About

 

 

I am a psychotherapist in private practice in Toronto. 

 

As a psychotherapist with a predominantly Lacanian theoretical and clinical orientation, I work with subjects who are interested in examining the hidden questions, perplexities and confusions that afflict various aspects of their lives. The aim of my work is not to provide immediate prefabricated answers to individuals’ dilemmas. Rather, I seek to help my patients confront the central questions of their lives in a more enriched manner by encouraging them to speak without shame, fear or prejudice. I try, to the best of my capabilities, to create for patients an atmosphere where they may put into words experiences that have hitherto remained unspoken. Through lifting the various internal and external barriers to speech, symptoms causing suffering will be lifted in the course of the analytic work. Perseverance and a deep interest in the unconscious mechanisms guiding our lives are central here. 

 

I provide psychoanalytic treatment in the three languages that I speak fluently (English, French and Farsi). It is very important that therapeutic work be conducted in a language in which the patient feels comfortable. The natural barriers and limitations obstructing the expression of emotional life into speech and words are so significant that it is absolutely crucial to work in a language where this difficulty is not worsened.

 

Beyond my clinical practice, I am involved in various psychoanalytic groups (see Links). I have published a number of articles in peer-reviewed journals and have delivered various conference papers (see Research and Publications). I have also given, and continue to give, public lectures in psychoanalytic theory and philosophy (see Public Talks). I am presently involved with research on psychosis. This project will combine philosophical reflections on this question as well as psychoanalytic theory and findings from the clinical experience.

 

My interest in psychoanalysis dates back to my years as an undergraduate student at the University of Toronto. During this time, I worked as an intern at the Clarke Institute of Mental Health (presently known as CAMH) where I obtained my earliest clinical experience. Having completed my Bachelor’s degree with a major in philosophy and two minors in psychoanalytic thought and French literature, I moved to England where I did a Master’s degree in Continental Philosophy at the University of Essex. During this time, I participated in the activities of the prestigious Centre for Psychoanalytic Studies at the University. With the completion of my MA, I realized that my passion for philosophy, both as an undergraduate student in Toronto and as a graduate student in Essex, revolved principally around psychoanalytic theory. As a result, I decided to take my interest in psychoanalysis more seriously by enrolling in a Master’s program in psychoanalytic theory at University College London. During this time, I also gained considerable clinical experience working with adolescents seeking care in their transition to adulthood.

 

After my time in London, I decided to begin doctoral studies at the University of Cambridge. My PhD dissertation, supervised by Professor John Forrester, was concerned with the question of guilt and aggressivity. I focused mainly on the work of Nietzsche, Freud, Lacan and Laplanche. I spent my second year as a PhD student in Berlin where I was a fellow at the Max Planck Institute for the history of science. Besides the scholarly work I engaged in during this time, I made use of this opportunity to learn German so that I could eventually read Freud’s work in the original language.

 

Upon returning to Cambridge, I decided to begin psychoanalytic training at the Centre for Freudian Analysis and Research. This involved attending lectures and continuing my personal analysis, which I had begun a few years earlier. With the completion of my PhD in 2010, I was able to begin concentrating on clinical practice in London. At this time, I acquired my first experiences as a clinician in private practice. Subsequently, I moved to Paris in order to take up postdoctoral work at the Université Paris VII Denis Diderot in the department of psychoanalysis and culture under the supervision of Professor Alain Vanier. I returned to Toronto at the end of my time in Paris. Before setting up my private practice in Toronto, I decided to take up an observer internship at the “388” (a center for the psychoanalytic treatment of psychosis) in Quebec City. This experience fortified my confidence that even the most severe cases of mental illness can be treated through the medium afforded by speech and language.