About Ioli
I am grateful for the opportunity
Hi, my name is Ioli Varela, I was born and raised in Greece but I have been living and studying in Amsterdam for the past three years. I am currently in the last semester of my Bachelor’s degree in Psychology at the University of Amsterdam. I am grateful for the opportunity to support the meaningful work of EPN as a personal assistant and to take the first step into pursuing my passion for Clinical Psychology.
As a student living away from home, I frequently experienced loneliness and a sense of being out of place, of not really belonging. Paradoxically, I also felt I could not voice these struggles, since I had chosen this path myself. For a long time, I struggled with these thoughts until I crossed paths with EPN, where I found not only shared values but also people who genuinely understand what it feels like to go through such experiences.
“The good life is a process, not a state of being. It is a direction, not a destination”.
– Carl R. Rogers
After living in Singapore . . .
After living in Singapore for six months, and traveling around South-East Asia to countries such as the Philippines, Malaysia, Vietnam, Laos, I came to understand that people experience life in profoundly different ways. This realization deepened my curiosity about how culture and the environment shape our perspectives and our experiences, a curiosity that naturally connects to my interest in Psychology. The more I travelled and met local people, the more I became aware that the way people are taught to think, feel, and exist depends on their environment. Cultural influences and personal experiences are deeply intertwined, not mutually exclusive. It became clear to me that when thinking about mental health, one must adopt a holistic approach and view individuals as part of a broader cultural framework.
During my years studying at the University of Amsterdam, I learned the importance of research and the significance of translating research results into valid and reliable evidence-based psychological interventions. The intervention I am mostly interested in is Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT). What I find most compelling about CBT is the way it empowers people, giving them a sense of control over their thoughts and behaviors. I value the way it emphasizes personal agency during the therapeutic process.
Beyond my passion for Psychology, I find great importance in journaling and movement as ways to relieve stress and connect with the self. I have been practicing yoga for the past seven years, and combined with regular journaling, I have realized how essential it is to engage both the body and mind for my physical and mental health.
I look forward to connecting with you and to helping you throughout your therapeutic journey.
