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Shaykh Jabir Tarin is a registered associate marriage and family therapist. He has served as a teacher at several Islamic institutions, including Dua Seminary, where he teaches the Islamic Sciences, and Nur Institute. Shaykh Jabir has previously served as a therapist and spiritual and religious leader through the Muslim Mental Health Initiative at UC Berkeley and served the greater community through the Khalil Center. Currently, he passionately maintains similar roles through Wasilah Connections. Shaykh Jabir’s professional interests include providing mental well-being and spiritual direction to the City of Fremont, integrating Islamic spirituality with mental wellness, and teaching Islamic theology to young adults and college students. Wasilah Connections Counseling Services: https://wasilahconnect.org/mental-hea...

Shairitbi Janjirker - mother of four, grandmother of seven, in her third marriage - shares her beautiful story of grief, loss, hope and love.

Grief > Transition > Growth Sumaya Jeeva entered into 2020 fresh off the heels of a painful divorce. As she navigated lockdown, she also navigated the grief of her marriage ending. Sumaya shares what her healing journey looked like and her encouragement to people experiencing divorce. Her hunger and search for elusive support resources throughout this period led her to create an Instagram community to support divorced Muslim women called, “And She Thrived."

I found my old Toshiba laptop, discovered a video you took. We were only six months married. I stood by the window, the winter sun white and glowing on my long black hair. The camera angle reflected your adoration for me. You were just a boy, in love. Naive and sweet, so many hopes. I was just a girl, unaware of what this Weighty Covenant I was in, meant. So many hopes and expectations. I smiled at you in the camera, our gentle banter with each other. When things were still sweet. Watching now this scene of this young girl, she had no idea what she was doing, she was not taught how to be in a Weighty Covenant.
As you said later, when things rapidly unravelled, “You just don’t know how to be a wife.” I came to know once it was all over. All over. I watch the video and weep, for the boy with an open heart, for the girl who did not know how.

In this interview, we speak to Naimah Abraham, author of In the Belly of The Whale: Year 2020: Divorce, Covid-19 and Black Lives Matter. Naimah Abraham is a Haitian-American Muslim writer. Her creative approach to storytelling addresses vulnerable and controversial topics. She seeks to bring a compassionate perspective to some of the difficulties of the human experience. Author of the Amazon bestseller, "In the Belly of the Whale. Year 2020: Surviving Divorce, Covid-19 and Black Lives Matter". Her community work seeks to help people heal from relational trauma, find deeper purpose, and discover their gifts. After her divorce, she started an initiative to encourage divorced and grieving women to heal with dignity by providing self-care packages for them to feel beautiful and loved even while grappling with a difficult season in their lives. Naimah has her bachelor's in psychology and is a mother of two. IG: @nimzyunmeasured9569

To contact Anika: Facebook and IG @sukooncircles People can email her directly at anika@sukooncircles.com

In our second episode Lisa gives an overview of the four step process of Nonviolent Communication: Observation Feelings Needs Requests Click here for Episode 1: NVC

Lisa e is a certified holistic life coach, and a Nonviolent Communication trainer candidate. In her coaching practice she combines nonviolent principles with ICF competencies. Her website is www.bestnarrator.com.

Rosy Arpa is an academic and researcher based in New York. She has a PhD in Islamic Studies and has written widely in academic publications such as Zaytuna College's Renovatio Journal. She came to the US for her first marriage and has one 5 year old daughter. She is now remarried. Rosy lived for a long time in the Middle East where she learnt Arabic and also studied Turkish. For fun she enjoys practicing different languages, travelling to new countries, and chasing her daughter around the playground.

For a third of my life, you were with me You accompanied me Always there Close Wrapped around my finger Rock solid I expected to grieve I thought it would be so hard to say goodbye We were together for so long And I loved you I loved the way you sparkled in the light The way you would always find me, again The way you could come back to life after taking a tumble The way you beautified me You were such a good companion I thought I would cry I thought that I would feel the weight of you not being here with me anymore But I don’t even miss you It is as if you made it easy for me You made it easy to let go I thought I was holding onto you, but we were holding onto each other And when I gently tugged you off my finger you went So easily into a box, without complaining As if you knew it was time And I thank you for that My lovely companion My wedding ring - Naimah Abraham: fusion cook, nature girl, gardener, traveler, thinker, boy mom, writer, self taught baker . She is the Author of “In the Belly of the Whale.” In an open diary of poetry and prose Naimah speaks of the darkness of heartbreak and healing in threefold: the COVID-19 pandemic, the Black Lives Matter movement and the end of her marriage. For many, the year 2020 was a year of challenges. Pain, heartbreak and ultimately hope are brought to life in reflections, poems and passages. In parts, the grip of trauma is tight. At other times, the writing is a dreamscape, scattered with wisdom and emotional honesty. One truth is evident - no matter how many layers deep, darkness must end and at the end of hurt, there is always healing. There is always light.

Jamil is a Certified Trainer in Vancouver, British Columbia. His daily work centres on his role as a Family/Clinical Counsellor, but finds himself more inclined to matters of the spirit and therefore what interests him most is how NVC contributes to matters of spirituality. For Jamil, the needs most alive for him at any given moment are that of meaning and/or purpose. He has been exploring through his inner journey how religion and spirituality intersect with Compassionate Communication. It is this area where Jamil does most of his work in NVC. Jamil’s passion also lies in counselling men via his coaching program, Dignified Dialogue. Jamil's website: https://dignifieddialogue.ca/

In the second part of our series on self-esteem, therapist, Anika Munshi, continues to discuss identity, self- esteem, and offers tips on what to look for when talking to a prospective spouse. To contact Anika: Facebook and IG @sukooncircles People can email her directly at anika@sukooncircles.com