More Than Just My Work
I love to laugh, be social, and have a slight obsession with coffee. In my down time you can find me combining my love for all the above, sitting at a coffee shop with a friend or enjoying a nice cup of coffee at home enjoying a good movie. My other passion is traveling. I have spent some time volunteering teaching in China, and a few years living and teaching in Sweden. Living in Sweden I had the pleasure to visit 18 different countries in two years. My mission is to make it to every continent and explore more uncommon destinations. I would say the top 3 most unique travel destinations have been to the Faroe Islands, Reykjavík, and Casablanca.
Zafrin Alam, BA, BEd (BC Secondary School Teacher)
Master of Education in Counseling Intern
Zafrin is finishing her master’s degree in Counseling and holds a BA in Arts with a major in English, and minor in Kinesiology from SFU, and a Bachelor of Education from UBC. She is a Vancouver native, and has been a teacher for 7 years, teaching abroad and presently in the North Vancouver district.
Zafrin enjoys helping youth, adults, in particular people belonging to a minority group and new immigrants. Zafrin is passionate about helping individuals adapt to life stressors by supporting them to combat societal pressures, anxiety, balancing school and work, and lifestyle concerns.
Zafrin is passionate about working with adults of all walks of life and youth who are facing challenges or major transitions and need help navigating them through this difficult endeavor. In a session with Zafrin, you can expect a calm, safe space, inviting smile and warmth to help you create a path forward to uncover your needs. Her experience teaching internationally and across all grades from K-12 has helped her think of inventive ways to help people navigate, communicate and understand their emotions.
“I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”
Gail Tsukiyama said, “Don’t ever think that just because you do things differently, you’re wrong.” Challenges arise when we feel that “difference” can cause disruptions to how we interact with others. Being of Bengali immigrant descent, I know first hand what it feels like for individuals to struggle with fitting in and to be one with society. It is important to remember that we are all unique and should be mindful that we need to love ourselves for who we are and that we have a special place of our own. I want to help individuals of all ages to overcome these challenges and help nurture and cultivate relationships. I want to be that support for the many individuals who are facing anxiety, depression, learning difficulties, and other such challenges in life.
Client Focus
Youth 14+, Individuals
Issues
Anxiety, depression, relationships, communication skills, codependency, stress management and coping skills, identity and self-awareness, fear, and insecurities.
Approaches
Person-Centred, Narrative Therapy, and Client and Solution Focused.
