Shirin Kazimov, PsyD

I started my career as a medical doctor, practicing as an anesthesiologist and intensive care specialist in my home country of Azerbaijan. Later, I transitioned to working in public health, where I collaborated with the Azerbaijani healthcare system to improve maternal and child health, combat tuberculosis, reform primary and emergency care, and develop evidence-based clinical guidelines.

My longstanding interest in the human body, soul, and mind eventually led me to pursue further training in psychology. Due to my commitment to obtaining an education that balanced scientific psychology and spirituality, I elected to attend Wheaton College (IL), where I earned my doctorate in Clinical Psychology. While I was committed to receiving rigorous clinical training, I also wanted to contribute to psychological science through research. My doctoral dissertation focused on adapting and validating a military deployment inventory for use in Ukraine.

During my training at Wheaton, I developed a strong appreciation for psychoanalytic theories, particularly those rooted in self-psychology and object relations. This interest led me to the Danielsen Institute, where I completed a two-year internship and deepened my understanding of how relational psychodynamic theories can integrate with spirituality. That experience paved the way to a postdoctoral fellowship at the Austen Riggs Center, where I continued to ground myself in psychoanalytic thinking and practice and received advanced training in group dynamics and performance-based psychological assessment. At Austen Riggs, I worked with people who suffered from chronic suicidality and longstanding mood disorders and character difficulties that had not responded well to other treatments.

Through my clinical and personal experiences, I have developed a deep appreciation for human diversity and complexity, multiculturalism, existential concerns, and psychoanalytic approaches to relating to the self and others. I approach mental health through a holistic lens, guided by the bio-psycho-socio-spiritual model of care. My clinical interests include relational psychoanalytic therapy, attachment theory, narcissism, relational spirituality, complex trauma, and grief. In addition to individual psychotherapy, I especially value process-oriented and interpersonal group work, where clients can explore relational dynamics in the here-and-now.

I work well with adolescents, adults, couples, families, and groups, and have provided psychotherapy and psychological assessment across a wide range of settings, including academic institutions, forensic centers, private practices, community clinics, and residential treatment facilities. These diverse experiences have taught me to attend not only to each person’s individuality and their developmental stage, but also to the generational legacies and environments that shape their lives and trajectories.

While much has been written about vicarious trauma in the therapeutic profession, I would prefer to highlight the vicarious hope I experience. Working with people as they uncover their resilience, pursue and experience transformation, and deepen their understanding of themselves and the world continually renews my own sense of purpose and meaning.

I specialize in working with people who may be navigating or struggling with any combination of the following experiences:

• Mood difficulties, anxiety, and fears
• Grief and loss
• Identity questions, life transitions, culture, and immigration
• Attachment challenges and relational problems
• People labeled as “narcissists” or those entangled in narcissistic relationships
• Complex trauma

• Spirituality and existential issues

What I’m like as a therapist:

It’s important to me to create a space where people can slow down, reflect on what’s happening in their world, and feel freer to be themselves. I aim to foster an environment where curiosity, openness, and emotional learning are possible.

My approach is grounded in relational psychoanalytic therapy, drawing from attachment theory, object relations, self-psychology, and intersubjectivity. As one of my graduate professors once said, “People are the ones who wound us, and people are also the ones who help us heal.” At the heart of the therapeutic process is the relationship itself, and that relationship doesn’t need to be perfect to be meaningful. I believe healing and transformation take place in the context of a secure, consistent, reflective relationship, where both conscious and unconscious dynamics can be explored with honesty and care.

To me, therapy is not only a path to insight, but also a process of emotional learning (a harder part). This kind of learning can lead to real growth, lasting change, and a deeper sense of peace.