Therapy for British residents, and British expats around the world
I work one-to-one with teens and adults, specialising in ADHD and autism, mixed culture life; or difficulties arising from gender, sexual or relationship diversity
I will give you a safe and confidential space to explore your difficulties, at your own pace, in your own time
Support around ADHD & autism, mixed culture life, or gender, sexual & relationship diversity
Online counselling is a way for you to get support without the demands or stress of travel, and can be particularly helpful to those who experience sensory overload or have a demanding personal schedule.
I also offer support sessions to parents and educators, to help you create a calmer and more supportive environment for your neurodivergent children and students, and to reduce demands and overload on you.
I have full training and extensive experience in video, audio, and SMS therapy, as well as email.
About me
Nina Shah Gestalt Counsellor Dip. MBACP (Accred.), Reiki Master Level 3
I am a British therapist living in Stockholm, and I continue to work remotely with clients in the UK, and English-speaking clients around the world, both as a therapist and supervisor.
I specialise in issues relating to feeling different for whatever reason, including mixed culture life, neurodivergence (ADHD, autism etc), and gender, sexual and relationship diversity.
I am a UK-accredited Gestalt therapist with 30 years of experience in the fields of mental health and psychology.
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One of the things I`ve become increasingly aware of over the past year is how people`s preferences for communication platforms are changing.
For many years, I connected with clients via WhatsApp, my custom domain email and ProtonMail, and also offered Google Meet and VSee for online sessions. While those options remain available, I`ve noticed that a growing number of people are choosing to move away from WhatsApp for reasons ranging from privacy concerns to simply preferring other platforms.
As someone who works almost entirely online, I think it`s important to adapt to those changes rather than expect clients to adapt to me.
πΏ Offering meaningful choices and making adaptations wherever possible is a key part of how I work, particularly with neurodivergent clients. My practice is grounded in a neuroaffirming approach, which means recognising that there is no one-size-fits-all way of communicating or engaging. If changing the platform helps someone feel more comfortable, more secure or simply better able to engage, that`s an adaptation worth making.
With that in mind, I`m pleased to now offer Signal, Telegram and Wire for both communication and online sessions, and Proton Meet for video calls, alongside my existing options.
Everyone has different priorities when it comes to convenience, security and privacy. My aim is to make it as easy as possible for people to work with me using a platform they already know and feel comfortable with.
β¨ I`m also curious to hear what others are using these days. Have your preferences changed over the past few years? If so, what has influenced your choice of platform - privacy, security, ease of use, features or something else? Are there any platforms you think deserve more attention, or even, that I should consider using also?
#Neuroaffirming #Neurodiversity #DigitalCommunication #Privacy #OnlineTherapy #Telehealth #Accessibility
This weekend, we had planned to go to Stockholm Pride. Instead, we chose something quieter because sensory needs came first for our family. Even so, Pride still matters to me.
I grew up in a family where traditional views on sexuality and gender were the norm. Even as a child, I found myself questioning the certainty with which people judged others, and wondering whether there might be different ways of seeing the world. That curiosity has stayed with me.
Over the past year, conversations with transgender people, parents, and young people figuring out who they are haven`t changed my values - they`ve deepened my understanding.
Two conversations have stayed with me.
πΏ A pre-teen told me that gender isn`t the thing that matters most to him. He sees people for who they are - their personality, their kindness, their character - rather than feeling constrained by labels. This wasn`t a view he`d adopted to fit in; it was one he`d arrived at over a long period of time, in his own way.
πΏ A parent spoke honestly about grieving the future they had imagined for their child. In this case, their child is transgender, but I think the feeling is broader than that. Parents often carry hopes and expectations for their children`s future. Letting go of those expectations can be painful, but grieving the future you imagined isn`t the same as losing your child. They`re still there - the same person, with the same history, and the same capacity to love and be loved.
It`s left me thinking that we are who we are, regardless of the stories or expectations around us. Those stories don`t create our identity. Sometimes they simply give us permission to live more openly as the person we`ve always been.
Happy Pride. π³οΈβπ
#Pride #StockholmPride #LGBTQIA #Inclusion #Belonging #Compassion #Faith #Humanity #Empathy
"Children need to be bored."
It`s one of those parenting βtruthsβ we hear all the time, but in our home, boredom doesn`t lead to creativity. It leads to anxiety, dysregulation, and getting stuck.
When we`re transitioning from one activity to another, we can`t simply say, "Go and find something to do." Our children need support at that crossroads. A few ideas, a little structure, and once something sparks their interest, they`re off - creative, engaged, and independent.
The challenge isn`t creativity. It`s getting started.
It also makes me wonder whether we`re all talking about the same thing when we say boredom.
For me, boredom isn`t peaceful empty space waiting to be filled with imagination. It`s restlessness, indecision, and feeling unable to begin. That`s why having a plan or a few options helps - it isn`t avoiding boredom, it`s using supports that work for my brain.
If "boredom breeds creativity" has never felt true for your family, perhaps give a thought to how boredom feels for you and your family, what it means, and how best to navigate it β while letting go of guilt or shame, and letting go of the old rules we grew up with.
Does boredom inspire creativity in your home, or does it create overwhelm? I`d love to hear your experience. π
#Neurodiversity #Neurodivergent #ADHD #Autism #ExecutiveFunction #Neuroaffirming #Parenting #NeurodivergentParenting #EmotionalRegulation #ChildDevelopment
I chose to take my own advice today, and had a spontaneous swim with my daughter, instead of cutting the grass, doing CPD, or teaching myself video editing. It was glorious, refreshing and much welcomed.
I`m taking half an hour out of my day to truly relax and take a break, and I`m finally starting to work through the books I`ve had in a pile for months.
The freedom to do this - or rather, awarding myself moments of freedom to do this - is glorious.
#reading #bookworm #hibernatingbookworm #hagitude #sharonblackie
"We may sometimes drift through years in which we feel like a negative presence in the world, but we come back again, not only restored, but bringing more than we brought before: more wisdom, more compassion, a greater capacity to reach deep into our roots and know that we will find water."
This.
This, for me, is the most powerful sentence in the whole of Katherine May`s book, Wintering.
This is me.
I have read this aloud to so many over the last week, and every time it brings a well of emotion. Sometimes the fall into and rise from wintering is quick, and sometimes it is slow. I am slowly rising.
#KatherineMay #Wintering @katherinemay_ #retreat #rest
Two sisters (and their two siblings) bought property on this divine island back in the 1960s.
60 odd years later the granddaughters of these two sisters sit and drink tea together, and they - together with their children, the sisters` great grandchildren - all swim and walk and play in the homes they bought.
The thread of sustenance and restoration continues, as does the deep heart connection with this beautiful place.
Connection and belonging matter. Movement matters. A slower pace of life matters. Being in nature matters. And community matters. I am bringing these lessons back to my regular life.
Many people have said to me recently, "You must be celebrating."
Far from it, my friends. We`re recovering.
We`ve now been out of school for one week, and my children will never return to that school. After four difficult years, the impact is still very much with us.
My son`s body still wakes every morning expecting a school day. His heart rate remains elevated, his nervous system still stuck in survival mode. My daughter is in shutdown. And despite constant weekly and daily conversations, both are still processing anxiety, grief, fear and uncertainty.
Leaving a difficult situation doesn`t instantly bring relief, but it does create the space for all the emotions that have been held back to finally surface.
As I write this, I can feel my own grief surfacing too - layers I thought I`d already processed, tears I didn`t expect.
This is the reality for many neurodivergent families when school is not the safe, supportive environment it should be.
Education isn`t just about academic outcomes. It`s about belonging, safety, inclusion and wellbeing. When those foundations are missing, the impact reaches far beyond the classroom.
For every child who is struggling, there is a family carrying that burden alongside them.
We need to do better.
π
This will be my final post before I take a much-needed break for the summer. If you comment or message and I don`t reply for a while, please know I`m not ignoring you - I`m focusing on helping my family (and myself) heal and recover.
Wishing you all a peaceful summer.
#Neurodiversity #Autism #ADHD #InclusiveEducation #EducationalTrauma #SchoolInclusion #MentalHealth #ChildWellbeing #NeurodivergentFamilies #Parenting #EducationMatters #DisabilityInclusion
