Dr. Ginneh Akbar

Life burning down around you? Cool, grab a seat. Cry, laugh, drop a few F-bombs. You’re safe here. Welcome to therapy! I’m a therapist a professor, and a real human who’s lived through real things. I don’t do this work from a distance. I’ve moved through anxiety and depression. I’ve grieved the loss of people I love. I’ve gone through divorce. I’m raising a child with special needs... and all of that shapes how I show up for you. In my therapy space, we slow down. We breathe. We talk honestly. We laugh sometimes. We grieve sometimes. And we make room for the parts of you that you’ve had to hide to survive.

I’m a licensed psychotherapist with 20 years of experience, and I’ve dedicated my career to walking alongside children, teens, adults, and families, especially those impacted by trauma. My experiences are around helping people heal from anxiety, burnout, perfectionism, and complex family dynamics.

I bring a unique combination of clinical expertise, academic training, and lived experience to the therapy space. My goal is to help clients move into a life that feels grounded, balanced, and true to who they are. I’m passionate about creating a safe, affirming space where people can heal, grow, and feel seen.

My approach is all about you. I practice from a client-centered, strengths-based perspective, and I look at your whole life: mind, body, culture, spirit, and community. I’m fat-positive, sex-positive, kink-friendly, and identity-affirming. I’m also progressive and deeply committed to social justice, because I believe therapy should honor both your inner world and the systems around you.

Going to therapy can be scary. You’re pouring your life out to someone you don’t know. You’re sharing things you’ve never said out loud. That takes vulnerability. Folks trust me to hold some of the most complicated parts of their lives. It’s an honor and I want to be a good vessel for that, someone who holds your story with compassion, without judgement.

In our first session, my goal is to create a calm conversational space where you can share what brings you to therapy and what you hope to get out of it. We’ll talk about your history, relationships, and any patterns you’ve noticed that may be contributing to your stress or emotional struggles. I’ll ask questions to understand your story in context: your culture, values, and experiences, and together we’ll begin identifying goals for our work. You can expect me to be curious, and collaborative. I don’t rush the process or focus solely on “fixing” symptoms. Instead, I help you understand the why behind your feelings and behaviors so you can respond differently over time.