ONLINE THERAPY IN MARYLAND
ready to Reclaim your life?
Amal Afzal, LCSW-C
You remember a time when living with worries about how you “should” be, fear of judgment or criticism, and feelings of distrust, loneliness, and heartache weren’t the “norm” … but those days feel like a distant memory. Don’t you wish you had the tools to change that?
You’ve come to the right place.
I’m Amal, arabic for ‘Hope,’ and I am a psychotherapist /Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW-C) in Maryland + the founder of Hope and Shine Therapy.
I help deep-feeling (empathic), overwhelmed, and self-aware overthinkers just like you — ones that have it within them to share their gifts with the world and have meaningful relationships, but just need the support to get there — understand and accept their sensitivity.
I help my clients find confidence, self-love, and contentment by equipping them with the tools they need to better understand their values and worth, and form healthier connections without losing themselves in the process.
I am dedicated to helping people live authentically and feel safe in doing so.
How I work:
Many of today’s solutions for building self-esteem and relationship + coping skills focus on the symptoms and changing negative thoughts or behaviors to boost confidence, leading many to feel temporary relief and dependent on the therapist in the long run.
I know that your circumstances are unique, so I go deeper into the root of the problem to help you reconnect with parts of yourself that feel silenced, shamed, and hurt. I want you to understand how your past shaped your self-worth and beliefs to begin with. I don’t just help you feel confident – I help you feel whole, so that you don’t “need” others to feel worthy and loved, but can “want” healthy connections and have more control over sharing your life.
I help you understand these deep-rooted patterns that keep repeating in life and create a lasting change with inner healing and healing the reality you experience and live in.
Therapy with me is…
Exploring the root of the issues for deep healing.
Empowerment to trust & rely on yourself in the long run.
Structured evidence-based interventions to practice and apply skills flexibly.
Customized approaches for your unique needs.
Holistic approach that honors your mind, body, & soul.
Therapy with me is not…
Just focusing on treating the symptoms.
Temporary relief
Talk- therapy alone and listening for an hour without action.
“One-size-fits-all”
Only addressing negative thoughts.
Here’s what our work together looks like:
First, we break down and assess each of your unique challenges that are causing you distress and pain.
Then, we create a customized plan that will be most effective for you.
Through our work together, you’ll have access to tools and skills that you can use to thrive in any situation.
Get the support that’s right for you.
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My training in building self-esteem and relationship + coping skills means I have the expertise you need and deserve when suffering from self-doubt, endless thoughts, shyness, loneliness, depression, anxiety, and/or relationship hurt. But at the end of the day, you want to know you’re working with someone who “gets” what it means to be a deep-feeler and deep-thinker and to struggle with being your true self without fear, shame, and guilt, right?
I get it because I’ve been there and successfully overcome these same challenges myself. I have also passionately and successfully helped others in similar circumstances. I know that feeling of wanting to do so much and be so much in life, but feeling stuck, getting in your own way, and being your own worst enemy. So when we work together, you won’t just get a trained therapist. You’ll get someone who truly understands what you’re going through.
I use a trauma, culture, and identity-sensitive eclectic approach blending simple talk-therapy with various evidence-based modalities:
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT)
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
Strength-based Therapy
Positive Psychology
Jungian Psychology
Internal Family Systems (IFS)
Written Exposure Therapy (WET)
Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT)
Mindfulness
Motivational Interviewing
Psychodynamic and Psychoanalytic Therapy
Get Support Today!
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Licensed Certified Social Worker - Clinical (LCSW-C) in Maryland since February 2025.
Licensed Master Social Worker (LMSW) in Maryland in January 2021.
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Master of Social Work (MSW) degree from University of Maryland School of Social Work in May 2020.
Bachelor of Arts in Biology and Psychology from the University of Maryland Baltimore County in August 2016.
Associate of Arts in General Education in December 2013 and Associate of Science in Biology in May 2014 from the Community College of Baltimore County.
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Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) Training to facilitate research and intervention groups at the University of Maryland Medical Center (UMMC) outpatient clinic.
Training and practice of the Written Exposure Therapy (WET) at the University of Maryland Medical Center (UMMC) outpatient clinic.
7+ years of experience working at top-tier hospitals and clinics, including 2 years of internship at Johns Hopkins Hospital (JHH) and a private clinic.
Volunteering for the Crisis Text Line (CTL) and a hospice.
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Fluent and offer therapy in 3 languages:
English
Urdu/ Hindi
Turkish
Ready to get started?