Anca Elena Boalca: Clinical Psychologist and Psychodynamic Therapist with 23 Years of Experience

Discover the professional journey of Anca Elena Boalca, clinical psychologist, supervisor, and positive psychodynamic therapist. Learn how her experience, Rorschach training, and dedication to psychotherapy have shaped a successful 23-year career.

Anca Elena Boalca is a clinical psychologist, supervisor, and positive psychodynamic therapist. She has training in the Rorschach Test and long-term training in Positive Psychotherapy, and has been active in the field of psychology for 23 years.
As a psychodynamic therapist, Anca Elena Boalca facilitates deep psychodynamic processes. The psychodynamic therapeutic process explores the deep layers of the psyche, finding understanding and developing new meanings for lived experiences. It represents a profound therapeutic endeavor of integrating personal experiences.
Her clinical thinking has been refined and developed through extensive study of the Rorschach Test, which she learned through a long-term training program.
Currently, Anca Elena Boalca focuses on developing and refining her psychotherapeutic skills by attending significant professional events. She is also consistently involved in supervision, providing support and guidance to young psychologists in their professional development.

C&B: If we were to look at a narrative thread of your career, what were the key moments that defined you?
Anca Elena Boalca: I chose this profession before it was socially visible. In the early 2000s, the profession of psychologist was not regulated in Romania; the Psychologist Law appeared in 2004, and the psychotherapist profession did not exist at that time. My career has been guided by several important aspects: trust in my intuition, the ability to have a vision of the future, the capacity to contain, patience, and a lot of work. These elements gave me the stability and direction necessary to build my career over time.

I completed several professional training programs, each contributing to refining my clinical and psychotherapeutic thinking.

C&B: What was the most difficult moment in your journey, and how did you overcome it?
Anca Elena Boalca: Over the past 23 years, there have been several difficult moments. Initially, the difficulty was social: the profession was not regulated, it was very hard to find work, and training programs were expensive. Later, things became more organized, but there were other problems related to psychotherapy accessibility; people were not accustomed to benefiting from psychology and psychotherapy services.

Currently, the difficulty lies in the massive wave of psychological content, which paradoxically does not improve quality of life but brings more confusion. I refer here to the pop psychology trend—elements borrowed from other fields, such as spirituality or beliefs, mixed with psychological concepts, which create confusion and undermine the science of psychology.

C&B: Is there a dream or ambition that has always guided you, regardless of obstacles?
Anca Elena Boalca: I always try to bring clarity to my desires, asking myself why I need something. What lies behind my desire? I believe “ambition” does not have a place in the work I do. Throughout my career, I have wanted to develop certain psychic capacities that I use in the psychotherapeutic process: the ability to listen, to reflect, to contain, or to see into the deep layers of the psyche, to see where my client cannot, and then guide them.

In continuous development processes, these are the capacities a psychotherapist develops, and this is what differentiates therapists. Being able to contain a client with all they are, and having the patience to help integrate everything they have not yet accepted about themselves, are among the challenges of a psychotherapist.

C&B: How did you look at the beginning of your path, and how do you feel you have transformed since then?
Anca Elena Boalca: The career of a psychologist–psychotherapist is filled with many necessary personal transformations. My approach today is different: the depth at which I can now conduct a psychotherapeutic process, how I have cultivated patience and the capacity to contain, has grown significantly.

Over time, I realized that some things in life are not important and deserve less attention. Personally, I have made many changes. A psychotherapist’s life requires going through processes oneself and being aware of one’s own development. In the psychodynamic process, an important tool is analyzing transference and countertransference.

Transference is what the client projects from their experience onto the therapist, and countertransference is what the therapist projects onto the client. If the therapist has not worked through their own process and is unaware of their feelings, projecting experiences or people from their own life onto the client compromises the therapeutic process. For a psychotherapeutic process to be safe, the therapist must undergo supervision, therapy, participate in peer review groups, or take part in personal development programs. All these activities change the therapist and help them perform their work better.

C&B: If we met your collaborators, what would they say about you?
Anca Elena Boalca: In my work so far, I have worked with many people and facilitated many psychotherapeutic processes. Most of my clients come through referrals from other clients or colleagues in the therapeutic community. I believe I have succeeded in bringing something valuable to people’s lives.

The psychodynamic therapeutic process is not easy; it is painful and sometimes frustrating. Here we return to pop psychology, which presents the process of development and integration in an exaggerated, unrealistic way. Clients sometimes come with unrealistic expectations, such as “I want to be happy in therapy,” “Explain what I should do,” or “Tell me something so I feel better,” ideas spread through pseudo-psychological literature or online videos.

In early sessions, I explain the therapeutic framework and what a psychodynamic process means. The goal is for the client to have realistic expectations. In personalities with strong tendencies, frustration arises faster, along with the need to criticize. If the therapist can contain criticism and not reject it, the therapeutic process is preserved. In therapy, the client’s critical voice is a good sign—it means that voice can be heard safely.

C&B: What is the most important decision you have made that changed your trajectory?
Anca Elena Boalca: My 23-year career can be divided into two parts: the first 12 years I worked as a psychologist in an organization and a medical clinic; the past 11 years I have worked in my own private practice. When I decided to work exclusively at my private practice, I made more space for psychotherapy, which I consider a key moment in my career.

Practicing psychotherapy should not come from ambition or desire; it must come from the ability to contain, to hold another person with all of their story—and that’s what I felt when I decided to remain at my private practice.

C&B: How did you build your leadership style and decision-making approach? Was it natural or learned?
Anca Elena Boalca: Managing a private practice does not require highly developed managerial skills. I hired help, an accountant, and a smart billing system, which made life much easier. I pay attention to legislation in psychology and taxation. My schedule is planned in advance: I set client appointments, announce therapeutic vacations ahead of time, and plan professional activities. Organization and respecting the schedule are very important to me.

C&B: What does a typical day look like for you now, and which moments bring you the most satisfaction?
Anca Elena Boalca: Therapy sessions run from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., with breaks. Mornings are reserved for myself: personal activities, writing articles, research, and administrative work. During breaks, I like to exercise. Evenings are always busy.

My favorite moments: drinking coffee and reading in the morning, going to the gym in the afternoon, and in the evening, on the way home, thinking, “I made it through today.” The commute home is symbolic; it is when I reflect on the day, and when I enter my home, I leave social roles behind and relax.

C&B: What values or principles guide your work daily?
Anca Elena Boalca: Psychotherapy is based on helping others; my role as a therapist is to help. My life values revolve around support and helping. Freedom to choose how you live, freedom of expression—but my freedom does not harm others. I strive to be honest with myself and fair to others, to do good, and apologize when I unintentionally cause harm.

A therapist’s voice must be congruent, deep, and gentle; I aim to provide reflections that are congruent, profound, and delivered with a gentle language.

C&B: If you were to send a message to people following your example, what would it be?
Anca Elena Boalca: It is important to experience life, have courage, maintain an honest dialogue with yourself, and be guided by vocation.

To young colleagues starting their careers, I recommend choosing trainers, supervisors, and mentors who demonstrate responsibility and maturity in their profession.

Anca Elena Boalca demonstrates that a career in psychology is built through patience, containment, and continuous growth. Through dedication, professionalism, and deep integration of both her own and her clients’ experiences, she redefines the role of the psychodynamic therapist in Romania.