Philosophy
The process of finding the right therapist isn't easy, and it's a brave choice to embark on the journey towards healing, insight, and growth. A relationship with an emotionally-attuned therapist can be life-changing. Feeling deeply heard and able to trust your therapist is essential.
I believe that an empathic relationship between the therapist and patient is vital for lasting change, and that attention to the social, cultural, and political context in which you live is deeply important for treatment. I also believe that understanding unconscious patterns and internal conflicts, when slowly and carefully uncovered, can help individuals to relieve current distress while fostering deep psychological growth by shifting long-standing patterns that no longer serve them.
More formally, this means I primarily practice from a culturally-sensitive, psychodynamic orientation, while tailoring my approach to each patients’ unique needs.
The goal of treatment is not only symptom reduction, but also greater flexibility, freedom, choice in life. My approach to psychotherapy is supported by contemporary research in neuroscience and evidence-based psychotherapy research.
In addition to being a psychotherapist, I am dedicated to fostering the growth of future psychologists while serving as an adjunct professor to doctoral students in clinical psychology.
Background & Training
I received my doctorate in clinical psychology from the PGSP-Stanford Psy.D. Consortium and my master’s degree in experimental psychology from Wake Forest University. Prior to my graduate training in psychology, I received both a BA in English Literature and a B.S. in Psychobiology at UCLA.
I completed my pre-doctoral internship at Richmond Area Multi-Services (RAMS) and my post-doctoral fellowship at the VA San Francisco Medical Center, both of which were APA-Accredited training sites.
I have experience conducting brief and long-term psychotherapy and psychological assessment in academic medical centers, Veteran's Affairs medical centers, community mental health, and college counseling settings.
Prior to clinical training in psychotherapy, I served as a full-time research assistant at multiple labs in the fields of affective neuroscience, mood disorders, and developmental psychology. I have co-authored multiple journal articles in peer-reviewed journals.
I also have formal educational training in both literature and classical music performance, having completed graduate work at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. I have sung professionally in in the San Francisco Symphony Chorus and continue to sing with groups around the Bay Area. My background in literature and music deeply inform my work as a psychologist.
Fluent in Bengali and the daughter of immigrants from India, I am fascinated by language, culture, and historical forces that shape the self.