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Dr. Rania Awaad

Clinical psychiatry
Trauma-informed care

Dr. Rania Awaad M.D., is a Clinical Associate Professor of Psychiatry at the Stanford University School of Medicine where she is the Director of the Stanford Muslim Mental Health & Islamic Psychology Lab, Associate Chief of the Division of Public Mental Health and Population Sciences, and Co-Chief of the Diversity and Cultural Mental Health Section. On a community level, she is the Executive Director of the holistic mental health nonprofit Maristan.org. In addition, she serves as the Director of The Rahmah Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to educating Muslim women and girls, and as a Senior Fellow at Yaqeen Institute and ISPU. She has previously served as the founding Clinical Director of the Khalil Center-San Francisco as well as a Professor of Islamic Law at Zaytuna College. Prior to studying medicine, she pursued classical Islamic studies in Damascus, Syria and holds certifications (ijaza) in Qur’an, Islamic Law and other branches of the Islamic Sciences.

Areas of Practice

  • Clinical psychiatry
  • Muslim mental health
  • Islamic psychology
  • Public and population mental health
  • Cultural and diversity-focused mental health care
  • Community-based and faith-integrated mental health services
  • Trauma-informed care
  • Mental health education and advocacy

How I Work

My approach is grounded in compassion, adab (etiquette), and a commitment to honoring your values and lived experience. I integrate Islamic perspectives on the heart, mind, and self with contemporary therapeutic tools. Sessions are collaborative, respectful, and focused on what is beneficial for you.

Services Offered

Individual sessions
Psychoeducation
Referral and coordination
Family or couples support
Faith-informed guidance
Group Workshops

Languages

English
Arabic

Education & Training

Medical Degree (M.D.) in Psychiatry,

Stanford University School of Medicine

Classical Islamic Studies (Ijazat in Qur’an, Islamic Law, and Islamic Sciences)

Traditional study in Damascus, Syria (non-university, classical scholarly transmission)

Dr. Rania Awaad Schedule at IAIP Conference 2026

  • Day 1
2026-02-06
12:30 PM - 2:00 PM

Research Paper Session I Tarbiyat-e-Khudi: A Model of Self-Development from Poems of Muhammad Iqbal in Asrar-i-Khudi

Dr. Rania Awaad

This article offers a psychological conceptualization of Muhammad Iqbal’s Khudi-based model of self-development.

Room 01 |

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Dr. Rania Awaad Books

Maristāns and Islāmic Psychology (Islamic Psychology and Psychotherapy)
Rania Awad

Maristāns and Islāmic Psychology outlines how the novel methods, tools, and approaches for treating psychological illnesses developed in the maristāns (hospitals) of the Muslim world can be utilised today in formulating a practical implementation of Islāmic psychology (IP). As a trademark of the Islāmic Civilisation, the maristāns were institutions of healing that boasted the world’s first treatment centres for treating psychological illnesses. They also served as the centres where theoretical concepts developed by early Muslim scholars―physicians, theologians, and philosophers―who contributed to the creation of IP were translated into practical, clinical applications.

A detailed examination of the treatment modalities within these historical treatment centres provides a promising model for creating a holistic approach to psychological healing that is grounded in Islāmic heritage. This text completes such an examination, highlighting the practical IP treatment methods in fourteen maristāns geographically spread throughout the Muslim world in order to bridge this centuries-long model of psychological care to the modern context.

As part of the Islāmic Psychology and Psychotherapy Focus series, this book provides a foundation for mental health professionals who either directly deliver mental health services or are involved in creating theories, institutions, or spaces of IP and psychotherapeautic practices.

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Applying Islamic Principles to Clinical Mental Health Care
Rania Awad, Hooman Keshavarzi

This text outlines for the first time a structured articulation of an emerging Islamic orientation to psychotherapy, a framework presented and known as Traditional Islamically Integrated Psychotherapy (TIIP).

TIIP is an integrative model of mental health care that is grounded in the core principles of Islam while drawing upon empirical truths in psychology. The book introduces the basic foundations of TIIP, then delves into the writings of early Islamic scholars to provide a richer understanding of the Islamic intellectual heritage as it pertains to human psychology and mental health. Beyond theory, the book provides readers with practical interventional skills illustrated with case studies as well as techniques drawn inherently from the Islamic tradition. A methodology of case formulation is provided that allows for effective treatment planning and translation into therapeutic application. Throughout its chapters, the book situates TIIP within an Islamic epistemological and ontological framework, providing a discussion of the nature and composition of the human psyche, its drives, health, pathology, mechanisms of psychological change, and principles of healing.

Mental health practitioners who treat Muslim patients, Muslim clinicians, students of the behavioral sciences and related disciplines, and anyone with an interest in spiritually oriented psychotherapies will greatly benefit from this illustrative and practical text.

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Dr. Rania Awaad Articles

From Alchemy to Psychiatry: A Glimpse into the Ethics and Mental Health Practices of Tenth-Century Muslim Physician Abū Bakr al-Rāzī
Rania Awad
Classical Islamic perspectives on psychotropic treatment and emotional healing are explored.
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Islamic Civilizations and Plagues: The Role of Religion, Faith and Psychology During Pandemics
Rania Awad
A historical analysis explores Islamic coping responses to pandemics and their psychosocial relevance today.
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An Exploratory Qualitative Analysis of the Stanford-Templeton Convenings on Islam and Suicide
Rania Awad
An exploratory qualitative study proposes a theoretical model linking Islam to suicide risk.
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Developing a Suicide Crisis Response Team in America: An Islamic Perspective
Rania Awad
An Islamic crisis-response framework is proposed to address suicide risk in U.S. Muslim communities.
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A Brief Overview of the Islamic Ethics of Suicide and Suicide-Related Contemporary Issues from a Sunnī Perspective: A Primer for Clinicians and Researchers
Rania Awad
This paper examines Islam’s ethical prohibition of suicide and its implications for resilience, prevention, and contemporary clinical and moral debates.
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Ethical Standards

IAIP honors the dignity of the community it serves.

Seeking support is an act of trust. IAIP-certified practitioners are bound by a rigorous code of ethics that integrates Islamic values with professional conduct to protect your wellbeing.

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