Dr Katja Hajek

I am a Chartered Doctor of Clinical Psychology with a 25 years’ experience of working both privately and in the NHS (South London and Maudsley NHS Trust). I have practiced at the level of Consultant Clinical Psychologist. In doing so, I have worked with adults with a wide range and severity of mental health requirements.

My specialist area is adult mental health, including anxiety, depression, trauma, work stress, low self-esteem and relationship issues. I have a particular specialism and interest in relationship dynamics using my knowledge and expertise in this area to work with individuals and couples.

I offer evidence-based therapies which are tailored to clients’ needs and can include interpersonal and psychodynamic therapy, cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), and positive psychology.

I am registered with HCPC (Health and Care Professions Council), which upholds high standards in professional codes of practice, qualification and ongoing training.

What clients say about working with Katja

“We found the couple sessions very useful and Katja was professional yet was able to put us at ease. She helped us to explore the causes of some difficult issues and communication problems and was able to suggest more helpful behaviours to both of us. Having time set aside to really listen and try to understand each other better with the help of a skilled therapist was invaluable in helping us improve our relationship”

Couple work, R & J, London

“Katja was a wonderful source of calm insight and balanced views. She helped me at a time in my marriage where our ability to communicate had broken down and I no-longer felt heard. Without judgement, Katja listened to us both and through a series of well-planned sessions helped move us forward”

H & C, London

“I cannot thank you enough for recommending Katja to us. The ten sessions we had with her have really been a life saver for our relationship. She was very insightful, kind, and extremely understanding and she helped us identify key issues that were a root cause to our difficulties as a couple. We felt so comfortable talking to her and for the first time in our relationship, we have been able to constructively confront several underlying issues that were causing us a lot of damage as a couple. Our communication is now amazing and we feel we are on a new path together because of her help. I would not hesitate to recommend her – and if we need help again, I know who to contact.”

Couple work- Ms J.D. London (MAY 2021)

“We knew we needed something to change in our marriage but we didn’t know what, it turned out what we needed was Katja, who provided a safe space for us to explore how our relationship had evolved and who we have become as a couple. Katja is direct in her approach which means progress is made right from the start. Our ten sessions were like a marriage MOT. Every couple should try it.’

Couple work- G and G. London (July 2021)

“We completed 10 sessions with Katja and we found them very helpful. Katja was effective go get us come back on track on the discussions and established the “language” I can use to communicate with my husband.‘

Couple work- MF. London (August 2021)

“Katja was recommended to us and after seeing her outstanding experience, qualifications and glowing testimonials we decided to book our first session. We both found Katja was honest, patient and considerate in her approach, and her insightful observations really helped us find a new perspective and move forward. She was impartial and unbiased, and she really saw the concerns from both of our perspectives. We would highly recommend her to anyone seeking couple therapy.” M and P (Couple work- August 2021).

“I had several sessions with Katja and will have more in the new year (I am travelling for work for most of December and thus, we suspended our meetings until I am back). I find my sessions with Katja helpful and stimulating. She is a good listener, she is personable, she asks good questions, and I like meeting her. I’d recommend her to anyone who has similar therapy needs as I do. I am glad you recommended Katja to me; I am sure the two of us would have got on well too (Dr Siobhan Mccarthy), but for me it’s hard to imagine that I’d have felt as comfortable with someone else as I do with Katja (Couple work, Ms SS, December 2021).

“[Katja] was a good recommendation. We got on well and I would have no issue recommending her to someone else”. (Mr AR, Couple work)

“I found the sessions helpful and Katja very easy and receptive to work with. I intend to have more sessions later in the year.” (Ms L.C.- July 2022- Individual sessions).

Thanks for this. Dr Katja was very helpful and she worked with us through some of the issues, sadly we were unable to continue due to cost pressure but she was very professional throughout. I also like her style which is more pragmatic and solution driven. JL Couple sessions- October 2022

Katja was and still is extremely helpful! My wife and myself discovered a lot about ourselves during our sessions with Dr Katja and she was invaluable in offering us a different (and healthy) approach/perspective in which we can tackle and overcome our issues, both as a couple and as individuals. We only have words of praise for Katja and all the help she offered us. (Mr A. Couple Work- April 2023)

“I had couples therapy with Dr Katja. She was a phenomenal help to us, both Individually, and as a couple. She was kind, insightful and put us both at ease. We developed a better understanding of how to communicate more effectively and manage conflicts. We have come out of therapy with a healthier relationship and a positive outlook, which didn’t feel possible when we first contacted her. We couldn’t recommend her enough and will always be grateful.” (Mrs C, couples work, April 2024)

“Our relationship had come to a point of crisis when we decided to try couples’ therapy. We had no idea of where or who to go to, but we wanted a therapist with experience who could help us see a way through. And so, with a little scepticism we started therapy with Katja. From the very first session Katja seemed determined to understand and get to the heart of our problems and to give us a possible way out of our difficulties that didn’t involve breaking up our family. Therapy has been painful and difficult at times, but Katja created such a safe space for us, a space of equality and fairness that has allowed us to hear and speak to each other. With her guidance, we have given ourselves a chance to get back to the relationship that we dreamed we would have and a future together that had seemed almost impossible before working with her. Katja’s insight and ability as a therapist has been remarkable, and in a very short space of time has changed our behaviour, our relationship and our lives for the better. We would have no hesitation in recommending Katja Hajek to anyone in need of relationship counselling ”

Couple work, N & P, London

“Yes, definitely helpful [working with Katja]. Communication was something we felt needed improving and we do feel we have achieved that. We would contact Katja again in the future if we feel further sessions would be beneficial to our relationship. I would recommend Katja to my friends.”

Couple work Ms P.T. South East

I can’t recommend Dr Hajek enough. I was looking for someone who would listen, understand and challenge me to make strong, positive choices within a particularly challenging time of my life and she has given me just that, helping me see things in a different way. Thanks for all your help! (May 2021)

Couple work: South East London

“We had 10 sessions with Katja. While we were initially somewhat skeptical about how the therapeutic process might help us, as the sessions progressed we found them to be valuable in helping us unpack and analyse the causes of conflict in our relationship. Katja provided a safe space for discussion; she mirrored, reframed and analyzed our divergent views, providing much needed perspective to enable us move forward. And while her direct approach was at times challenging, her honesty proved helpful in the long run. Overall, the process allowed us to have more productive conversations, to listen to each other more, and to identify incremental, actionable steps for changing the dynamics we had found problematic in our marriage.”

R & O (Couple work- August 2021)

“I think Katja is great. We have done 4 sessions with her and then decided to take a break as we have some figuring out to do at our end.

But we did really like Katia – she has a very direct style which I very much appreciated (and could handle it as I am like that myself) but might not be right for everyone.

She was helpful at giving us things to try and work on every week. More than anything I appreciated that she herself suggest that we take a break and figure out what we want to achieve vs keep taking our business.”

Ms BF (Couple work- December 2021)

“I found my sessions with Dr Katja Hajek very helpful and would recommend her highly.” Ms E.H. – January 2022

“Katya helped us to understand clearly some of the big problems we were facing as a couple and how we could start to fix them together. We felt the sessions were clear, we were both listened to equally and we have some really useful pointers now to help us moving forward. ” R and H. Couple work- Febuary 2022

“I want to thank Dr Hajek for our sessions together. I was looking for help and support after a very difficult few years that left me feeling completely overwhelmed; I was highly anxious and close to being unable to function. Dr Hajek proved a careful but by no means passive listener and allowed me to ‘unload’ without feeling pressured or judged. Her approach is sensitive and flexible. Much of the time I felt as though I was talking to a supportive friend rather than being in ‘therapy’. Nonetheless, utilising subtle direction and interventions, Dr Hajek demonstrated the skill and insight to help me unpick events and start to challenge and reframe my thinking in a constructive way, to the extent that I have made significant progress. I highly recommend Dr Hajek and her services. Ms CL ( May 2022)- Individual sessions

“Dr Katja was very helpful with our relationship issues. She was able to cut through to the heart of the matter and present issues in a clear and concise way. I felt like she was always looking to find the middle ground and get us to work together as a team. I would definitely recommend her! (Mr A, couples work, April 2024)