About Me

I'm a kind and warm-hearted 23-year-old psychology student, currently completing my honours at UWA. I was born in Egypt, although Perth has been my home since I was 8 years old. I’m a fluent Arabic speaker and cherish my cultural roots through volunteering as a church youth leader at my Coptic Orthodox church. My personal experiences have kindled my passion for supporting children, and it is my aspiration to become a developmental neuropsychologist. I also thoroughly enjoy volunteering at a social group for children with Autism aged 10-17, where I work towards creating an environment that nurtures social and interpersonal communication development.

What are some of my strengths and hobbies?

Some of my main strengths are compassion and intrinsic desire to support others. I believe this motivates me to improve my knowledge and skills, and to delve into new areas of interest that helps foster rapport and personal relationships with others. Through spending time with my beautiful nieces who have an 8-year age gap, I’ve developed an ability to tailor my interactions to suit their age, interests, and personalities. Professionally, I’ve honed my communication and teamwork skills in healthcare environments. I am an animal lover and enjoy going for beach walks to watch sunsets. I love social sports and other activities such as bowling and mini golf, and I have experience in planning events and outings tailored for the interests of the children I work with. During my free time, I enjoy sketching, solving jigsaw puzzles and playing boardgames with my nieces.

What do I enjoy learning about?

My aspiration to become a clinical neuropsychologist and specialise in development began when I was 15, when my niece was diagnosed with ADHD, and later anxiety. Since then I have become very interested in learning about a wide range of mental health and developmental disorders, particularly ADHD, ASD and anxiety. From personal experiences, I have also become very interested in learning more about eating disorders and influences of disordered eating. I am currently completing my honours thesis this year, where I am investigating the effects of the use of TikTok on body dissatisfaction in young women. My time as a psychology student at UWA has inspired me to want to pursue a PhD at some point in my life, and taught me the value of long-life learning in providing the most up-to-date and tailored evidence based practice.

Why do I like supporting children with an autism diagnosis and their families?

My passion for working with children and deepening my understanding of their unique needs stems from my niece's diagnosis with ADHD. Watching her struggle to navigate through school and her social life motivated my aspiration to become a clinical neuropsychologist. My personal experience also made me appreciate the work families do to support their children, which drives me to not only strive to support the children, but also their families. Through my volunteer experiences, such as a church youth leader and a social group assistant at Spectrum Space, my love for working with children with autism grew, and I found working and supporting them to be very rewarding.