130 - Shimi Shiba - From the Hairdresser’s Chair to the Therapist’s Couch

Podcast

Sep 16

Written By

“I feel like there’s so many different aspects of being a hairdresser. It’s like, you’re an artist, you’re a counselor, a psychologist.” ~Shimi Shiba

If only someone could take the easy intimacy that hairstylists enjoy with their longtime clients and translate the magic into a formal therapeutic setting… Oh, wait! I’ve met such a person.

In this episode, professional hairdresser Shimi Shiba shares the behind-the-chair insights that have prepared her for a return to school and propelled her toward a degree in counselling.

Shimi has spent 25 years collaborating with clients on their style, but it’s the substance of these appointments – some lasting hours depending on the service – that has informed her career change. Few vocations provide access to both a client’s body and brain in quite the same way as hairdressing. Routine visits strengthen the trust established through touch and conversation. It’s precisely this bonding that has prompted Illinois (the state in which Shimi practices) to enact a law requiring licensed stylists complete training to identify victims of domestic violence among their clientele.

The mind/body connection is not lost on Shimi, who comes by her ability to hold space for multiple aspects of life naturally. Her family emigrated to the US from Iraq when she was a child. Growing up, she felt the push-pull of wanting to assimilate while remaining true to her Syrian heritage.

Now, as a graduate student, she’s melding structured learning with life experience. The years she’s spent observing client behavior in front of a literal mirror will provide Shimi with a professional POV that’s uniquely her own. “One thing that I’ve learned going to college and working on my bachelor’s as an adult, the best sort of education I’ve had, like its own form of life college, has actually been being a hairdresser.”

Call it tHAIRapy.

RESOURCE MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

Shimi and I geek out over our mutual interest in astrology and our love of the hyper-personalized horoscope app Co–Star.

GUEST BIO:

Shimi Shiba has been a hairdresser for 25 years (she started super young). She has a strong artistic eye and a true love of hair and makeup. She really loves connecting with people and personalizing a style to fit the individual. She doesn’t believe in the “one size fits all” approach. In addition to her styling talents, Shimi is also quite adept at astrology and is studying to become a counselor.

CONNECT WITH SHIMI:

Instagram

Facebook

RESOURCES MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE

Transforming Trauma Podcast #05 – Claude Cayemitte

Transforming Trauma Podcast #13 – Claude Cayemitte

Transforming Trauma Podcast #14 – Giancarlo Simpson

The Power Of Now: A Guide To Spiritual Enlightenment – by Eckhart Tolle

The Leap: The Psychology of Spiritual Awakening – by Steve Taylor

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