Safeena Nazar
I am a certified and licensed Psychologist and therapist. I provide professional counselling and various approaches to therapy to people of all ages. I specialize in identifying and working with children and youth with emotional, learning & developmental challenges.
With specialized training and extensive experience. Through collaboration, I will use evidence based approaches to best meet my clients needs.
Having worked in different countries across different cultures,I have been exposed to a variety of different individuals, and settings which has moulded me to work with each and every client of mine in a manner that suits them best. Grounded in trauma-informed, anti-oppressive, and strengths based approaches to guide you towards empowerment and resilience. I have the belief that you have everything you need to heal within you - I just help bring it out.
I welcome people from all backgrounds and experiences. I believe in cultural diversity and appreciate everyone's differences. My goal is to always educate myself and advocate for marginalized communities.
ABOUT ME
FOCUS
METHOD
DIVERSITY
Counselling & Therapy Modalities
Individual Counselling
Counselling is often initiated when people have a desire for change in some aspect of their life. I will work collaboratively to help you develop and achieve your goals while improving your mental health and overall wellness. Counselling may help you gain clarity and insight and improve your relationship with yourself, others, and the world. Personal growth and self-development is a life-long journey and this process will help with that. The number of counselling sessions needed depends on the complexity of your goals and on other factors that will be discussed.
Child & Youth Therapy
(Specialization Area)
We all know that it takes a village to raise a child. In today’s world, the village is often hard or near impossible to find. Support systems are important; parents do the best they can, but may lack the tools to tackle bigger issues in their children’s lives such as loss, divorce, challenges at school, bullying, anxiety, depression, self-esteem issues or substance misuse. Therapy can help because children and youth often feel more comfortable opening up to an unbiased third party. Children and youth today may be under more pressure than ever before, but this period of life is also full of opportunities for cultivating resilience and wellness. Bad habits can be more easily shifted during childhood due to the brain’s incredible capacity for transformation early in life. Healthy habits developed during this stage of life can evolve into inner strengths and resources that children can carry with them into the rest of their lives.
Relationship Counselling
Relationship and Couples Counselling is for people who are working on repairing, building, strengthening, and maintaining their relationships. These relationships can be between two or more romantic partners (open, polyamorous, consensual non monogamy, etc.) or it could be between friends, families, or colleagues. I use approaches like the Gottman Method, Emotionally Focused Therapy, and other relationship counselling techniques. Often times, people seek counselling to increase their connection, improve their communication, and find a sense of meaning in their relationships. There are many factors that can "disrupt" the harmony between people such as unhealthy communication or behaviours, feelings of disconnection, present betrayal, guilt, or hurt, healing from past relationships, fear and worries around intimacy and sex, inability to be vulnerable, and emotional blockages or misattunement, and a variety of other factors. The process of relationship and couples counselling is a respectful, compassionate, and exploratory approach in working collaboratively to unpack both healthy and unhealthy ways of being with each other so that all parties can move forward with more clarity, confidence, understanding, and ease. Usually by the end of this journey, you'll not only learn more about yourself but also those around you. You'll be equipped with a new understanding of relationships overall and how to authentically connect with others in a way that aligns with your values.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) is a psychological approach that deals with the way in which clients think about themselves, other people and the world. The outside world affects how we think and feel about ourselves and as a result, our behaviour. Cognitive Behavioural Therapy can help a person to change the way they think about thoughts and feelings, but it is not like other types of talk therapy. Cognitive Behavioural Therapy focuses on current issues and challenges that affect the client right now. It doesn't consider the past issues that caused distress, but rather looks for solutions that can improve the client's state of mind in the moment. Much of CBT involves looking at thought distortions that can affect mood and are affected by mood, and helps client examine and challenge distorted thinking patters. CBT can help a range of problems, from OCD, PTSD, bulimia, stress, phobias and other issues that might seem overwhelming to the client, by breaking them down into smaller, more manageable chunks.
Acceptance Commitment Therapy (ACT)
Acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) is a psychotherapy technique that promotes accepting negative thoughts, feelings, and events. It encourages a person to mindfully participate in activities that uphold their core beliefs and values.
Play Therapy
Play therapy is a form of psychotherapy and can be effective in helping children through emotional and mental issues. Children often use play to express themselves and navigate the world and play therapy takes advantage of this. Play therapy is primarily used with children. Although, it can also be used with adults. It is typically used with children who are aged between 3 and 12.
Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT)
Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) is a type of talk therapy for people who experience emotions very intensely. It’s a common therapy for people with borderline personality disorder, but therapists provide it for other mental health conditions as well.
Exposure & Response Prevention
The exposure component of ERP refers to practicing confronting the thoughts, images, objects, and situations that make you anxious and/or provoke your obsessions. The response prevention part of ERP refers to making a choice not to do a compulsive behavior once the anxiety or obsessions have been “triggered.”
Prolonged Exposure Therapy
Exposure is an intervention strategy commonly used in cognitive behavioral therapy to help individuals confront fears. Prolonged exposure is a specific type of cognitive behavioral therapy that teaches individuals to gradually approach trauma-related memories, feelings and situations. Most people want to avoid anything that reminds them of the trauma they experienced, but doing so reinforces their fear. By facing what has been avoided, a person can decrease symptoms of PTSD by actively learning that the trauma-related memories and cues are not dangerous and do not need to be avoided. This treatment is strongly recommended for the treatment of PTSD.
SPECTRUM PSYCHOLOGY
Contact Me
If you would like to book an appointment or acquire more information, please send me a message through the contact form below or feel free to call during business hours.