Natasha Sohail Barlas
MS in Applied Educational Psychology and CAGS in School Psychology | Northeastern University | Fulbright Scholar
Considering I work with a vast range of clients, from children to young adults as well as parents, I focus on providing therapy tailored to my clients’ needs. For children, I actively create a safe yet fun space for them while I teach them social, behavior and emotion regulation skills. I work with adolescence and young adults struggling with academic anxiety and lack of motivation. For parents, I strive to build a collaborative relationship to facilitate them in navigating their parental hurdles and together, we work towards the betterment of their children.
I truly believe that getting your children the help they need to understand and manage their emotions better while building healthy coping mechanisms can benefit their personal (and even academic) development. My hope for working with children and their parents is to give both the right set of tools to navigate any distressing situation.
In my experience with working with children, their emotional and behavioral distress can result from a series of underlying concerns that they might not be able to verbalize like adults can. These concerns span from a child’s struggle to regulate overwhelming emotions like anger, anxiety, and sadness, to external circumstances like bullying, parental discord, family loss and many more. My goal in therapy is to help my clients explore what they are experiencing and then to develop coping skills to work through these distressing situations.
Therapy Approach:
- One to one therapy for children and adolescence: Depending on the child’s age and needs, they may benefit from frequent sessions where I can help them understand their concerns or teach them the right tools to engage in appropriate behavior and clear understanding and expression of their emotion
- Therapy for Young Adults: For young adults, I specifically work with academic anxiety and distress. Together, we will work towards understanding your concerns and develop skills to better handle academic stressors.
- Group therapy: Sometimes children benefit from working in a group and learn social skills through role modeling and cooperative play
- Parent consultation: Often, the child does not need to come to therapy, but the parents need support and advice on how to best manage a situation. In such a case, I hold frequent sessions with the parent where I provide them resources and skills on managing their concerns, conduct regular feedback, and troubleshoot our approach to help the child
- Parent therapy: I acknowledge being a parent is rewarding but challenging. As a developmental specialist, I help parents understand their child’s development and the best parenting style that can foster a healthy relationship between the child and the parent
Special Interests:
- Social skills
- Emotional regulation
- Anxiety
- Self esteem
- Depression
- Attachment and Relationships
- Trauma and childhood abuse
- Grief and Bereavement
- Body Image and eating disorders
- Children who are on the spectrum
- ADHD
- Navigating divorce of family disturbance
- Learning disabilities
- Parental guidance/counseling
- Career guidance and exploration
- Group social skills
- Mindful and meditative practices
Credentials:
- MS in Applied Educational Psychology and CAGS in School Psychology from Northeastern University
- Nationally Certified School Psychologist (NCSP)
- Registered Behavior Therapist in training (RbT)
Current Positions
- Educational and Behavioral Psychologist at Zaaviyah Mental Health
- Teaching faculty in the Psychology Department,
- Project Lead for leadership development in Office of Student Affairs, LUMS LUMS
Further Awards
- Recipient of the Fulbright Masters Scholarship (2016)
- Recipient of the LUMS Vice Chancellor Award for Excellence in Service (2022)
Publications
- Barlas, N. S., Sidhu, J., & Li, C. (2021). Can social-emotional learning programs be adapted to schools in Pakistan? A literature review. International Journal of School & Educational Psychology, 1-15.
- Sidhu, J., Barlas, N., & Lifter, K. (2020). On the Meanings of Functional Play: A Review and Clarification of Definitions. Topics in Early Childhood Special Education, 0271121420951859
Past Experience
- Career Counselor at Classic School Systems (2019-2022) and Beaconhouse School Systems (2015-2016)
- Set up the Student Advising, Success and Wellbeing Initiative at LUMS (2020-Present)
- School Psychologist Intern at Behavioral and Educational Solutions, Washington DC, USA (2018-2019)
- School Psychologist Practicing student at Brooks Elementary School, Boston, USA (2017-2018)
- Certifications in Behavior Therapy techniques (in process); Child and School Counseling (2022); School Crisis Management (2017);