Xenia Giannaki is a licensed Psychologist, graduate of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens. She is trained in Applied Behaviour Analysis and studied “Analysis and Intervention in Learning Disabilities” at the Tizard Centre University of Kent. She studied Greek Sign Language (Level A) and she is trained in alternative communication systems (PECS and Macaton). She has completed the Teachers Training Course in Dance, Health and Wellness from Switch2Move by Andrew Greenwood. Currently she is training as a Mindfulness instructor.

For over 15 years Xenia has been supporting people who may be intellectually, cognitively, behaviourally, socially and communicationally challenged. She has been working as a therapist, supervisor and coordinator in non-for-profit organisations and private companies providing services for children and adults with intellectual disabilities and autism. Part of her work is to plan, coordinate and implement group and individual activities and interventions aiming to develop a variety of life skills promoting independence, relationships, social inclusion and overall quality of life. Since 2016 she has offered psychosocial and cognitive stimulation activities to the residents of a care home who may face cognitive impairments (due to Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s etc.) also providing support to their informal caregivers and staff.

She has planned and implemented reach-out projects for community awareness towards people with learning disabilities and in 2005 she coordinated a European exchange for young people with learning disabilities (supported by the Youth for Europe, Action1).

Through the years she has planned and implemented psychoeducational programmes addressed to people with disabilities and cognitive impairments, parents, therapists, volunteers and caregivers always adopting a deeply humanistic approach governed by respect for people, empathy and intercultural sensitivity.