Meet Shadi S

About

Hello! My name is Shadi, and my pronouns are she/her. I like playing my Iranian instrument, Setaar, and listening to music. I also like cooking, baking, hiking, watching movies, and reading books. 

I moved to Victoria from Prince Edward Island (PEI), the smallest province on the east coast of Canada.

I completed my BSc and MSc degrees in clinical psychology. After graduation, I conducted individual and group therapy for five years in various clinical settings, including a community-based mental health clinic, several addiction treatment clinics, and a primary care clinic. In these clinical settings, I provided services for a wide range of clients with various challenges. The most common challenges of my clients included mood problems, anxiety (e.g., generalized anxiety, panic attacks), ADHD, and emotion regulation difficulties. 

Most of my doctoral training has occurred at the UPEI psychology training clinic, which led me to mostly have university student clients. I enjoyed working with young adults undergoing this exciting developmental period of identity development, values exploration, and for some, burgeoning mental illness. To work with these clients, my focus was primarily on applying CBT in therapy with an emphasis on behavioural or cognitive strategies, and I also incorporated strategies from various treatment approaches, including Dialectical Behavioural Therapy (DBT) and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). 

Counselling approach

Counselling can help individuals who are struggling with mental health problems to make changes in their lives and overcome their challenges. I believe with the application of a strength-based counselling approach I can help clients to focus on the discovery of their strengths, resources, and abilities to empower them to bring positive change in their lives. I take a flexible approach with clients and for some of my clients, I integrate art activities into their sessions to help them express their feelings and thoughts through art. 

I believe counsellors should be sensitive and mindful of individual and cultural differences when interacting with clients at all levels of care. I strive to address multiculturalism and diversity to have a better understanding of clients’ concerns and collaboratively work towards their goal. 

Two main factors that guide my interaction with clients are self-reflection and empathy, which help me to use clients' language and to better understand them as we set goals for their counselling.