Dr. Fahad Rahman

Qualification: Master’s degree in Clinical Psychology from Columbia University. MPhil at the University of Cambridge. DPhil (PhD) from the University of Oxford studying the ways culture and religion impacts mental health—positively and negatively. Offers Individual counseling for adults “In order to change, people need to become aware of their sensations and the way that their bodies interact with the world around them. Physical self-awareness is the first step in releasing the tyranny of the past.” Bessel van der Kolk—The Body Keeps the Score. I have a Master’s degree in Clinical Psychology from Columbia University and a MPhil at the University of Cambridge followed by a DPhil (PhD) from the University of Oxford studying the ways culture and religion impacts mental health—positively and negatively. I have experience with counselling in university contexts in USA, UK, and Pakistan; mental health advocacy at the United Nations; and university-level psychology and sociology teaching in Pakistan (LUMS) and the UK (SOAS, University of London). I am currently London-based and work as a Postdoctoral research affiliate at the University of Oxford focused on mental health and inclusive Muslim communities in the UK. Through these experiences I have developed an expertise around issues of trauma and marginalization among South Asian people resulting from actual or perceived nonconformity in beliefs, identities, behaviours, relationships, and life goals. I help people recover meaning, belonging, and purpose, particularly women, people of colour, immigrants, LGBTQIA+ people, people with disabilities, and religious​​/​​spiritual minorities (including atheists, agnostics, and nonconformist Muslims). I tailor therapy according to individual needs and employ mindfulness and compassion-based methods that are holistic, i.e., focus on employing techniques that target different aspects of a person: their body, emotions, thoughts, relational​​/​​cultural selves, and their sense of ‘Higher Self’. I focus on the following areas: Trauma, anxiety, depression, procrastination, shame, loneliness, self-esteem issues, lack of meaning and purpose, fear, guilt, rumination, sexual and relationship issues, and stress management. I work with clients based in Pakistan as well as internationally and offer online therapy sessions.