Ismatu Gwendolyn, MSW (all pronouns appropriate)

Ismatu is a mental health professional bound by and striving for the people that keep and collect them: Black women and queer folk, indigenous strongholds in colonized nations, artists moving against the grain, and sex workers + immigrants + hustlers of all kinds that lack (or have to avoid) infrastructure provided by the state. Their journey on the path of community care worker began as an undergraduate traveling to their home country (Sierra Leone). At just nineteen, they conducted a two-year ethnographic research on the long-term effects of Ebola. Interviewing healthcare professionals active during Ebola and survivors of the epidemic made clear to her the dire need for highly trained professionals that were willing to pour their skillsets directly back into their communities.

Ismatu returned to the states for continued education, however the clear path towards licensed clinicianhood turned murky as they navigated graduate school and sex work simultaneously. They were dismayed by and wary of the costs of documentation that traditional therapy requires– especially while experiencing the amount of 1:1 care work woven into dancing at the club. Her therapeutic praxis developed into one that holds therapy as a collaborative process with flexible and ongoing means of consent. After graduating with her master’s in Clinical Social Work, they began Allafia Coaching.

Northwestern University | BA in English and Global Health Studies

The University of Chicago | AM in Clinical Social Work ; Concentration in Global Health Administration and Policy

As of July 2023: Sessions and waitlist are currently full. We are working diligently to expand our team so we are able to expand our reach. Thank you!

My goals for each session are to create an environment where an individual feels equipped to construct patterns, habits, and beliefs that nourish them in sustainable ways. Approaches to therapy are far from universal and I pride myself on flexibility and active listening.

My style of therapy mixes Motivational Interviewing, and Solution and Insight Focused Therapy, and Somatic Therapy techniques (with an emphasis on Trauma-Informed Care and optional guided meditation sessions). I also heavily recommend journaling and would be happy to help you start.

I’d especially like to note that considerations to each person’s cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds are of the utmost importance to me.

I focus on topics such as anxiety, depression, family systems, transitions, and stress management— or simply individuals seeking counseling for the regular upkeep and maintenance of their mental space. I also am equipped to provide support to individuals with non-traditional experiences regarding sex and gender: specifically those navigating sex work, gender and sexual fluidity, and non-traditional romantic and sexual relationships. As an abolitionist and a leftist, I also seek to provide survival and protection skills as we navigate systems that intend to harm and extract from us, the marginalized.