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Supporting Teens: Meet the Team!

Last week we announced our workshop on Supporting Teens and the response was great! So great in fact, that it has almost completely filled up – so if you are caring for a teen, make sure you sign up fast HERE.

Introducing Our Presenters

We are lucky to have some amazing experts at the NZ Muslim Psychologists Collective (NZMPC) who are dedicated to helping our community. And it doesn’t hurt that they are long time friends of Nawawi Center! In fact, the two clinical psychologists heading this workshop also ran the wellbeing sessions at our Hawaa Girls Camp earlier this year.

Dr Shaystah Dean is a Clinical Psychologist working with people of all ages in her private practice. Much of her clinical work involves supporting people in difficult times, helping make sense of what is happening for them, and offering strategies to enhance wellbeing. Her experience is in the area of child, adolescent, and adult mental health, offending, suicide prevention, and couples therapy. While born in Hamilton and raised in multicultural Auckland, Shaystah now calls Wellington home where she is actively involved in its Muslim community.

Zeenah Adam was born and raised in Wellington and has held many voluntary roles including teaching, counselling, workshop facilitation, resource development, advocacy, and events coordination. She is a cross-cultural, Clinical Psychologist, currently working across a diverse range of areas including mental health and wellbeing, pain and brain injury rehabilitation, intercultural awareness and adaptation. Zeenah has previously worked in Youth services, youth education and child and adolescent mental health service.

Sheikh Haamid, one of our very own local scholars from Dar Al Quran (Auckland), is also on hand to provide the Islamic context in supporting teenagers in New Zealand. Although he was born in Auckland, Sheikh Haamid trained in Egypt and then Yemen where he spent several years in the renowned Dar Al Mustafa Seminary before returning to New Zealand and qualifying as a lawyer. Sheikh Haamid lives in Auckland with his wife and works as a mediator, whilst also teaching youth at Dar al Quran.

What Can I Expect?

This workshop is for parents (and young adults) who are supporting teenagers as they work through the difficult emotions, differing experiences and reactions to grief in post-March Christchurch. This is an opportunity for you to:

  • discuss how to support your teenagers post-March in a NZ Muslim context
  • explore Islamic perspectives on dealing with grief, loss and supporting children
  • learn from other parents’ experiences
  • better understand the Nawawi Center’s work with youth

Running parallel to the parents workshop is a group session for high-school aged boys and girls. In separate sessions, young ones will participate in an interactive group therapy session with trained EMDR psychologists. Lunch and games will be provided after!

SPACE IS LIMITED! REGISTER HERE