I’m a Registered Clinical Social Worker, Clinical Counsellor and Traumatologist with specialization in Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) and I’ve been helping clients reach their goals since 2010.
When you come into my office for the first time, that’s what we talk about first: your goals. Whether you’re stressed, depressed, anxious or suffering the effects of trauma, that’s not why you’ll walk into my office. You’ll step into my therapy office because you’re ready for change.
That’s what happens to my clients. And it can happen to you.
At the start of the first session, my clients tell me:
And then we talk about goals and how to reach them. Let me tell you why I do this.
When clients walk into their first session, they’re nervous, scared, sad or overwhelmed. This is normal. We don’t focus on what’s wrong; instead, we look at what needs to be right and how to get there. And by the end of that first session, something is different.
By the end of the first session, my clients tell me:
It’s incredibly satisfying to help people make positive and long-lasting changes. Especially people who have already suffered too much because of trauma.
I help clients move forward after experiencing or witnessing a traumatic event, whether it happened recently or in the distant past.
I came to this specialty by way of personal experience. I was the 3rd generation living through trauma. I could never understand my grandparents or parents (who can?) but when I started seeing signs in my own children, it hit me like a ton of bricks. I said to myself, “Mobina, if you don’t take action right now, you’re going to pass this along to the next generation – your children!” I did take action and ended what’s called inter-generational trauma in my own family.
Because I know what it’s like to suffer needlessly after trauma, it’s my mission to bring relief to my clients as soon and as quickly as possible.
In my trauma practice, I help clients who have witnessed or experienced these events:
These events are not easy and sometimes life after the event can be more devastating than the event itself. Life after trauma can include guilt, shame, hopelessness, disconnecting from others, fear, anxiety, confusion, anger, inability to concentrate, moodiness and more.
That’s no way to live. And you could live another 30, 50, 70 years! That’s a lot of years that could be better after a little help. That’s why I use counselling techniques that work.
You don’t have to know how ice cream is made to appreciate ice cream. But some people want to know. It’s the same thing for therapeutic approaches to counselling. Some clients want to know about it…but they mostly care about one thing: does it work?
If you want to know the basics of EMDR and CBT, this section is for you. If you want to know if it works, just jump to the next section.
EMDR stands for Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing. It’s a type of psychotherapy used to help people heal from the effects of disturbing experiences. Remember I mentioned the scraped knee earlier? If you keep picking at the scab, the wound takes a lot longer to heal. After a disturbing event, there’s often emotional distress and those symptoms do the same thing as your finger picking at the scab on a scraped knee. Your psyche doesn’t heal up with this interference.
But you know what? The body and the mind want to be well – that’s their natural state.
EMDR is a system for interfering with the interference so the body’s natural healing systems can kick in, just like they’re designed to.
More about EMDR
More about CBT
CBT stands for Cognitive Behavioural Therapy. CBT is a psychotherapy that is based on the cognitive model: the way that individuals perceive a situation is more closely connected to their reaction than the situation itself. One important part of CBT is helping clients change their unhelpful thinking and behavior that lead to enduring improvement in their mood and functioning.
Yes, it works! Remember how I told you it’s my mission to bring relief to my clients as soon and as quickly as possible? Well, I can only do that by using the best tools of my trade. And for relief after unfortunate events, EMDR and CBT are the dynamic duo that help my clients get their lives back.
That’s not just my personal opinion. Controlled-outcome studies show EMDR effectively treats trauma.
And the military uses EMDR and CBT as the preferred treatment for veterans, a group of people who come back from war not just with trauma symptoms but with post-traumatic stress disorder.
It’s one thing to have a mission in life, it’s another thing to know you’re achieving it. I use EMDR and CBT because it gets results for my clients and then they get on with life.
In South Asian culture, elders would often say that all fingers of a hand are not equal but all of them play a role and are equally important. This saying is used when a person needs comfort with challenges, stressful relationships, failures and even with successes.
When I started my trauma counselling services, having a logo was important for me. So, I hired a designer and explained them that for me inclusivity is important and I believe that I connect with my clients with my heart. I also explained that trauma experience of clients is not equal and some trauma occur one time, which counselling professionals call as a “small t trauma” and some recurring traumas are called “big T trauma”.
If you notice in my logo, there are two hands and palms are in the shape of human face. Together the palms make a heart. Fingers are of different colors which represent inclusivity.
When I started trauma work, saying of my elders that “not all fingers are equal” stayed with me in my counselling. The meaning I drive from it is that not all traumas are equal and different people respond differently to the same trauma. So regardless of how “big” or “small” the trauma is, the experience of the trauma is important than the “size”.
So, when I work with my clients, I work with their experience of trauma and connect with my heart to where my clients are in their trauma experience. I believe that no trauma is big or small, it is the client experience of their trauma that brings distress. My counselling is inclusive and I identify clients with their traumatic life experience and not by any other category.
I became a counsellor in 2010 after a career in business. I wanted to make more of a difference than I could in business so I made a conscious decision to become a counsellor. Changing my profession was also a therapeutic healing journey. And that was a great and the best decision!
Helping people become unstuck and feel like themselves again turned out to be my mission in life.
Professional excellence is important to me and these are my current trauma-related certifications:
You’re glad to know I’ve got all the right letters behind my name, but you’re really wondering: what’s it like to work with me?
You should probably know a couple of things about me so they don’t catch you off guard when we talk. I’m a straight-shooter and I don’t sugar-coat things. When you’re with me, it’s for one thing: to overcome whatever brings you in. My approach is to understand the type of trauma you experienced and your goals so we can get to work right away.
I understand that counselling is expensive and not everyone has extended health benefits and even if they do, the coverage is enough for limited sessions.
So, I approach my client’s treatment plan with no fluff – you don’t need fluff, you need relieve. I’ll make suggestions about what needs to be done in and out of our sessions and you’ll do the work because once you step in my office, I know you’re committed to getting your life back. My goal is to meet you for the right number of sessions and help you become your own counsellor when you are not with me.
I believe my “no fluff” approach helps client get unstuck and move on with their life faster with less number of sessions.
That’s why I offer the free 20-minute telephone consult: so we can get an understanding of whether we’ll be a good fit.
That’s important to me because 95% of my clients report they achieve their goals through our sessions together…and I only want to see you if I’m certain we have a therapeutic relationship and I feel confident in my skills to help you with your trauma.
I’m not like those counsellors who think they’re great counsellors because their clients keep coming back.
I consider myself a success if, at the end of our sessions together, I can look you in the eye and say, “I hope to never see you again!”
Because you’re healed.
Because what you came in for is no longer holding you back.
Because you can see your future again.
Doesn’t that sound good?
Violence - Accidents - Neglect – Sexual Abuse - Incest – Domestic Violence - Rape – Assault - Crime - First Responder – Police – Paramedic – Fire Fighter – PTSD - Residential School – Indigenous – Native - First Nation Health Authority –– Accident – Car Accident – ICBC - EMDR – CBT – Victim Services – Virtual Counselling – Virtual EMDR – Dhaka – Chittagong – Sylhet - Bangladesh – Lahore – Islamabad - Karachi – Pakistan – Therapy – Therapist - Coquitlam, Port Moody, Port Coquitlam, Tricities – Tri cities - Vancouver – Avatar counselling -
