I am a depth-oriented therapist and writer based in Whangaroa, New Zealand. I work with people who feel stuck in places that ordinary life – and sometimes ordinary therapy – has not been able to reach.
I am especially drawn to entrenched, difficult-to-treat issues: psychosis and psychotic processes, dissociative experiences, eating disorders, long-standing depression and anxiety, spiritual crises, and creative blocks such as writer’s block. Many of the people who come to me have already tried multiple therapies and treatments, only to be told they are “too complex,” “treatment-resistant,” or “hopeless.” In consultations with their GP, I have successfully helped people come off of their medications.
If everyone has given up on you, or if you feel you keep circling the same blocks despite your best efforts, you are the person I am interested in working with. I only handle the cases that everyone else has given up on.
How I Work
My orientation is depth psychology. I draw from psychoanalysis, Jungian psychology, object relations and self psychology. These approaches take seriously the idea that symptoms – including psychosis, eating difficulties, anxiety, dissociation, nightmares, “stuckness,” even physical illness – are not random defects, but meaningful expressions of the unconscious.
In my work, creativity is not a hobby, it is a life force. Dreams, images, slips of the tongue, artwork, reverie, body sensations, music, mythology, literature, your hobbies and daily rituals – all of these are welcomed as ways in which the deeper psyche speaks.
Sessions may include:
- talking and careful listening
- working with dreams and symbols
- attending to images, artwork, and written material
- exploring the “hidden story” behind symptoms and relationship patterns
- gently engaging with spiritual language and experiences, including processes some traditions call kundalinī or awakening
- gently letting go of the medications, in consultation with, and with the support of your doctors.
Therapy with me is slow, serious, and relational. I work long-term and selectively, with people who are willing to commit to sustained inner work rather than quick fixes.
My charges for psychotherapeutic sessions are NZ$175 per hour or US$ 100 per hour, payable in either currency, in NZ or internationally
My Philosophy
I do not see psychological or psychosomatic distress as mere malfunctions to be erased. I see them as the psyche’s attempts to communicate that something essential has been blocked, silenced, or distorted.
Suffering is not romantic. It is painful, unjust, often overwhelming. Yet it can become the raw material for a different kind of life if it is approached with patience, honesty, and companionship. My task is not to “fix” you, but to help you stay with your own experience long enough to discover the pattern, the meaning, and the possibilities hidden inside it.
Medication can be an important part of some people’s care. I am not opposed to medical support; I simply believe that, where possible, symptom relief should sit alongside a deeper exploration of what those symptoms may be pointing to. We will always respect existing medical advice and, if relevant, I encourage collaborative work with your prescribing doctor or psychiatrist.
There are no shortcuts to wisdom. The heat of life experience – both ecstasy and devastation – is what gradually clarifies our inner gold. Therapy is one place where that refining can happen with support rather than in isolation.
Background & Training
My path has been interdisciplinary and international.
- I am a qualified counsellor with the relevant training to practise in New Zealand.
- I hold degrees in Engineering from National Institute of Technology, India and have worked as a successful IT professional for over 20 years in executive management positions.
- I hold degrees in Social Work (MSW) and have trained in Depth Psychology, and psychosis/schizophrenia from US.
- I am an alumna of the Executive MBA (XMBA) program at the Australian Graduate School of Management (AGSM) in Sydney.
- I have undertaken doctoral-level study in Depth Psychology at Pacifica Graduate Institute.
- Over the years I have completed more than a dozen creative writing courses through leading universities such as Stanford, Duke, UCLA, and UC Berkeley.
- I have taught in the Marriage & Family Therapy Program (MFT) at National University, in US and presented at several international conferences on issues related to mental health, depth psychology and importance of spirituality.
My clinical work has included some of the most challenging presentations in the mental health field – people who had been given up on by seasoned clinicians. With time, patience and mutual commitment, many of these “impossible” cases have moved through impasse toward greater stability, meaning and freedom. I have presented these cases, and other topics in mental health in multiple renown conferences in US.
I have lived in India, the Middle East, Australia, the United States and now New Zealand. I am deeply connected to multiple religions and cultures especially through my education and training in depth psychology, and through my life lived in four continents over the last fifty years, and I carry these experiences into the consulting room, and in my writings. This allows me to work sensitively with issues of migration, cultural conflict, religious issues, spiritual crisis, social justice, women’s rights, and feeling “between worlds”
Other Work
In addition to my clinical practice, I am engaged in ongoing creative work. I am currently developing several non-fiction manuscripts on:
- Insight Meditation
- A memoir about long-term impact of family courts, judicial corruption, and institutional betrayal
- Abandoned mothers of narcissistic adult children and women’s invisible emotional labour over a lifetime
- Graceful Aging: How to embrace your age without being stuck in youth
- Embracing Infinity: A process of dying with courage and dignity
I also offer ghostwriting services, content and research writing, manuscript development, writing coaching, website development, maintenance and content development for the website in my areas of expertise. Prices are based on the complexity of your project. Please contact for a quote.
I also offer trauma-aware story support for women with complex life histories who want to begin shaping their experience into written form. To see if we are a good fit, I hold a Story Mapping Session costing NZD 250 for a 3 hour package. Once we feel that we are a good fit, we can negotiate a ghostwriting services.
Working With Me
Because of my other engagements and the intensity of the work, I accept only a limited number of clients at a time, usually those:
- who have already tried other treatments without sufficient relief
- who are willing to commit to a longer-term process
- who are curious about their own unconscious, not only desperate to remove symptoms
Therapy with me can be challenging. It asks for honesty, patience, and a willingness to feel what has been avoided. In return, it offers a chance to come closer to who you really are, and to live from that place with a little more clarity, integrity and authenticity.
If this resonates and you feel ready for serious inner work, you are welcome to contact me:
Phone: +64 27 709 7701
Location: Whangaroa, New Zealand
We can then decide together whether we are a good fit.
Madhu Sameer 