Leila Bahri-Lucas

I am a relational counselor, Certified Compassionate Inquiry Practitioner, CI Private Mentor, and Independent CI Circle Leader. I support individuals, couples, and groups who want to understand the deeper patterns that shape their relationships. Before I ever stepped into this work professionally, I was someone searching for meaning. My path started long before the training, rooted in a need to understand my own story, why we protect ourselves the way we do, and how early relationships shape the way we trust, love, and connect in adulthood.

I hold a Master of Science in Psychology and Neuroscience of Mental Health from King’s College London, and I draw from Positive Psychology and Relational Life Therapy. RLT is a leading couple’s therapy model known for its clarity, honesty, and focus on relational repair. It blends naturally with Compassionate Inquiry. CI brings depth, presence, and body-based awareness. RLT brings structure, accountability, and a direct way of naming how couples protect themselves instead of each other. Together they offer a grounded, integrated approach that addresses both the inner world and the relational field.

My early life taught me how powerfully our past shapes the ways we relate. Later, infertility became another period of uncertainty and grief that reshaped my understanding of identity, partnership, and family. These experiences inform the heart of my work today. I support people moving through the complex transitions of family building, whether they are navigating infertility, blended family dynamics, long-term partnership strain, or redefining what family means when the path changes.

While infertility is part of my story, my work spans a wide range of emotional and relational challenges. Many clients come with stress, anxiety, shame, disconnection, identity loss, or patterns that feel impossible to shift. Beneath these struggles is usually a wish to feel safer, clearer, and more connected, both to themselves and to the people they care about.

My work is primarily online, and in 2026 I will begin offering more in person group work. I live in Dubai with my husband, daughter, and a blended family. I continue to see this work as an ongoing process. It asks us to be honest about what shapes us, to stay curious in the moments we want to shut down, and to meet ourselves and each other with a little more clarity and courage.

We are pleased to introduce Leila Bahri-Lucas as one of our Independent Circle Leaders: Trusted facilitators who deliver our core Compassionate Inquiry Circles curriculum on their own schedule. These leaders offer the same high-quality experience, tailored to specific themes and audiences, and operate independently.