I'm a Registered Psychotherapist (Qualifying) and a Bengali immigrant. I work with people navigating anxiety, trauma, identity, and the weight of carrying two cultures at once.
I'm Bengali, Bangladeshi by heritage. I grew up in South Asia and lived there for over thirty years before moving to Canada. I know what it is to arrive somewhere new and spend the first years rebuilding a sense of who you are in a different context, carrying the weight of one culture while trying to find your footing in another.
I'm also a single mother. Two of the things people bring to therapy most often are things I've navigated myself. That's not something I advertise as a qualification. It's something that changes the texture of the work, and the distance across the room.
I'm a Registered Psychotherapist (Qualifying) in Ontario, which means I'm a fully trained psychotherapist practising under the supervision required at this stage of registration. I hold a Master of Arts in Counselling Psychology from Yorkville University, a Diploma in Behavioural Science from Seneca College, and membership in the Canadian Counselling and Psychotherapy Association. I work with approaches including CBT, Emotionally Focused Therapy, Internal Family Systems, and trauma-focused methods, drawing on what fits each person.
More about my background and approach →Many of the people I see are carrying two worlds at once. Bengali, Bangladeshi, or South Asian backgrounds, born here or arrived years later, working out what to keep and what to let go. Family expectations that don't translate cleanly. Parents who want one thing, a life pulling another way. I work with these things in English or Bengali, whichever fits. For people who've spent years looking for a therapist who actually shares their cultural and linguistic background, this is that place.
I also see people in Whitby and across Durham Region, and virtually across Canada, working through anxiety, depression, trauma, burnout, or a relationship that's stopped working. Cultural background isn't always the reason someone comes. It doesn't need to be.
My heritage is Bangladeshi. I was born and raised in South Asia and lived there for more than thirty years before immigrating to Canada. Sessions are available in English or Bengali, with Hindi available where it helps. Finding a therapist who genuinely shares your first language and cultural background is rare enough that most people stop looking. This is that place.
Two of the things people most often bring to therapy are things I've moved through myself. That doesn't mean I bring my experience into your sessions. It means there's less to explain, less distance in the room, and more time for the actual work.
Sessions are $150 per hour. If that's genuinely not workable, get in touch. The fee has never been the reason someone doesn't get the help they need.
A short call to talk through what's going on and what kind of support you're looking for. No commitment, no charge. A chance to ask questions and get a sense of whether working together is the right fit.
Fifty minutes, in person at the Whitby office or by video anywhere in Canada. We build a picture of what's most useful to work on. The first session is about understanding your situation, not committing to a plan.
Sessions are typically weekly or fortnightly. There's no fixed programme and no set number. We work at a pace that fits your life, and check in regularly on how things are moving.
Persistent worry, panic, social anxiety, or a general sense of tension that makes it hard to feel settled. We look at where it's coming from, not just how to manage the symptoms.
Events or experiences that continue to affect how you function and respond in the present. Trauma-focused work moves at a pace you control, without pressure to revisit more than you're ready for.
Persistent low energy, loss of interest, or a flatness that won't lift on its own. We work on what's underneath it, not just the surface symptoms.
Exhaustion that rest doesn't fix. Pressure from work, family, or circumstance that's built up to the point where it's affecting how you function.
Moving between cultures, roles, or phases of life. Questions about who you are and what you're building toward, especially when the map you were given doesn't fit the territory.
Communication that's broken down, recurring conflict, or a partnership that needs outside perspective to find its way forward. I work with couples as well as individuals on relationship questions.
Bangladeshi by heritage, Bengali by language and culture. I grew up in South Asia and moved to Canada after thirty years there. Sessions are available in English or Bengali, with no need to translate your experience into a language that doesn't quite fit.
Learn more → South Asian · All of Canada · Virtual sessionsFamily pressure, intergenerational expectation, identity between cultures, the particular loneliness of not quite fitting either world. I work with people from across South Asia navigating these things, with cultural context built into the work rather than treated as background noise.
Learn more →Finding a therapist who speaks Bengali and actually understands what that means culturally is harder than it sounds. I spent years putting this off because I didn't think I'd find someone who got it. Within a few sessions I was covering things I hadn't been able to talk about in English. I recommend Syeda to anyone in the Bengali community who's been sitting on this.
I'd tried two other therapists before this. Syeda is the first one where I felt like we were actually getting somewhere rather than just talking around things. Three months in, I sleep better than I have in years. The online sessions worked out much better than I expected.
I came in thinking I needed to talk about my relationship. What we actually worked on turned out to be older than that. Six weeks in, things had already shifted. Syeda doesn't rush you but she also doesn't let you go in circles. I hadn't expected to feel any different this quickly.
In-person sessions are at 519 Dundas Street East, Whitby. Virtual sessions by video or phone are available to anyone in Canada, with no requirement to be in the area.
The first step is a 15-minute call. We talk through what's going on, you get a sense of how I work, and we decide together whether it's a good fit. No commitment, no charge.