Chronic Stress & Burnout
As humans, we are built to be more anxious than calm!
It’s evolutionary – simply put, the more anxious you feel, the more cautious you’ll be, meaning you’ll take fewer risks that may put you in harm’s way, so you’ll survive longer!
Our mind is built to try and find meaning and structure in a chaotic, uncertain and ever-changing world. We love to make predictions about the future and plan for it. It lets us feel a semblance of control in our lives, relationships and surroundings.
But, what happens when the world, life, relationships and our circumstances change in ways that we didn’t anticipate or plan for? What if we step into a place, situation or relationship that we know very little about?
Burnout & Chronic Stress
You try to do it all, juggle it all and it's getting harder and more overwhelming to keep up with things! You’ve been pushed above and beyond your capacity – you’re feeling exhausted, unwell and irritable. You can't concentrate and you feel unproductive, disconnected and disengaged. You feel like you have nothing to give to your loved ones, yourself or anything else, for that matter! And, yet, you keep pushing forward… It feels like you’re stuck on a hamster-wheel that you just can’t escape! And, if you hear one more person tell you to “self-care”, you’re going to scream! Whose got the time? It’s just another thing to add to your to-do list!
Performance Anxiety, Imposter Syndrome & Perfectionism
You’re goal-oriented and a high achiever! You pride yourself on delivering high quality work, whether you’re writing an essay or a report, delivering a presentation, performing in a play or sporting event, or making something for an upcoming bake sale or dinner party. You love it when someone looks at your work and has “no notes”! So the thought of getting “feedback” makes your stomach turn, because deep down you feel that “feedback = failure”! Even when you get “compliments”, it irks you just as much as getting “feedback”, because you think to yourself: “They just don’t know how flawed I am yet!”
You start to doubt yourself and second guess your work. What if what you produce isn’t what they’re looking for? Everything you do just doesn’t feel good enough, yet! You become overwhelmed and paralyzed by fear! Then comes the procrastination, so you keep beating yourself up, trying to hide from the world, and feeling more and more stuck!
You look at your confident peers with envy and resentment. You fear that you just can’t live up to your own (and perhaps others’) high standards and you’ll get found out any day now. Life feels full of pressure and it’s suffocating!
Learn and practise different ways to be gentle with yourself and stay with, cope with & accept chaos, uncertainty, unknowns & imperfections in your life, work and relationships.
This will go a long way in helping you feel more balanced, grounded, confident, and better able to deal with whatever may come your way.
My fee for Individual Counselling is $180 / hr.
*Sessions are up to 1 hour. Short-term & long-term counselling available in English or Farsi. Services are provided through a secure video portal or by phone.
**If you’re a part-time or full-time Post-Secondary Student or you’re currently Unemployed / Precariously Employed, ask about the availability of $100 discounted spots**
I specialize in working with women (ages 18-55), gender-diverse, queer and trans folks (2SLGBTQIA+), people of colour (BIPOC), first & second generation immigrants, neurodivergent folks, students, professionals and entrepreneurs.