About me
My name is Giedrė Songailienė.
In my work I draw on the principles of existential therapy, and I am currently continuing my studies in existential psychotherapy at the Institute of Humanistic and Existential Psychotherapy.
I have always been curious about what goes on beneath the surface of a person’s experience - not only what we say out loud, but also what we leave unsaid, what we may not yet dare to put into words, or what we sometimes have yet to discover about ourselves. This curiosity has stayed with me through different stages of my life and eventually led me to study psychotherapy and become involved in emotional support work.
In 2023, I began volunteering with Jaunimo linija (Youth Line), a Lithuanian emotional support service. Since then, I have gained more than 370 hours of experience providing emotional support through one-to-one conversations. These conversations have taught me how to be present with people through very different moments in their lives - to listen, to resist the urge to judge or rush towards answers, and to stay with someone even when there is no clear solution.
That same year, I began my studies at the Institute of Humanistic and Existential Psychotherapy (HEPI). I have completed more than 600 hours of training, including 60 hours of supervised counselling practice. I feel particularly drawn to the existential approach because it allows us to understand a person through the context of their lived experience - their relationships, choices, struggles, and what matters most to them.
Even before starting on this path, I was interested in people’s relationship with speaking up and remaining silent. In my Master’s thesis, I explored organisational silence and the question of why people sometimes choose not to speak, even when they have something to say.
Another important part of my experience has been creating and leading humanist wedding ceremonies. I have written and conducted around 80 ceremonies. In preparation for each one, I spent considerable time talking with couples, seeking to understand not only their shared story but also what truly matters to them - their values, their relationship, their choices, and the way they choose to be together. This experience has continually reminded me of how different we all are, and how much we can discover when we listen to another person with genuine curiosity.
In my counselling work, it is important to me to create a space where you do not have to appear better, stronger, or more put together than you actually feel. It is a space where you can pause, explore your experience, and gradually make sense of what is happening within you and how you would like to move forward with your life.
