Private Psychological Consultation
for Individuals, Physicians, and Couples
Shaifali Sandhya, PhD
Displaced (Oxford University Press, 2025): An urgent investigation into the psychology of refugee trauma and the emotional toll on host nations.
DR. SHAIFALI SANDHYA
PSYCHOLOGIST, AUTHOR, CONSULTANT
PSYCHOLOGIST, AUTHOR, CONSULTANT
About Dr. Shaifali Sandhya, PhD
Clinical Psychologist
Dr. Shaifali Sandhya is a PhD-trained Clinical Psychologist specializing in evidence-based psychological consultation for adults navigating anxiety, relational complexity, identity transitions, trauma, and emotional regulation. She is an internationally recognized policy advisor, and author whose work bridges mental health, governance, migration, and culture. She earned her PhD from the University of Chicago and an MA from the University of Cambridge as a Cambridge Commonwealth and Rajiv Gandhi Fellow. Her book Displaced (Oxford University Press, 2024) explores refugee trauma and social resilience in host nations. A former professor of clinical psychology, she has advised legislators, judges, and international agencies on asylum, public health, and social policy. Her commentary has appeared in major global outlets.
Her consultations integrate integrate rigorous clinical science with deep psychological inquiry, providing structured and ethically grounded inquiry and explorations for individuals seeking meaningful change.
Academic & Clinical Training Dr. Sandhya holds a Doctorate (PhD) in Psychology from The University of Chicago. She has expertise in:
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Psychopathology and diagnostic assessment
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Cognitive and behavioral interventions
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Attachment theory and relational dynamics
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Trauma and stress physiology
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Neurobiological mechanisms underlying anxiety and mood disorders
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Cross-cultural psychology and identity development
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Family systems
Her clinical training involved supervised therapeutic work across diverse adult populations, including individuals experiencing anxiety disorders, depressive disorders, relational conflict, trauma history, and high-functioning burnout.
Clinical Focus Dr. Sandhya’s work centers on adults who are:
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Experiencing persistent anxiety or high-functioning depression
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Navigating relationship distress, attachment patterns, or infidelity recovery
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Managing professional burnout or identity fatigue
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Processing unresolved childhood or relational trauma
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Facing midlife transitions, relocation, or cross-cultural identity strain
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Seeking improved emotional regulation and relational clarity
Her approach is especially attuned to individuals who appear outwardly successful yet experience internal psychological strain.
READ ABOUT DR. SANDHYA'S CLINICAL WORK
Therapeutic Approach
Dr. Sandhya’s consultation model is grounded in:
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Attachment science
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Cognitive and behavioral psychology
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Psychodynamic understanding of relational patterns
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Neurobiology of stress and trauma
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Systems and family-of-origin frameworks
Sessions are structured, reflective, and clinically precise. The focus is not merely symptom management but psychological integration — understanding how early relational experiences, stress physiology, and behavioral patterns intersect in present functioning.
Research & Writing In addition to clinical practice, Dr. Sandhya writes on psychological themes including:
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Attachment theory in modern relationships
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Digital-era relational anxiety
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Infidelity and shifting cultural norms
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Emotional regulation in high-performing adults
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Cross-cultural perspectives on intimacy and identity
Her work integrates clinical science with public discourse, bridging research and lived psychological experience.
READ AN EXCERPT FROM DR. SANDHYA'S LATEST BOOK
Location & Availability Dr. Sandhya provides confidential psychological consultation to adults via secure virtual sessions.
PBS | 2017 I Dr. Sandhya explains how psychological group traits can impact refugees' resettlement.
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TESTIMONIALS
Ninette Kelley
Author
People Forced to Flee: History, Change and Challenge
In this insightful book, Displaced, Shaifali Sandhya sheds light on a critical but often overlooked aspect of refugee well- well-being: mental health. Drawing from the lived experiences of refugees whose journeys have been shaped by suffering and resilience, Sandhya illustrates the importance of psychological well-being to their physical health, learning and employment. Importantly, the book offers valuable insights and actionable solutions on how to how strengthen refugee settlement services. It also provides a powerful reminder that in providing better care to refugees, we also strengthen our communities.
Anthony Chambers
Professor
Northwestern University
"As evidenced by the historic election of the first biracial Indian and Black Vice President, Dr. Sandhya’s book, Displaced, is the perfect book at the perfect time! She explores and provides clinical wisdom for the understudied population of Indian Couples. Given the tumultuous times we are all living in with regards to race relations, this book comes at a time when the profession is craving for more culturally informed writings. This book is a must read for all graduate students and practicing clinicians looking to be a culturally informed therapist!"
"Sandhya’s tight focus on refugee mental health, with her extensive qualitative and quantitative research, makes Displaced a useful work that will benefit both refugee service workers and researchers. The book is effective on three different levels. For those who want to know more about the refugee experience, the author provides narrative vignettes from her interviews. For those who want a larger context, she assembles a research framework that emphasizes her thesis that refugees need much more access to primary mental health services. Finally, for those who want to dig into the sources, her detailed footnotes and extensive bibliography provide a wealth of information. Sandhya, a psychologist, treats the refugees she interviewed with respect and compassion. Her empathic tone is similar to Mary Pipher in her seminal refugee work Middle of Everywhere (2002). Her examination of the complex interplay of factors that affect refugee mental health are reminiscent of The Psychological Impact of War Trauma on Civilians (2006) edited by Stanley Krippner and Maria McIntyre, and Richard Mollica's Healing Invisible Wounds.
The global refugee displacement crisis is an ongoing tragedy that shows no signs of abating soon. Sandhya’s hashtag#Displaced is a compassionate work that will help our most vulnerable world citizens."
Anthony Ong
Professor
Cornell University
"In Love Will Follow, Shaifali Sandhya provides a sound, humane, and empirically grounded framework for interpreting how modern-day Indian couples wrestle with tradition, societal changes, and ultimately how they create something “new.” Written with a high level of sophistication, the book is nonetheless extremely accessible and full of deep insights about human behavior as well as useful suggestions for how to apply them in everyday life."
— Dr. Anthony Ong, Professor of Human Development, Cornell University, USA
Interviews, Podcasts, Op-ed, & Books
