taken to keep the information on this website accurate and up to date, no guarantee is made that all information will remain complete or current at all times.

Contact

For individual enquiries or professional collaboration, please feel free to get in touch by email or telephone.Dominic Ban
Psychopraticien
Brest, FranceTelephone
+33 7 62 68 37 54Email
[email protected]Website
www.dominicban.comIn-person meetings are available in Brest. Online meetings can also be arranged.