Life of Courage Counseling, LLC. 

About Me

My life journey began in the war-torn South Asian country of Sri Lanka, a society riddled with abject poverty, political violence, and war. After winning a US Diversity Visa, my family moved to the US, and I came of age in Washington State as a first-generation immigrant. Extensive international travel during my student days at the University of Washington, Seattle, showed me the dire need for widespread access to mental health services. After serving in the US Peace Corps in Botswana during the height of the HIV/AIDS epidemic and experiencing the intense need for mental health services, I returned to Seattle determined to become a mental health counselor. For eleven years, I have provided mental health and social work services to diverse populations with severe and persistent mental health and substance misuse issues in community mental health settings, including Downtown Emergency Service Center and Harborview Medical Center.

The human spirit's resilience and ability to overcome incredible difficulties have long fascinated me. Likewise, I am inspired daily to be a client-centered and trauma-informed therapist by my clients' immense capacity to heal and find their best selves despite their challenges. The client–therapist relationship is the guiding light of effective therapy. Therefore, I provide every client with a therapeutic milieu of collaboration, compassion, and unconditional positive regard to create a safe space to work through issues. 

In addition, as a South Asian American, immigrant, and cisgender female with an invisible disability, I honor and understand the intersectionality of my clients' identities and how these may affect their experiences and healing journeys. My therapeutic approaches are rooted in cognitive-behavioral and psychodynamic theories. Together, we can heal by developing insights and learning new skills to improve our resilience and become our best selves.