Concerns
People bring all kinds of things to therapy. These are the areas where my experience runs deepest — the ones I work with most often.
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Accepting new clients
Psychologist · CBT & EFT therapist
Alexander
Alexander
Makarikhin
I help you make sense of anxiety, find steadier footing in your relationships, and come back into contact with yourself. I work in evidence-based approaches — CBT and EFT.
5 years
in private practice
2,100+
hours of professional training
250+
hours of supervision
450+
hours of personal therapy
About
Who you’ll be working with
Psychologist, CBT & EFT therapist. I see adolescents and adults — one-on-one and in couples (family) work. I practice evidence-based approaches: cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), which works with the thoughts, beliefs, and behavior underneath emotional suffering, and emotionally focused therapy (EFT), a couples method grounded in attachment theory and developed by Sue Johnson. I came to psychology from international logistics, where I spent more than twenty-five years in leadership roles.
I have been in private practice since 2021. My training began at the Faculty of Psychology at Lomonosov Moscow State University; I am now completing a master’s degree in counseling and clinical psychology, with a separate specialization in therapy for children and adolescents. I stay in personal therapy and regular supervision myself, and I serve as team psychologist for Theatre Therapy (Teatroterapiya), a nationwide project.
Education and training
Lomonosov MSU
Lomonosov Moscow State University
Faculty of Psychology · practical psychology and modern therapeutic methods
Beck Institute for Cognitive Behavior Therapy
USA · Essentials I–II
International Centre for EFT (Canada)
Full EFT track · Externship · Core Skills · associate member
MIR CBT Institute
International Institute for CBT Development
Certification program: foundational CBT course · couples therapy
Institute of Psychoanalysis
Moscow Institute of Psychoanalysis
Marital therapy · psychological counseling and therapy for children and adolescents
Vektor Rosta · ICTA
Vektor Rosta Training Center · ICTA
Training in transformational coaching
Moscow International Univ.
Moscow International University
Master’s degree · counseling and clinical psychology · in progress
Professional memberships
Expertise
What you can count on
Methods
Two evidence-based methods
CBT for individual work, EFT for couples. CBT appears in clinical guidelines across Europe and North America; EFT’s effectiveness is backed by randomized trials and meta-analyses. I trained at the source: the Beck Institute (founded by Aaron Beck, who created CBT) and ICEEFT (Sue Johnson’s International Centre for EFT).
Couples
Couples work is a discipline of its own
With couples I draw on EFT and the cognitive behavioral approach — each backed by dedicated training, including marital therapy and EFT programs in Russia. I am continuing my EFT training in the ICEEFT system (Canada).
Academic
Academic grounding
Trained at the Faculty of Psychology at Moscow State University; now completing a master’s degree in counseling and clinical psychology. Member of Russian and international associations: ACBP, ICEEFT, and the Community of Russian-Speaking EFT Therapists. Consultative member of the All-Russian Professional Psychotherapeutic League (OPPL).
Experience
A first career in business
More than twenty-five years in international business and logistics, in leadership roles. I know firsthand what responsibility for people and results feels like — negotiations under pressure, burnout, a career change at almost forty. If you come from that world, you won’t have to explain it to me.
Progress
Measurable progress
We set goals at the start, and I track progress with scales standardized in clinical protocols. You see what’s changing in numbers — and we adjust the work early, not after the fact.
Growth
Continuous development
I am in personal therapy and ongoing supervision — the standard of the profession. I train with Russian and international teachers, and I volunteer.
Anxiety and fear
Panic attacks and the fear of the next one. Worry that won’t switch off. Health anxiety and endless symptom-checking. Fear of public speaking, social situations, being judged. Phobias. Intrusive thoughts that are hard to step away from.
01Mood and how you treat yourself
Low mood, apathy, losing interest in what used to bring joy. A sense of meaninglessness. Harsh self-criticism and low self-esteem. Guilt and shame that haven’t let go in years. Perfectionism, where nothing is ever “good enough.”
02Work, stress, burnout
Chronic fatigue and burnout. Procrastination. The weight of leadership: responsibility for people, the loneliness of decisions, conflict on the team. A midlife career change. The feeling that the career worked out — and the satisfaction never came.
03Your relationship
The same argument, on a loop. Growing apart — living side by side like roommates. Jealousy, and rebuilding trust after an affair. The crisis after a baby arrives. Different views on money, home life, intimacy, parenting. Deciding whether to stay or go. My couples work is built on EFT — one of the most researched approaches to helping couples.
04Loss and change
Grief after the death of someone close. Divorce and the life that follows. Relocation and emigration — losing your familiar circle and footing. The turning points of age: forty, fifty, “half a life behind you.”
05Addictive behavior
Support around addictive behavior — alcohol, drugs, gaming, social media — and through sobriety. Work with the loved ones of people with addiction: codependency, boundaries, the exhaustion of trying to rescue someone.
06Sessions and rates
All work begins with an initial session: we get acquainted and look at what brings you in — and that first meeting can become the start of longer-term work, of therapy.
Counseling
A single, as-needed session in the nearest open slot on the schedule. We take up a specific situation, set a direction, and I answer your questions. No obligation to continue.
Therapy
Regular work: weekly, at a set day and time. Deep change takes time and consistency. Therapy always begins with an initial session.
Individual therapy
One-on-one work in the cognitive behavioral approach — with the thoughts, beliefs, and behavior underneath emotional suffering.
- Initial or single session Where the work begins 60 minutes · in person or online 8,000 ₽
-
4-session package Recommended
Reserved time · once a week
60 minutes · valid for 30 days
24,000 ₽ per package 6,000 ₽per session -
10-session package
Reserved time · once a week
60 minutes · valid for 3 months
45,000 ₽ per package 4,500 ₽per session
Payment is in Russian rubles; prices in other currencies are for reference. Paying from abroad? Write to me — we’ll sort it out.
Book a session
Couples (family) therapy
Work with couples — married or partnered — in the emotionally focused approach (EFT), often called family therapy in everyday speech. It begins with a joint session, then follows a structure we agree on.
- Initial or single couples session Where the work begins 90–120 minutes · together as a couple 12,000 ₽
- Diagnostic start A frequent choice for couples Leads to a therapy plan Initial session · two individual sessions · a joint 90-minute session 24,000 ₽per package
-
Ongoing couples therapy · block of 8 sessions
Reserved time · once a week
90 minutes · together as a couple
48,000 ₽ per block 6,000 ₽per session
Payment is in Russian rubles; prices in other currencies are for reference. Paying from abroad? Write to me — we’ll sort it out.
Book a session
The initial session is how we find out whether we fit. You see whether the method suits you and whether I’m the right specialist for you; I see whether I can be genuinely useful in your situation. If you decide not to continue, no explanation needed. If I think you need a different specialist or format, I’ll say so directly and point you to one.
How it works
Four steps
From your first message on — a clear, safe path.
01
Choose a date and time
Right here on the site — from the nearest open slots, in person or online.
02
Book and pay for the initial session
Confirmation arrives instantly, along with all the practical details.
03
Attend the diagnostic session
We get acquainted, look at what brings you in, and I explain how I can help and how the work would be structured.
04
If it feels right — therapy
If it’s needed and it resonates, we agree on regular sessions: a set day and time, once a week.
Questions before we start? Write to me by email or whichever messenger
you prefer — I reply within one business day. I don’t offer
preliminary calls or free trial sessions: a conversation about your
situation deserves a full hour of attention, so it begins at the
initial session. If none of the times work — write to me and I’ll suggest options.
The office
A space for conversation
A quiet office in Moscow at Petrovsko-Razumovsky proezd, 5 — a ten-minute walk from the Dinamo and Petrovsky Park metro stations, a minute’s drive from the Third Ring Road. City parking nearby.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
If your question isn’t here — write to me directly; I reply within one business day.
If the same feelings, patterns, or states keep coming back — and you can’t manage them on your own — that’s reason enough to reach out. You don’t have to wait for a “crisis”: therapy also works with quieter questions — the search for meaning, better relationships, quality of life.
Talking to a friend is support. Therapy is a structured process of change, grounded in scientific evidence. CBT helps you change unhelpful thoughts and behavior; EFT works with deep emotion and attachment. Both approaches have held up in numerous clinical trials.
A psychiatrist is a medical doctor: they diagnose and prescribe medication. I am a psychologist: I don’t work with medication or diagnoses. If I think it would be worth seeing a doctor alongside our sessions, I’ll say so directly. Taking medication is no obstacle to therapy — the two run in parallel, in coordination with your prescribing doctor.
It depends on what you bring. Short-term work on a specific issue usually runs 6 to 12 sessions. Deeper work with long-standing patterns can take several months. After the first few sessions, we review progress together and agree on a horizon.
We set goals from the very start and track progress with standardized scales — you see what’s happening in numbers, not just in how you feel. And if something isn’t right — the method, the pace, me as a specialist — that’s a perfectly normal thing to raise in session: we adjust the work, and if needed, I’ll recommend a colleague.
No preparation needed. We get acquainted, I ask what brings you in, we frame your goals together, and at the end I explain how I see the work ahead. If you like, jot down a few notes beforehand about what’s been troubling you — but you can just as easily come without them.
Yes — and online is the real thing, not a “lite” version. Sessions take place over Zoom; the link arrives right after you book. All that matters is that you have a quiet room to yourself for the session.
Everything said in session stays between us. I follow the professional code of ethics for psychologists. The only exceptions are cases, defined by law, of direct threat to your life or someone else’s. The same rule holds in couples work: what is said in individual sessions stays confidential.
Often, yes. Moscow afternoons and evenings line up with mornings in the U.S. — and the schedule on this page shows times in your own time zone (tap “Moscow time” to change the city). If nothing fits, write to me and I’ll look for options.
Yes. I work in both Russian and English — individual sessions as well as couples work, including bilingual couples.
You can cancel or reschedule up to 24 hours before the start — by email or messenger. Cancel in time, and I refund the payment in full; reschedule, and it carries over to the new date. Sessions start exactly on time: if you’re running late, the session unfortunately can’t be extended.
No — I work online with English- and Russian-speaking clients wherever they live: Europe, the U.S., the Middle East, Asia. In-person sessions are Moscow only.
Write to me — if needed, we’ll set up an extra session. In an acute situation, when life or safety is at risk, don’t wait for the session: call 112 or the emergency psychological helpline — in Moscow, 051, around the clock (+7 495 051 from a cell phone). If you’re in the U.S., call or text 988. In Moscow, 051 answers around the clock; anywhere else, findahelpline.com lists local crisis lines.
Yes. Russian law places no restrictions on a psychologist working with clients wherever they live, and much of my online practice is exactly that. If insurance or reimbursement rules in your own country matter to you, check them on your side — they vary by state and country.
Write to me by email or messenger — we’ll find a way to pay that works for you.
From an office or another private space — yes, as long as you can close the door and speak freely: therapy needs confidentiality on both ends. Sessions on the move — from a car, an airport, in transit — don’t really work. The hour deserves a quiet room, and so do you.
I’ll tell you directly if I think a medical consultation would help, and I can point you to English-speaking psychiatrists in Moscow. Therapy continues alongside their care — that combination is standard practice.
No. A psychologist does not make diagnoses or issue medical certificates, accommodation letters, or reports for employers, schools, courts, or emotional-support-animal requests — that falls to medical doctors. I do provide documents confirming payment for sessions.
No — I’m not in-network with any insurance plan, U.S. or international, and I can’t bill insurers directly. You’ll receive a receipt for every payment; whether your plan reimburses out-of-network care abroad is worth checking with your insurer. Payment itself is out of pocket.
Choose an open time in the schedule below, pick the format — in person or online — and fill out the form. The booking is confirmed by paying for the initial session: after that, the time is reserved for you. If no slot works, or you’d rather ask a question first — write by email or messenger; I reply within one business day, and we’ll find a time.