A life-long passion for helping and healing others has led Devyani to pursue a career in counselling.

Devyani started her career wanting to be a school guidance counsellor but felt she should first gain experience working with children. With an undergraduate degree in Sociology paired with an Early Childhood Education Diploma, Devyani began working with children and at-risk youth.

Experiencing the day to day lives of these children, supporting them and helping them navigate their day to day life by supporting them through challenging and rewarding times. Guiding them through questions they had about “fitting in” or their experiences thus far.

She came to realize that many of these children would go off to middle school and high school and would still need a supportive environment in other to thrive. This led Devyani to pursue further education in the field of Mental Health and Addictions. Many of the children Devyani worked with, were exposed to the “street life” as they called it and expressed that there was peer-pressure to try different drugs or engage in certain activities which they were not comfortable with.

Devyani went on to work in the field of Addictions, working with both the inner-city population and in the private sector with more affluent clients. It was here that she really understood the meaning of “meeting clients where they’re at”. Everyone has a different journey, different circumstances and no-one way is the right way. This solidified Devyani’s “client centered approach” and “narrative approach” to counselling.

As someone of South Asian Origin, Devyani understands what it means to try to balance the duality of the North American lifestyle with opposing cultural norms, and the anxieties and hardships which may come with this. However, these experiences shaped her world-view and ability to understand the importance of Mental Health support in the South Asian community (and other cultures where Mental Health is not given priority.

Now, as an RP-Q, Devyani works with clients from all walks of life and cultural backgrounds, who struggle with various mental health concerns, physical trauma, and emotional obstacles. Devyani believes that it is the client who knows their situation best, and the purpose of the counsellor/therapist is to guide and support the client to identify and fulfil their goals to live as their best possible self.

A life-long passion for helping and healing others has led Devyani to pursue a career in counsell... Read More

Dr. Gursharan Virdee is a clinician, researcher and mental health equity advocate. She received her Doctorate in Psychology from the University of London (UK) and pursued a career in Clinical and Counseling Psychology in Ontario, Canada. Dr. Virdee works with adults and adolescents experiencing mood and anxiety disorders, psychosis, addictions, self-harm and trauma. She has worked in settings ranging from tertiary inpatient services to community mental health teams and not-for-profit organizations.

Dr. Virdee works from an anti-oppressive and trauma-informed lens and seeks to empower individuals, communities, and systems to improve holistic wellbeing. She is trained in several evidence-based therapies, including cognitive behavioral therapies, mindfulness-based therapies, dialectical behavior therapy, cognitive adaptation training, cognitive remediation training and motivational interviewing. Dr. Virdee has a special interest in culturally-appropriate treatments and can provide treatment in Punjabi. She is also a sought-after speaker, trainer, consultant, and media commentator.

As an international expert in South Asian mental health, Dr. Virdee’s research focuses on expanding the understanding of mental health recovery for diverse communities, specifically immigrant and racialized communities. She currently leads The Roshni Project, a multi-phase research and knowledge mobilization project focused on young South Asian women experiencing mood and anxiety disorders. She is also an Adjunct Lecturer at the University of Toronto and a Collaborator Scientist at CAMH.

Her vision is to create a community of support to facilitate powerful “whole-self” healing accessible to all.

Dr. Gursharan Virdee is a clinician, researcher and mental health equity advocate. She received h... Read More