From Law to Healing Minds: The Journey of Advocate-Turned-Psychologist Priya Anandan

I wanted to become a psychologist to help people and positively impact their lives. I was always interested in human behavior and motivations, and as I began to seek more information, I was convinced that psychology would be my career.
Being a mental health professional was a life long dream.

 I was Practicing law ..and  I had to visit  a few psychologists for a case  I was involved in. The experience reminded me how much I had enjoyed the journey  and it inspired me to pursue my post-graduate education in psychology.

Mrs.Priya Anandan . 
Founder of : Breathe'n counselling & wellbeing 
Shine on child development center
Shine on special school for intellectually challenged children 
Advocate / Psycologist 
Certified Clinical Psychologist
Certified parenting expert.
Certified Special educator.

Having 10+ years of experience in counselling ....with 2000 success full clients

 I use a range of psychological therapies to suit the needs of individuals. I use Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) and Solution Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT), Motivational Interviewing (MI), and Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT).

I provide psychological therapy for a wide range of mental health problems such as:

Depression
Postnatal depression
Anxiety disorders
Social Anxiety
Panic Disorder
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD)
Psychosis
Emotion regulation difficulties
Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) for single or multiple traumas
Trauma following a physical health problem such as cancer
Trauma following childbirth
Combat Trauma
Addictions 

The art of my approach  involves understanding each client as a unique person  with their own strength and challenges and then selecting research based techniques  from across different types of therapy in order to help a client grow in a meaningful way.I aim to tailor my techniques to what is best suited for the client.I have a profound  experience of helping clients to develop the tools needed to improve their mental health and manage problems more effectively.

I started my counselling center  Breathin' at 2013 ..I needed a space where my client s could feel safe to talk out their issues 

Having patience, being  humble and open to new experiences, and asking lot of questions. Helps me a lot 

I don’t tell people what to do.  Asking the right questions and knowing how far people can be encouraged to change is the “art” of consultation. Change is the most difficult thing a person can ever be asked to do.

For myself and other committed psychologists, every session is like a chess game. I am 100 percent fully focused during what is always an intense hour. And non-therapy tasks are also part of any mental health professional’s day.

Of course, burn out is a concern. But, like most mental health professionals, I monitor my own life choices. Spending time with family and friends helps me combat burn out.

My personal experience makes me a bit more relatable and credible. Empathy and therapeutic skills always trump personal experience.

When someone changes his/her life and achieves personal goals, and you’re instrumental in these efforts, it’s an incredible privilege. I learn from each of my clients – and that’s an opportunity I treasure.

I don't charge fees for their first consultation even if it's more than an hour..c it humanity or whatever ..I feel I cannot ask money for just sharing their problem's with me ..I charge only when they have to start a session ....

I provide local private therapy for client s based in Chennai and Puducherry, I work from my  clinic room located in Porur Chennai Breathe'n counselling & Wellbeing we have a child development center and a special school named Shine On for intellectually challenged children with Autism, Adhd, and other learning disabilities.

Before seeing  I offer  a free 15 minute no obligation consultation over the phone. Clients can use this time to ask any questions they may have about therapy. I explain the options they have and how the assessment process works.

 an extended 90 minute appointment for the initial psychological assessment. This gives them lots of time to talk at their own pace. In the session they can discuss in detail about the problems they need support with, the goals they have for therapy, and to ask questions.

Therapy is tailored to meet the unique needs of each individual. Therefore, once we have agreed to work together, we can discuss how many sessions may be required and how frequent these need to be. The structure of each session will depend on the type of support they  need and their goals for therapy.

confidentiality is a priority. At the start of the assessment we will talk through the confidentiality agreement so that clients feel safe to share their private information with a full understanding of what happens with that information.

I am passionate about providing the highest quality psychological therapies. With a personal interest in positive psychology I work to help individuals use their strengths to build the resilience necessary for long-term recovery.