MY STORY
ABOUT
There was a time when I felt my existence was an anomaly.
I felt no one could understand the whole of me. I learned to separate my culture, religion, and womanhood and only show up as part of myself at school, in my career, and in relationships. I eliminated the work for other people in getting to know me. I simply presented as what I thought would be easiest for them to digest.
In this, I made myself small, fed into toxic dynamics, and led an unbalanced life. This stress and strain were reinforced in therapy as I learned that fragmenting my identity helped my therapist to help me. As a therapist in therapy, I understood that without being able to attend to the whole of me, there was no sustainable progress.
This is when a transformation in my professional practice and personal perspective happened. I wondered if I was holding space for others to show up fully or was I perpetuating a ferocious cycle that even I found myself a casualty of. This consciousness and awareness was my first step. I then dug my heels into understanding how to provide care that was decolonized, holistic, and considerate.
After coming to understand how my lack of ability to identify my protective factors and utilize coping skills contributed to my unmet needs I decided to seek therapy. It was through the therapeutic process I began to steadily unravel old habits, build up my whole self and make intentional changes for the better.
YOUR NEW THERAPIST
Dr. Dominique Shabazz is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and Professor
She earned her doctorate and masters in Social Work where she has learned advanced clinical skills to promote social justice as an expert clinical practitioner and facilitator of learning. Dominique has also received specialized training, in which she has conducted highly effective evaluations.
Education
Dominique has been working in social work for over a decade and held positions within hospitals, government agencies, and higher education institutions such as Yale University and Springfield College (Massachusetts). Dominique has lent her expertise as a consultant for the likes of NY NPR, and community agencies and as a board member for non-profit social service organizations.
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Dominique’s passion includes providing culturally competent care to both therapy clients and students within her course rooms. As the owner of a private practice, her focus is to help individuals overcome, find balance, and connect with themselves through the support of modalities such as Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Dialectical Behavioral Therapy, Emotional Freedom Technique, and Mindfulness Therapy.
