If you grew up translating — not just language, but expectations, between your parents' world and the one you actually live in — you know how heavy that job can get. I'm Samar Farange, a licensed therapist based in Seattle, offering online therapy across Washington state to people navigating identity and family expectations between two cultures, in English or Farsi.
This comes up a lot with people who are the first in their family born or raised here, or who moved as kids and grew up straddling two very different sets of rules for who they're allowed to be.
We untangle two things that tend to get fused together: honoring someone, and organizing your whole life around their comfort. Those aren't the same, even though it rarely feels that way growing up. A lot of this work is figuring out which decisions are actually yours to make, and building the ability to disappoint someone in one choice without it meaning you've betrayed the relationship. I wrote more about this in Honoring Your Parents and Disappointing Them.
Is this only for people from a specific culture or religion?
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No. I work with people from a range of cultural and family backgrounds who share a similar bind — loving a family while also needing to live a life they wouldn't have chosen for you.
What if my family would never agree to therapy?
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That's common, and it's okay. This is your space, not a family intervention, unless and until you want it to include anyone else.
If this is the kind of thing you're sitting with, I'd like to hear about it. The first 20-minute call is free.
Book a free 20-minute consult