Ph.D. & M.A. Clinical Psychology (APA Accredited) Palo Alto University, USA.
BSc in Psychology (Honors) at Royal Holloway, University of London, UK.

Russell Esmail, Ph.D.

Growing up and living in different countries (Hong Kong, Canada, Malaysia, England, and the U.S) has broadened my awareness of diverse mentalities and value systems, showing me where they intersect and where they remain distinct. These experiences have helped me connect with people from many walks of life and understand how they relate to others and themselves. I stay up to date with new treatments to ensure my work with clients is as effective as possible.

Stepping away from the clinical lens has been just as important to me; beyond the arts, I appreciate the insights that different kinds of work bring to our understanding of the human experience.

Ph.D. & M.S. Clinical Psychology (APA Accredited) Palo Alto University, USA.
BSc Psychology (Honors) at Royal Holloway, University of London, UK.

My therapeutic approach is personalized to best resonate with you and your process. I use a combination of evidenced based treatment models.

Motivational Interviewing (Miller & Rollnik, 1980s)

Centers on the exploration of your values and priorities such to better understand your own reasons for change. This approach heavily focuses on giving you autonomy over your journey.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (Beck 1960s)

CBT is a structured approach that invites collaborative work to identify and replace unhelpful ways of thinking or behaving. It stresses the importance of examining the n of thoughts, emotions and behaviors.

Throughout the process, I will often draw on a few key concepts that can help reframe the way we examine the challenges you are facing.

Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (Linahan, 1980s)

A form of CBT but heavily focused on on skills training for emotional and thought regulation. The DBT approach also emphasizes accepting change, consolidating extremes and understanding behavior within contexts

Dialectics is about how both seemingly opposing notions can be valid at the same time. We can address our own hypocrisies but also accept that we are hypocritical creatures after-all.

Narrative Therapy (White & Epston, 1980s)

This approach works by putting distance between you and your problem. This helps individuals better understand how their issue is impacting particular areas of their life. It seeks to help you to modify your relationship with the problem and empower you rewrite the outcome.

Life would be easier with hard and fast rules, but the world is far more nuanced. Absolutes can be limiting and prevent us from understanding ourselves and others. But even how we should approach Black & White thinking isn’t so black and white either.

There are almost always incentives for why we do anything, and there is also always an associated cost; whether in the physical, mental, and emotional. Sometimes it is about working out what the right Tradeoffs are for you.