Today, Wendy is joined by Dr Sonia Ahmed a counselling psychologist and EMDR therapist who specialises in trauma and South Asian mental health needs. Currently, her focus is on domestic abuse and honour-based abuse such as forced marriages. She also provides online South Asian mental health training for other mental health professionals.

Sonia explains how being sandwiched between two cultures creates personal dilemmas. As does running the risk of shaming your family and/or being ostracised if you do not live in a certain way e.g. agree to an arranged marriage or continue to live with an abusive spouse.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• Many South Asians struggle to get the balance right between doing what is right for them and the need to do what´s right for their family.
• Not shaming your family or community is important in South Asian cultures which can leave some people reluctantly continuing with or entering into a bad marriage.
• Sometimes doing what is right for them means being ostracised from their family and community. Which also strains that person´s mental health.
• Men also get forced into marriages.
• Domestic abuse is a universal issue.
• If you are experiencing domestic abuse you can seek counselling even if you are not planning to leave.

BEST MOMENTS

“Ultimately, if you decide to go on your own, there´s a big risk of being isolated from your family.”

“Just because the family is not with them doesn't mean there isn't other support out there.”

“If you are in a forced marriage, I´m here to support you through that.”

GUEST RESOURCES

info@serepsychology.com and info@southasiantrauma.com

https://www.tiktok.com/@dr.soniaahmed

https://serenepsychology.com

VALUABLE RESOURCES

www.wendycastelino.com

https://www.instagram.com/wendycastelino/

https://www.youtube.com/@wendycastelino798

https://twitter.com/WendyCastelino

ABOUT THE HOST

Wendy Castelino has been working as a psychotherapist for over thirty-five years. As an accredited CBT and EMDR practitioner, she is committed to upholding the rigorous standards required for these accreditations and helping thousands of people reach their full potential.

Wendy currently runs a private practice where her focus is on CBT. Therapy is constantly evolving into developing new techniques, so she studies hard to integrate them into her therapy, to provide a rich and effective experience.

Wendy is aware that working in one-to-one therapy limits the number of people she can see. She has, therefore, created a range of online resources. These resources are designed to be easy to follow and provide clear, step-by-step instructions. This can help the individual to master skills and gain confidence, therefore optimising the therapy sessions. They are also suitable to be used on their own.

Further details are available at: WendyCastelino.com

Podcast Description

Welcome to "Don't Get a Therapist - Yet!" Wendy Castelino, a psychotherapist with over 35 years of experience, aims to support individuals with mental health challenges to achieve their full potential. Although Wendy is passionate about providing individual therapy, there are limitations with this approach. This platform, therefore, is dedicated to offering self-help strategies which are designed to enhance personal well-being. The objective is not to discourage people from accessing therapy but to motivate a broader audience to explore therapeutic resources that are simple and effective to use.