I am raising funds to pursue a Master’s degree in Counselling Psychology and Psychotherapy.

When I was in my last year of high school in Egypt, I was deeply lost. I didn’t know who to turn to or who to talk to, so I saved up for an entire month just to afford my first therapy session. Fate brought me to Moni, and in that one session, all I did was cry, vent, and release everything I had been holding inside me.

For the first time, I felt seen. I felt heard. Moni held space for me in a way I had never experienced before, and that single session changed something inside me.

I couldn’t afford to continue. I was young and had very little money. Since then, I’ve moved in and out of therapy whenever I could. This past summer, I decided to commit again and reached out to clinics in Egypt, not because I live there, but because it was more affordable and because I wanted to be held in my mother tongue, in a language that feels like home.

At the time, I was struggling emotionally and financially. About two months ago, the clinic informed me they would raise my fee per session from $15 to $60 because I live abroad. They didn’t know that I had chosen therapy in Egypt because it was the only way I could access care. Once again, healing became something priced out of reach.

Alongside this, I have been facilitating dialogue and community spaces at Seeds of Peace, holding space for young people navigating identity, conflict, grief, and

hope. This work only made one thing clearer to me:

I want to dedicate my life to being the person I once needed.

I want to be there for people who feel unheard, unseen, and unsupported. For those who don’t have the money to access care. For those whose stories are often ignored. I know what it feels like to sit alone with your pain and not know where to take it.

And yet, here I am, once again facing the reality of how unfair it is that pursuing knowledge and helping others comes at such a high cost.

So I am asking for support to make this dream possible.

What This Degree Will Allow Me to Do

This degree will allow me to become a qualified counsellor and psychotherapist, offering accessible, culturally sensitive, and trauma-informed care, especially to individuals from marginalized backgrounds who often cannot afford or access mental health support.

My long-term goal is to work with communities impacted by displacement, conflict, and identity-based marginalization, and to create spaces where people can be heard in their own language, without shame or financial barriers.

I am committed to giving back by offering low-cost or community-based support in the future whenever I am able.

The Counselling and Psychotherapy MSc is a one-year full-time programme, followed by approximately five months of clinical placement hours, allowing me to gain real, hands-on therapeutic experience before continuing further professional training.

Why Asking for Support Matters

I am deeply aware that we, as humans, and especially those from marginalized backgrounds, are conditioned not to ask for help. There is a stigma around seeking financial support, and I have carried that fear and shame with me for a long time.

But my commitment to serving my community means setting aside my inner critic and allowing myself to ask for help from friends, community members, and generous humans like you.

Supporting this journey means helping someone become the safe space they once searched for.

Any contribution, big or small, means more than I can possibly express.

Thank you for taking the time to read my story.

Invitation to Donate / Support

If you have a full-time job and are financially stable, have access to generational wealth, have a generous spirit, or if you care about me or the future I am trying to build, I invite you to donate.

Mutual aid is what allows people in disadvantaged positions to succeed and thrive.

If you are unable to donate, I invite you to share this page, repost it, and spread the word. That support is just as meaningful.

Thank you for believing in me and in the future I am working toward creating.

Tuition & Funding Needs

I am a non-EU (international) student, and the costs are as follows:

• Tuition fee: approximately €8,500 for the one-year MSc

• Living expenses: approximately €7,000 to cover basic needs such as housing, food, transportation, and study materials during the year

All funds raised will go directly toward tuition and essential living costs, allowing me to fully commit to my studies and clinical training.