Anisha Khatoon

Assalaumualaikum, I am Anisha Khatoon, an Indian-based psychologist, working as a counsellor, writer, and CBT trainee, equipped with eclectic psychotherapy, Islamic counsellor, mentoring psychology students, first aid responder, volunteered at the dementia daycare center, accelerator trainee, freelance blogger at ISIP and task force facilitator of the Parenting (Tarbiyah) project at ISIP. Down the lane, I had taken a sudden transition in my career from aiming to become a medical professional to a psychologist. While each individual has a significant role to play, my journey entails how I was on the verge of giving up on myself, but a flicker of hope and faith enabled me to find a home in myself again. I was motivated to find the same hope and home in others’ lives when they are at the edge. It inspired me to heal the soul and minds of individuals beyond their bodies. I am very much keen on observing individual differences and willing to assist people to strengthen their qualities and overcome their shortcomings.

Currently, I am leading a Tarbiyah project at International Students of Islamic Psychology (ISIP), where we are creating book clubs, lectures, and support groups for parents. I have actively organized seminars to facilitate parent-child communication and created awareness about mental health on different platforms.

As a psychologist, I have taken up the responsibility to initiate genuine community mental health facilities. Specifically, those who still consider mental health should be kept at the back of the cupboard, who still feel shame to bring up the topic of their mental health right at the dinner table. It's pertinent to make our community comprehend just like physical pain or injury, mental illness does need our recognition too. Just like knee pain doesn't define the person wholly, mental illness should also be segregated from the identity of the person. It is high time that we need to speak about such stigmas. Having said that, it is earnestly important to comprehend the cultural context, in which instances the community members do require deeper progress in mental well-being.

My earlier experiences taught me that learning about disorders and disabilities could be one thing but meeting clients in person and witnessing the trauma that they had to go through is a different story altogether. A narrative approach has helped me to visualize the world from the patients’ lens. With this knowledge, when a client pulls a chair and sits in front of me, I consider him/her as a creation of Allah before anything else, who deserved to be respected, valued, and heard. Islamic Counseling Level II training has enabled me to get to the core of the fitrah of an individual and work on their potentiality. Spirituality and client-centered are two core approaches I keep at the forefront of my therapy setup.

The supervision sessions have opened broader doors for me to grasp how it is pertinent to focus on “being” for the client rather than “doing” things instantly. Being in this field of psychology for 6 years, with 3.5 years of working experience has opened ways for me to grow and evolve as a person as well.

May Allah make this path of ours more profound and provide Shifa to those who need it.

Services I Offer:

• Mental Health Counselling
• Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)
• Person-Centred therapy coupled with Spiritually oriented psychotherapy
• Eclectic counselling
• Adolescent counselling.
• Communication skills.
• Parenting counselling.
• I work with parents, students, and youth.