Magda in Gamine frames
Magda is a psychiatrist and psychotherapist who cares deeply about trust and strong relationships with people. She left her first visit to ZITA with more than just a new pair of glasses, but also fond memories of the people she met and the conversations they shared.
21. september 2026, Author: Barbara Garaj, Photo: Jakub Čaprnka
Glasses only became part of Magda’s life after she turned forty, when she began to notice changes in her vision. She needed reading glasses and wanted to rely on someone who could guide her through choosing the right pair. She first heard about ZITA from friends who are our customers and shared their positive experiences with her.
“Someone who really knows the world of eyewear sees differently what suits a person’s face and how glasses can frame their character. I wanted to be in honest, experienced hands, which is why I came to ZITA on a recommendation.”
When Magda walked in and saw the shelves full of frames, she wondered if she would ever make it out. But with Peťo, our optician, the process went smoothly, and together they gradually narrowed the selection down to a few favourites.
Three frames made it to the final round: two bolder options and one closer to the classic style she had originally been looking for.
In the end, Magda fell for a round Gamine frame in shades of brown. She wears it for reading, working at her computer and during online sessions with clients.
While trying on frames, Magda and Peťo discovered they had something in common. Peťo studied psychology, so between frames, their conversation naturally turned to work and life.
“The interaction was very pleasant and familiar, while still respecting boundaries, just as it should be. I felt very welcome.”
Magda grew up in northeastern Poland, in the Masurian Lake District. Even as a teenager, she had a fairly clear idea of the direction she wanted to take. She was deciding between literature and medicine, but once she was accepted to medical school in Gdańsk, she knew she wanted to pursue psychiatry.
Gdańsk became her home for more than a decade. To this day, she associates it not only with her studies, but also with culture, forests and the sea. Water has been a constant throughout her life, from the lakes of her home region and the Baltic Sea to the Danube in Bratislava.
During her studies, Magda spent her summers working in the United States. It was there that she met a Slovak man who hit it off with one of her friends. After returning to Europe, he organised a Slovak-Polish party, and among the guests was the man who would later become Magda’s husband.
Their relationship had to withstand long distance and frequent travel between Gdańsk and Bratislava. After graduation, they had to decide where to settle together. Magda’s career played a role in that decision, as Bratislava offered her better opportunities to continue working in psychiatry at the time.
She spent her first years at the acute psychiatric ward of Ružinov Hospital. Shifts, examinations and transfers to the central admissions department came with considerable physical and emotional strain.
Alongside her work in psychiatry, she completed a five-year psychotherapy training programme in Prague, travelling there regularly on weekends. During the pandemic, however, a major change came. She left the hospital, fulfilled a long-held dream and became a psychotherapist.
A year ago, she opened her own practice, which she named Prepojenia. She works there alongside six other colleagues, each with their own therapeutic practice.
“We didn’t want to be isolated individuals scattered around the city. We wanted to create an intimate space where everyone works independently, while still having colleagues around us whom we can turn to for advice and share with.”
For Magda, the need to be part of a community extends beyond the doors of her practice. She collaborates with others, exchanges experiences with colleagues and increasingly thinks about how she can pass her knowledge on to the younger generation.
After days filled with conversation, Magda seeks out quiet and time to herself. She enjoys walking her dog, reading, listening to music, exercising and spending time with family and friends. Every now and then, she visits a friend’s art studio, where she can clear her head and shift her thoughts elsewhere.
People and relationships hold a very important place in Magda’s heart. So when she thinks back to her first visit to ZITA, she returns to how she felt while she was with us.
“I never felt as though I was in some exclusive boutique where I had to feel self-conscious or nervous about how it would all turn out or how much I would end up paying for my glasses. It’s an investment, and the people who work with eyewear understand that quality glasses aren’t inexpensive.”
