Initially, I chose this field because I was intrigued by the prospect (later found to be misleading), of human behaviour being predictable. However, what truly cemented my commitment to this career was how it helped me gain a deeper understanding of my own concerns and needs. Through my personal experiences, I felt the importance of timely and adequate mental health support. This inspires me to continue playing a role in others’ journeys towards better mental health.

For me, the most appealing part of working in a counselling space is that it allows me to experience genuine acceptance of our innate humanness. It is exciting to engage in meaningful conversations and intentionally create space for the complexity of human experiences. Being able to witness the most intimate narratives of people’s resilience, hopes and dreams in the moments of unbearable pain has helped me in developing a more nuanced and compassionate relationship with myself.

I believe the general objective of the first session is to start the process of building a strong therapeutic relationship. I hope for the client to feel deeply seen and heard and eventually leave with the perception of therapy as a secure and welcoming space where their experiences are safely held and honored. Beyond that, the first session also serves as an opportunity to provide the client with a sense of the overall structure of our therapy sessions, so they know what to expect.

It definitely takes a lot of courage to consider seeking therapy. Opening up to someone and allowing them to witness your life’s experiences can be both daunting and liberating. Remember that therapy isn’t about quick fixes or immediate solutions. Instead, it’s a gradual process that involves developing a deeper relationship with yourself. Think of the therapy space as a cocoon where you have the opportunity to pause, reflect, and closely examine the patterns, challenges, and aspirations in your life, without worrying about the usual pressures and expectations of the outside world.

I hope to foster a therapeutic relationship grounded in mutual effort, trust and communication. This involves creating a safe, open space where clients can freely share both positive and challenging therapy experiences and express their needs and authentic feedback. In this partnership, therapy is not about the therapist providing guidance; it’s a collaborative effort where we work together to explore, understand, and address the concerns brought by clients.

• Often, challenging internal experiences and problematic external behaviors, which appear to be causing issues, are actually serving as protective mechanisms for the individual. Instead of focusing on fixing them, it is more helpful to understand the purpose they are aiming to serve.
  - Seeing someone’s pain, hurt, fears, hopes, dreams, is one of the most profound ways of supporting another individual.
  - there are terrains beyond the problems in the scenery of a person’s identity. Along with distress and challenges, therapy space is also meant to explore the individual’s strengths, aspirations, possibilities…
  

I value my ability to be genuinely curious. It helps me not assume, and rather focus on exploring and understanding. Along with this, I believe my capacity to hold complex nuances of individual experiences helps in opening up a judgment-free space for diversity. Furthermore, my self-awareness within the therapy space and the inclination to process my own reactions, enables me to show up authentically and effectively support the individuals I work with.

When out of the shoes of therapist, I can be found re-watching episodes of my favourite sitcoms, procrastinating reading from the list of books, tending to my plants and taking lots of naps.

I use an eclectic approach borrowing from different therapeutic modalities including Narrative Therapy, Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Mindfulness, and Internal Family Systems. I try to hold a trauma-informed and queer affirmative lense in my work.

This basically means, that during the course of therapy, we will try to develop a deep understanding of your concerns and hopes. We ask questions with genuine curiosity to explore conflicting needs, thoughts, and emotions, and we strive to build a compassionate relationship with them. Therapeutic space is also designed to see YOU beyond the issues you face, recognising your distinct values and beliefs as you navigate challenges. With the help of these insights and tools, together we put efforts towards identifying ways to help you achieve the goals that you set out for yourself.

In an attempt to create a safe and queer-affirmative therapeutic environment, I try to use gender-neutral language, continuously educate myself, not make assumptions and actively seek perspectives, experiences, and expectations of queer clients. Using curiosity, I try to understand how their queerness intersects with their other identities and stay informed about issues affecting the queer community. Additionally, I seek supervision that is queer and trans-affirmative.