Psychotherapist and a Certified Compassionate Inquiry Practitioner, trained & personally mentored by Dr. Gabor Maté- with a specialty in Trauma work, Medicine Ceremony Integration, and Somatic Therapy.
My Approach
I deeply believe that the real healing from trauma only begins when we truly feel held, heard and accepted in exactly where we are.
To find our way back to our true essence and our authentic expression, we must heal the disconnection from self that we experienced early in life.
In my work, we recover and heal this disconnection within the safety of an undivided and unconditionally loving presence that I am able and trained to offer.
My Story
I was born and raised in Iran.
As a woman growing up within the new Islamic regime of Iran, from the age of 9 I was forced to cover my hair outside and was no longer allowed to ride a bike, swim in the ocean, dance or sing. I used to cut my hair really short and pretend I am a boy, until I reached puberty, and could no longer disguise my femininity.
At age 13, I watched my father die in his bed from a heart attack in his sleep. As we watched the medics pull the sheet over his face, my mother began screaming and punching in disbelief, and I started running wildly around the house. My body was numb and my mind went blank.
When I turned 15, we immigrated to Canada with my mom and my 2 siblings, leaving behind our land and everyone and everything we knew, trying to make home in what has felt like a whole other world, hoping for a brighter future.
I began high school in Vancouver one month later, with only a few words of English. I also started working as a cashier at a gas station to provide for myself and support my mother. As scary and confusing as this was, at this point I had already learned really well to block my emotions and be a high-functioning human amongst high levels of stress. I graduated high school as one of the top students and went straight into university, while working full time jobs.
It has taken a lot of healing and deep personal work to regain my touch with my emotions.
I was battling with a deep depression by the time I was in my late teenage years. I remember the day when walking to my class in university my legs felt so heavy that I could no longer move my body, it became clear to me that bottled up emotions were at the root of these issues, and I could not go on that way anymore.
I started working with a therapist while also searching for modalities to help me in this deep ongoing path of healing. I immersed myself in Buddhism, meditation and yoga practices which allowed me to find my breath for the very first time. I still to this day remember the moment when I realized I could be in the present moment without the need to run, fight, or find a solution for things. What a liberation!
My Training
For the past 15 years, I have dedicated my life to healing and recovering my authentic essence, and have made it my mission to help and guide others to do the same work. I have studied, traveled and lived for extended times in many parts of the world, and I support my clients with the tools I have gathered along the way.
I am a Certified Compassionate Inquiry Practitioner, trained & personally mentored by Dr. Gabor Mate. This is the method I have found to be incredibly helpful in finding the roots of trauma and their role in our daily life. Aside from my schooling with him, I have had the honor of supporting Dr. Mate in driving him to his talks and really dedicating my energy and attention to learning his deeply impactful way of working with people, by his side.
I have a Psychology degree from Simon Fraser University in BC, Canada.
I am a certified Yoga and Meditation Teacher and have supported numerous yoga teacher trainings in different parts of the world.
7 years ago I started learning and training with an elder grandmother in Oaxaca, Mexico about the ways of the Temazcal/Sweat Lodge. I continue this form of prayer and connection to the earth with the indigenous people of the north.
I have been walking with and receiving guidance with the sacred medicine of Ayahuasca for over 8 years now. The first time I heard about Ayahuasca 10 years ago, I had an absolute knowing inside that this medicine is meant to be a part of my life. My first 3 ceremonies were in a retreat with Dr. Gabor Maté being the integration support pre and post medicine. I have continued walking and receiving guidance very deeply with the Grandmother medicine, mainly within the traditions of the Shipibo people of Peru, and also with Colombian elders.
I started walking with the medicine of Peyote first with the Wixarika native people of Mexico about 6 years ago, and continue to learn with them to this day.
Around the same time, I also met the Peyote tipi ceremonies within the traditions of the first nation people of the North. I have had the honor of being adopted into their families, taken in as a daughter, sister, and auntie to the children within the Dene, Cree, and Navajo people of the north. I continue to humbly learn with and partake in these traditional ceremonies and walk the Red Road- the respectful path of life, as inspired by some of the beliefs found in a variety of Native American spiritual teachings.
I offer medicine songs in Spanish, English, and North American Native languages in ceremonial settings. I have studied the traditional dance and songs of Iran and perform in my mother tongue, Farsi.
It has been a long and deep journey to move through the blocks of shame, fear, and restrictions I was forced to put on my voice and movement as a woman, especially in Iran. The process of freeing my voice has been one of the most powerful gifts of healing I have been able to offer to myself and others.
These experiences, and the people and communities that have supported me deeply in reconnecting with my true essence, have given me incredible tools in holding space for others on their path of healing.
My Work
In a session with you, I work primarily within the framework of Compassionate Inquiry, in conjunction with sacred plant medicine, somatic therapy, and other practices.
I offer support in the preparation and the integration of plant medicine ceremonies in a 1:1 or group settings.
Fluent in 3 languages: Farsi, English and Spanish, I work with you, in your native language, to gently unlock the suppressed emotions and the memories of unresolved traumas that are stored in the system and have created fundamental beliefs and patterns in your life.
This process can be a direct gateway to releasing un-serving patterns in your life, and opening the path for reconnection to your authenticity and pure essence.
Contact Me
Life can get hard sometimes, and we are truly not meant to do this alone. I am here for you.
To find out more about my work, please check:
Website: www.beheldcounselling.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/Beheldcounselling
If you would like to chat with me, please contact me through my website or:
Email: atiyeh.b@gmail.com
WhatsApp: +1 (604) 783-8525