Shadia Duske

Shadia is the founder and former owner of Luna Counseling Center. She is presently living in Ireland where she is providing distance counseling to clients who are unable to make it to the office. She uses a secure HIPAA-compliant video platform called Thera-LINK for these sessions. Now clients can have access to professional therapy from their own living room or work space. 

Shadia is a Licensed Psychotherapist who has been working in the field of mental health since 2004. She is trained and certified with PSI (Postpartum Support International) to provide assessment and treatment of perinatal mood and anxiety disorders. Additionally, she is a trained EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) practitioner. Shadia has extensive experience working with a variety of populations including those struggling with depression, anxiety, trauma, grief, relationship issues, sexuality concerns, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and phase of life challenges. She began to train and specialize in Reproductive Mental Wellness in 2009, after personal experiences directed her attention to the overwhelming struggles that can accompany reproduction. Shadia realizes how isolating these experiences feel, especially because we still live in a culture that makes it taboo to discuss these topics. Shadia is dedicated to breaking the silence surrounding reproductive mental health. 

It is Shadia’s passion to join her clients in their stories and be a helpful companion and guide for them on their journey toward self-exploration and healing. Shadia pulls from existentialist, depth, and narrative theories in her work. She believes that we all have a story we tell ourselves about who we are based on our past and present life circumstances. Through gentle support and processing, our story of suffering can gradually become a story with meaning and empowerment. Shadia helps clients go deeper into their emotional experiences, facilitating them in uncovering patterns and themes as they slowly find their way to a stronger, more empowered self. Shadia also works extensively with relationships, helping to improve communication and support. Part of finding meaning in suffering is about learning how to connect more effectively with the people closest to us. 

Shadia also utilizes techniques to help clients deal with practical daily obstacles and stress. She has found that every client’s mind works a little differently and may have different needs when it comes to processing experiences. Combined with talk therapy, Shadia also pulls in Cognitive-Behavioral therapy techniques, art therapy, creative writing, EMDR, guided meditation, mindfulness, and other experiential exercises.