Child psychologist in Karachi
Everything PHC does for children and teenagers, in one place — assessment, therapy and support for parents, in clinic in PECHS and DHA, or online.
If your child or anyone else is in immediate danger, this page is not the right place. Here is what to do →
Where to start
Most parents arrive here having been given a phrase rather than an explanation. He needs to be assessed. She should see someone. You are then expected to work out, on a phone, late at night, which of several services to ask for — and you are not expected to know. Working that out is the job you are hiring a clinical psychologist to do.
The Psychological Help Centre has worked with children in Karachi since 2009. Every psychologist here holds a postgraduate clinical qualification and over 800 supervised hours, and several work with children specifically rather than occasionally. What follows is everything PHC offers a child or a teenager, grouped by what you are trying to do.
Not sure which of these you need?
Then do not choose. Tell us what you have noticed, in your own words, and we will tell you which route fits — or tell you plainly that it is not us and point you somewhere better. Tell us what is going on · How fees and booking work.
Understanding what is going on
Each of these starts with an initial session whose job is to decide what is clinically warranted. You will not be given tests your child does not need.
ADHD and autism assessment. Structured neurodevelopmental assessment for attention, activity, communication, social understanding and sensory response.
Learning and achievement assessment. For a child falling behind rather than misbehaving. Specific learning difficulties including dyslexia and dysgraphia, and the achievement testing schools ask for.
IQ testing. What general intellectual ability looks like when it is measured rather than guessed.
The support that follows
Play therapy for children under 7. Therapy for children too young to make use of talking. Child-Centered Play Therapy and targeted directive techniques, with parents told what is being worked on.
Applied Behaviour Analysis and behavioural work Named in the supplied credentials of three PHC clinicians, and used with children around communication, behaviour, emotional regulation and social skills. It sits inside the play and behavioural therapy above rather than being sold separately.
Support for parents. Behaviour, discipline, school refusal, sibling conflict. Most of what changes happens at home.
Family psychotherapy. Where the difficulty is between people in the house rather than inside one child.
What parents bring us
Each has a page of its own.
Autism — assessment and support for autistic children and adults. There is no treatment that removes autism; what PHC offers is understanding and support built on it. ADHD — attention, restlessness and organisation. Learning difficulties — reading, writing and keeping up at school. Parenting difficulties — when the question is what to do rather than what is wrong.
Children and teenagers are also seen at PHC for anxiety, low mood, sleep, anger and trauma. See everything PHC works with.
Who your child would see
The four psychologists below name work with children in their own supplied credentials.
Asif J. SoherwardyAssociate Clinical Psychologist · 4+ years
MS Clinical Psychology, Bahria University. Neurodevelopmental disorders, behavioural issues and emotional challenges in children. Play therapy, Applied Behaviour Analysis, sensory integration, remedial therapy, CBT.Read their profile →
Amna RasheedClinical Psychologist · Lecturer
MS Applied Psychology (Clinical), Ziauddin University. 2,500+ clinical hours. Autism, inclusivity, psychological assessments, adolescent mental health.Read their profile →
Aymen RamzanClinical Psychologist · Behaviour Therapist · 5+ years
MS Clinical Psychology, Bahria University. In their own words, "working with children through Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA), behavioral interventions, and art therapy to support communication, behavior, emotional regulation, social skills, and independence."Read their profile →
Nabiha RasheedClinical Psychologist
MPhil Clinical Psychology. 3,500+ clinical hours and seven years as an early-years practitioner.Read their profile →Where children are seen
In clinic at our DHA clinic and in PECHS. A first discussion with parents, or feedback on a report, can be held online; observation and testing are done in person, and we tell you which parts apply where before you come.
If you are a school rather than a parent
PHC partners with schools on student wellbeing, teacher support and parent awareness. School wellness partnerships.
Questions parents ask first
There are several things listed here. Which one does my child need?
You cannot tell from this page, and you are not supposed to be able to. The route is decided at an initial session, in which a psychologist asks what you have noticed, from when, in which settings, and what it is costing — then says which of the above is warranted, or that none of it is yet.
Should I tell my child where we are going?
Yes, and it goes better when you do. Children work out that something is being kept from them and generally imagine something worse. What to say depends on their age, and you can ask us before the appointment. Nothing is done to a child at PHC that has not been explained to them first.
My child is fine at home and only struggles at school. Is that still something you see?
Yes, and the difference between the two settings is information rather than a contradiction. A child who holds everything together for six hours and falls apart at 2pm is telling you what the day cost. Part of any assessment here is gathering what more than one setting reports.
My family thinks we should wait and see. What would you say to that?
Waiting is sometimes the right call, and you do not have to commit to anything to find out. An initial session is a conversation, not a course of treatment, and a common outcome is being told there is nothing to act on yet and what to watch for. What is harder to recover is the years spent waiting while a child concludes that he is the difficult one.
Confidentiality, session length, fees and age groups are answered in full in questions people ask before booking.
Speaking to someone starts here
PHC is appointment-only. Message or call and a real person answers — Monday to Saturday, 10am to 8pm PKT.
Not sure whether this is us? Contact us anyway. We will tell you directly whether we can help, and refer you elsewhere if we cannot.
Six details, and we can match you
- Name of the person who will attend
- Their age
- What is going on, in your own words
- Whether you would prefer a male or female psychologist
- Online, or in clinic in Karachi
- Whether the person attending is a minor or elderly
If someone else is paying, we will also ask for guardian or payer details. A slot is held once the booking payment is received — half the fee, at least 24 hours ahead.