Culturally sensitive online psychotherapy for newcomers in North York, whether you settled near Jane and Finch, in Flemingdon Park or along Yonge. Sessions in English and Farsi. Available across Ontario.
Roya is booking now. Ghazal is booking by waitlist (3–4 weeks).
For many people, North York is where life in Canada begins. Settlement workers meet newcomers in its schools and libraries, and its neighbourhoods hold families from many countries. And yet the experience of being an immigrant here often feels isolating. Finding your people takes longer than you expect, and the pressure to establish yourself financially, often starting several rungs below the work you did before, can crowd out the emotional work of settling in. Many newcomers spend years adapting on the outside while quietly struggling on the inside.
Ghazal immigrated to Canada from Iran and has worked with immigrants and refugees from all over the world: the Middle East, South Asia, East Africa, Latin America, Eastern Europe, and beyond. She doesn't just understand the theory. She knows the loneliness of starting over, the grief of distance, and the quiet courage it takes to build a new life.
Therapy that respects your cultural background, family values, and the complexity of navigating two worlds, without pathologizing your experience.
Sessions in English and Farsi (فارسی), or a mix of both. Express yourself in whichever language feels right.
Schema therapy, CBT, and emotion-focused techniques, grounded in research and tailored to your unique story.
Talk about what brought you here, ask questions, and see if it feels right. No pressure.
Together, we'll identify what's weighing on you most and build a path forward using proven therapeutic approaches.
60-minute online sessions from anywhere in Ontario. Consistent, confidential, flexible.
Insurance receipts provided. Many extended health plans cover psychotherapy with a Registered Psychotherapist. Ghazal holds the Registered Psychotherapist (Qualifying) designation, so please confirm your plan covers it.
Free 15-minute consultation available. Receipts provided after each session for submission to your extended health insurance plan.
Book a free 15-minute consultation. No commitment, no pressure. Online, in English or Farsi, from anywhere in North York.
Or call (647) 699-5142 · WhatsApp · Email
Calls and messages aren’t monitored for emergencies. If you are in immediate danger, call 911. If you are in crisis, call or text 988, the Suicide Crisis Helpline, available 24/7.
NoorMinds provides virtual therapy for immigrants to residents throughout Ontario. Select your city to learn more:
More than half of the people in the North York Community Council area are immigrants, according to the City's 2021 Census profile. In Willowdale about 60% of residents were born outside Canada, and roughly seven in ten belong to a visible minority group. But North York is not one community. Jane and Finch, Flemingdon Park, Don Mills, Bathurst Manor and Willowdale each have their own mix of languages, faiths and histories of arrival, and a newcomer's first years look different depending on where they land. Some arrive to a ready network of relatives and a place of worship; others know no one within an hour's travel.
The practical side of settling has dedicated services here. North York Community House offers settlement support in more than 30 languages, and ACCES Employment offers job-search and career support that many internationally trained professionals use. York University and Seneca's Newnham Campus bring international students to the district as well. What those services are not built for is the inner side: the grief of leaving, the tiredness of starting at the bottom of a career you once led, the homesickness that arrives on holidays, and the way family roles shift when a child speaks English better than a parent.
International students and people on temporary permits carry an extra layer: tuition and grades that decide whether you can stay, family at home who sacrificed to send you, and a future that depends on applications still in process. It is common to feel you cannot afford to struggle because so much rides on getting through, and that belief is itself worth talking about. For families who sponsored parents to join them, a different strain appears: three generations under one roof, and old roles that no longer fit.
Ghazal Sheikhtaheri, Registered Psychotherapist (Qualifying), CRPO #21300, is an Iranian immigrant and has worked with immigrants and refugees from many parts of the world, using Schema Therapy and an emotion-focused way of listening. The grief and transitions that come with moving countries are also part of Roya Dadollahi Sarab's work as an RP. Every session happens by video, in English, Farsi or a mix, which lets it sit around English classes, job searches or shifts anywhere in North York. A first conversation costs nothing and can happen in either language.
These are independent services, not affiliated with NoorMinds, that newcomers and students in North York may find useful alongside or between sessions.
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