I am a warm, authentic, and nurturing person by nature and my ability to absorb people's energies intuitively, listen reflectively, and relate to their pain and suffering with empathy and compassion played a big role in choosing this career. My experience working in a couple of agency settings helped shape my ability to relate to adults dealing with mental health, substance abuse, poverty, lack of education, and intergenerational trauma while feeling alienated by the larger society. I have specialized training in EMDR, an evidence-based modality that helps people heal from trauma. My training in Gottman Method Couples Therapy has helped me offer a practical approach to improving relational issues in couples.

My intake process is a fairly simple procedure and includes two steps. The first step involves 15 minutes of paperwork (to be filled out prior to intake). The second step is the first face-to-face encounter with a client. This involves a 45-minute to 60-minute interview to make a thorough assessment of the presenting problems, identify personality style, and gauge if we are a good fit. Together, we will make a structured treatment plan as a way of measuring progress and working toward goals identified in treatment. I do assign homework as needed. I like working with clients who can verbalize readily, who are open-minded and flexible, who have a good sense of humor, who are curious and resilient, and who enjoy a mindfulness-based cognitive behavioral approach in therapy.

As a Southeast Asian woman, I was born and raised in India in a middle-class Muslim family. My parents instilled good values early on and I learned my first lessons on being a good human within the framework of a religion that promoted these things. My own first-generation experiences help me relate very closely to my clients of color who are dealing with issues such as immigration, acculturation, poverty, domestic violence, lack of education, and the challenges of raising kids in a different culture.

I like the convenience of telehealth. I find that a video session can come close to giving the good feeling of connection that one needs in psychotherapy. I love reading about mindfulness and its applications in promoting overall health and wellness while reducing the need for psychiatric medications. I believe in the healing aspect of meditation, guided visualizations, affirmations, gratitude, and compassion toward self and others.