Overseas
Counseling for Pakistanis
living abroad
Sessions in Urdu, Punjabi or English with a psychologist who does not need the cultural background explained. Times set in your own zone.
- Times
- Your local zone
- Languages
- English · Urdu · Punjabi
- Individual
- Rs. 2,000 / 60 min
- Couple
- Rs. 3,000 / 90 min
Pakistanis living abroad can book online counseling with psychologist Zahid Sohail in Urdu, Punjabi or English. Appointment times are confirmed in your local time zone before payment, and sessions run by video, audio or WhatsApp text. Fees are charged in Pakistani rupees, so your bank may add conversion costs.
Why people ask
Why language and context matter when you live abroad
Therapy is available in most countries Pakistanis live in. What is harder to find is a counselor who does not need the context explained first: what an expectation from home actually obliges, why a decision involves four people, or what a phrase in Urdu carries that its English translation does not.
Explaining the background costs part of every session. Starting from a shared frame of reference does not make the work easier, but it makes more of the hour usable.
What comes up most
Distance changes the shape of a family problem without removing it.
- Obligations and expectations managed from thousands of miles away
- Marriage strain when one spouse is abroad and one is not
- Isolation that does not show on a video call home
- Guilt about money, time or not visiting
- Decisions about returning, staying, or bringing family over
- Raising children between two sets of expectations
Practical
How time zones and payment work
Send your city and free hours
Not a precise slot. Your city and the hours you are usually free is enough to find an overlap with Pakistan time.
Get the time confirmed in your zone
The appointment time is stated in your local time before you pay, so nobody is converting hours at the last minute.
Pay in Pakistani rupees
Fees are charged in PKR. Your own bank may add a conversion charge, which is outside the practice’s control.
Join from wherever you are
Video, audio or WhatsApp text, from any private room with a stable connection.
What this service cannot do across borders
Distance imposes some real limits, and they are worth knowing before you book.
- It cannot provide emergency or crisis cover in your country. Use local emergency services.
- It cannot prescribe, and a Pakistani psychologist cannot refer you into your local health system.
- It cannot produce documents for an employer, insurer or immigration authority.
- It cannot guarantee coverage or reimbursement by a foreign insurer.
Where local, in-person care is the better option, the practice will say so.
Who wrote this
Written by Zahid Sohail
Psychologist and founder of The Bonding Corner. MSc and PGD in Applied Psychology, more than 15 years in practice, working in English, Urdu and Punjabi.
Last reviewed:
This page is general information, not a diagnosis, and counseling does not replace medical care. About Zahid Sohail · Mental health words in Urdu
What the research says
- A 2018 systematic review comparing guided internet-based and face-to-face cognitive behavioural therapy found the two formats gave broadly equivalent results, while noting more research is still needed for some conditions. [1]
- Most people living with a mental health condition do not receive effective care. Only about one in three people with depression gets formal mental health care. [2]
References
[1] Carlbring P, Andersson G, Cuijpers P, Riper H, Hedman-Lagerlöf E. Internet-based vs. face-to-face cognitive behavior therapy for psychiatric and somatic disorders: an updated systematic review and meta-analysis. Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, 2018. europepmc.org
[2] World Health Organization. Mental disorders, fact sheet (updated 11 September 2026). www.who.int
If you are thinking about ending your life or are in danger now, call Rescue 1122 or Police 15, or Umang’s 24-hour helpline on 0311 7786264. Online counseling is not an emergency service. All helplines in Pakistan.
Questions, answered
Questions people ask.
I live abroad. Can I still book?
Yes. Appointment times are confirmed in your local time zone before payment. Fees are charged in Pakistani rupees, so your bank may add conversion costs. Confirm availability for your country before paying.
Can I book from outside Pakistan?
Yes. Sessions are online and the practice works with Pakistanis living abroad. Say which time zone you are in when you book so the slot means the same thing to both sides.
How do I pay from abroad?
Packages and text-chat plans are paid for at checkout. If your card or country causes a problem at payment, ask by WhatsApp before booking rather than retrying.
Why see a Pakistani psychologist rather than a local one?
For some people the useful part is not needing to explain the background: family expectations, marriage arrangements, or what a decision costs socially at home.
What about the time difference?
Appointments are arranged around it rather than in spite of it. Confirm the time zone in writing when you book, because a slot listed in one zone is easy to misread from another.
Explore further
Where would you like to go next?
Confirm your local time before you pay.
One message with your city and your free hours is enough to get a workable time.