Meet Your Counselor
Somatic trauma counseling in Germany
You’re here because you’re ready for something different.
Naomi Painter, Licensed Professional Counselor
Somatic Trauma Therapist
Perhaps you’ve tried counseling before but it hasn’t taken you very far, or you have done great work in talk therapy but you’re ready to go deeper. Or maybe this is your first time seeking out mental health support, and you want to make sure the time and energy you put into this is going to be worth it.
If you’re here, it’s because you are ready to address what’s eating away at your health, your relationships, your work, and your well-being. And you need a therapist who will actually help you get to the bottom of it, not dance around the issue with you.
You want a warm and supportive relationship with your therapist, not an obligatory one. You want someone who will be real with you, have a sense of humor, and lean in when the going gets tough. You want to feel safe enough to keep showing up, and challenged enough to feel growth. You want to see real changes in your life as a result of putting in this time, money, and effort.
You’re in the right spot.
Choosing a therapist is a very personal decision, and I believe right fit is the most important factor of all. Read on to learn more about how I work, my philosophy of counseling, my credentials, and who I am as a person. If there’s something you want to know about me that isn’t here, don’t be afraid to ask!
HOW I WORK
At the core of my approach to counseling is the belief that your body already holds everything you need.
I come to the table with the understanding that you are the expert in your own life, and that by choosing to embark on this journey, we are entering into a partnership to seek out the wisdom you already contain inside you. And it is a journey, filled with unpredictable twists and turns.
All you need to bring is curiosity, honesty, and an open mind. I’ll bring compassion, our shared space for you to be just who you are, and a lot of cool information about the connections between mind and body.
In our work together, we will experiment, collect data, celebrate changes, and find delight and humor in the experience of being human. Sometimes it’s intense, sometimes it’s slow, but change will occur when your body is ready.
You are not broken.
Everything inside you is natural, and what you are experiencing is (or at least, was) an adaptive pattern designed to help you survive all the way until right now. We will work with your inner wisdom, not attack it or try to “fix” it. Your relationship with your body is a lifelong partnership worthy of respect and care.
You are worth investing in.
You may feel as though spending time, energy, and money on yourself is selfish. The opposite is true - by seeking therapy, you are not only caring for yourself, you are caring for others by preventing your trauma from continuing a cycle of hurt. You owe it to yourself and to others to stop the cycle in order to be a better partner, parent, colleague, leader, community member.
You are inherently deserving of a life that’s not dictated by your trauma.
Suffering doesn’t have to last forever. Are you curious as to how much of your daily life is a reaction to past trauma you’ve experienced? Can you imagine your trauma no longer making decisions for you about your health, relationships, work, and hobbies? It’s possible, I promise.
HERE’S WHAT I BELIEVE ABOUT YOU:
Naomi Painter, LPC, M.Ed.
I am from Oregon, and I now live in Hamburg, Germany. I am a Licensed Professional Counselor with a private practice providing somatic-based individual and relationship counseling to English-speakers in Germany. I am registered with the Oregon Board of Licensed Professional Counselors and Therapists.
WHO I WORK WITH
I offer individual and couples counseling for adults age 18+. I welcome folks of all genders, sexual orientations, cultures, races, faiths, and abilities who are ready to do the work. I am LGBTQI+ and polyam-friendly. My favorite folks to work with are helpers, whether that means folks in a helping profession (I get extra excited about working with CBT therapists) or those who have felt shoehorned into a helping role their whole life. It’s a particular pleasure to watch those who always give to others finally start to give to themselves.
OTHER STUFF ABOUT ME
I worked in case management and education for 15 years before becoming a counselor. I spent my childhood in Yorkshire, England, went to school in Maryland, and lived and worked in Oregon for 10 years before moving to Germany in 2023. I am a dog parent, plant parent, and a nerd. My hobbies are knitting and other fiber crafts, Pilates, board and PC gaming, watching WWE wrestling, Victorian literature, painting and drawing, dancing, and exploring UK and Europe. I adore tea, dark chocolate, dachshunds, Dungeons and Dragons, Dr Who, and Star Trek (TNG).
Click here
to hear me dorking out about being a longtime WWE wrestling fan on the Normal Gossip podcast with Kelsey McKinney
SPECIALIZED TRAINING
Certificate Program, Integrative Somatic Trauma Therapy
The Embody Lab
Experiential Training in Hakomi Mindful Somatic Psychotherapy
Hakomi Institute International
Advanced Master Program on the Treatment of Trauma
National Institute for the Clinical Application of Behavioral Medicine
Professional Training Program in Mind Body Medicine
Dr. James S. Gordon, Center for Mind-Body Medicine
Relational Life Therapy Training Program
Terry Real, Relational Life Institute
Polyamory in Therapy
Martha Kauppi, Institute for Relational Intimacy
EDUCATION & LICENSURE
2400 Direct Supervised Hours, LPC Associate, 2022
Oregon Board of Licensed Professional Counselors and Therapists
Graduate Certificate, Adult Education, 2015
Portland State University, Oregon
Master of Education, Guidance and Counseling, 2008
Loyola University, Maryland
Bachelor of Arts, Psychology, 2004
University of Maryland Baltimore County, Maryland
