Hidden Gems: Meet Shannon Mandadi of Saya Therapy

Today we’d like to introduce you to Shannon Mandadi.

Hi Shannon, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
I remember being a teenager and becoming fascinated with how people behaved and what life choices they were making. I started to realize that my passion was learning about why people do what they do and how this effects others. When I discovered the idea of being a Marriage and Family Therapist I knew I had hit the jackpot. Throughout my undergraduate journey at Arizona State University I was clear on my plan to move toward the final goal of earning my license as an MFT and then eventually opening my own private practice. Once I finished at ASU and took a year to get experience as a social worker I then set out for my adventure in San Diego where I earned my Masters in Marriage and Family Therapy in 2006. I had felt so right, so certain about my path up to that point. I knew in my bones that I was meant to go to San Diego and strike out on my own. However, when I accomplished this goal then I was unsure of where to go next. I loved California, obviously, but my family was all back in Arizona. I was single at the time and felt a little lost on where I should focus my goals next. After some serious soul searching I ended up back in AZ to take a job as a child therapist while I was earning my hours towards licensure. I loved this role because of the kids and parents I got to work with, but I also realized that working with children was not my forte. I love kids, but processing trauma with them was not something I felt I was meant to do at that time. God bless those people who can do that work and do it well! After about six months I received what I believe was a sign from the universe when a very influential mentor of mine reached out to encourage me strongly to apply for a position working with students at ASU. This was a cool opportunity because I was working with students with disabilities related to mental health, but it was not a therapy role. I had an amazing time working at ASU for a few years before I felt that it may be time to get back to my roots and return to the field of therapy. Then, as it has so many times in my life, the universe called again to offer me an opportunity working in a blindness rehabilitation agency. Now, I must tell you that as a blind person I had decided that it was not my path to work in the field of blindness. At that time I did not much connect to the blind community and I was not sure how I would fit in this world. While I had been low vision since birth and then blind from young adulthood I grew up in a family of sighted people. My friends, at that time were sighted. My husband was sighted. It had really not been on my radar to focus on supporting others through their journey to adjusting to blindness, but there it was… another opportunity that I felt in my soul was the right next step for me. I ended up working for a blindness agency in Phoenix for nearly a decade where I gained incredible experience in leadership and the complex field of blindness. I think this particular role was crucial for me in maturing professionally and also for my own development around how to incorporate blindness into my own identity. While I had been blind for some time, I think identity is one of those ever evolving entities that we need to be mindful of throughout our journey through the world. What does my identity mean about me and how I live my life? How is my identity effecting my ability to connect with and understand others? How is this all impacting my view of the world? Etc… At this point ten more years had past and now I was married with two children. It was the Fall of 2020 and I knew I was changing as a person once again. As the world changed that year so did my priorities and my careless way of taking time for granted. I knew in that deep authentic way that it was time.. it was finally time to go back to my original career goal of being an MFT. My long and winding road had finally led me to work for one of my most cherished mentors and very dear friends who owns a successful group practice in Scottsdale AZ. Rachel Thomas had been my intern supervisor back when I was in grad school in San Diego nearly twenty years earlier. We were both from AZ and decided to stay in touch once we both moved back here from San Diego for various reasons. It was a long held dream of mine that I would be able to work for Rachel and earn my full MFT license while learning from her and the wonderful team she has created. Working at her practice (Therapy With Heart) was a true gift for which I will always be grateful. Over the next few years I earned specialized training in Emotionally Focused Therapy as well as my independent MFT license… hurray!!! Leaving Rachel’s practice was an extremely hard decision for me. I knew in my heart that it was the right time to take the leap and open up my own practice, but wow how terrifying! So with incredible amounts of support from Rachel and the team I left her practice to being my new chapter. In June of 2025 I opened Saya Therapy in North Peoria. A major part of my decision to do this was about my professional goals, but this was also a huge benefit for my family. My kids are both in elementary school now and I wanted to be closer to home. I need to be able to run over the school if one of my kids needs to be picked up early or so I can attend a mid day awards ceremony and then get back to work. Owning my practice has given me a freedom to be present for my family in a new way which is incredible!

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
I do not know that I would call the road exactly smooth. I suppose like any good adventure there were bumps in the road. As a blind person I am often marginalized in society and sadly even in the world of therapy. I have many times been asked, “how can you provide therapy if you can’t see your clients?” “How can you know their reactions without any visual cues?” I understand that people are curious, but the reality is that humans can be prejudice against people, things or experiences when we do not understand them. I frequently am told that I am the only blind person that someone has ever met. This combined with some terrible blindness stereotypes that exist in the media make it challenging at times for people to not be distracted, confused by or uncomfortable with me at first. I literally recall a former boss of mine from many years back when I had a social services job, but not as a therapist, saying to me, “wow, you have been so great here. You know, when I first saw you I did not even want to hire you! I was thinking, what am I going to do with this blind girl?!” She apparently thought this was funny. I want to be clear that I do not find it funny in any way shape or form. In the blindness community it is often discussed that the issue with being blind is not really about the lack of vision, but the challenge comes from the low expectations that society has for blind people. While I completely respect the individual process for all blind and low vision people adjusting to living their life non-visually and want to be clear that everyone has their own experience, for me there is so much truth to this statement. I am good with who I am, I feel comfortable navigating the world using a cane. So if that makes you uncomfortable then I would invite you to explore that further and try to understand what brings up that discomfort for you because it really is not my problem. So yes there were interesting challenges along my road that were specific to blindness. Moving to a new city where I hardly knew any one for grad school was a necessary step for me. However, I am aware that my process of getting to know my new surroundings was very different from that of my sighted peers who did the same thing in their respective journeys. On the flip side though I have to recognize the many positive aspects of being a blind person and blind therapist. First, I have met many awesome people who I would have likely never crossed paths with either as lyft drivers, fellow bus riders or many great people who I know and love in the blind
Community. I find that I am able to attune with clients successfully and clients have shared at times feeling more comfortable with me since I am not experiencing or judging them in any way for their appearance. In order to be an effective therapist we need to bring all of our authentic self into the room and create a safe space for a client. I am grateful everyday that I have the privilege of supporting so many incredible client through their own journeys through life.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
I have worked in various aspects of the mental health field for over 20 years which has given me incredible opportunities such as working on ASU’s West and Tempe campuses, non-profit work, advocacy in the blind community and private practice therapy. My passion is working with individuals, couples and teens who are curious about themselves and how they can create positive change in their lives and relationships. I earned my Masters in Marriage and Family Therapy from San Diego State University in 2006 and am very grateful for the focus in that program on diversity. The intersectionality of all of who we are is the gift we give to our world and I welcome all different types of couples and individuals. As a blind woman I embrace all of the pieces of who I am and look forward to connecting with you to learn about how you experience the world. If people want to connect to ask questions and learn if I may be a good fit for them as a therapist or if someone in the field is interested in collaborating then please email me at Shannon@sayatherapyaz.com and visit my site for more information about what I do… www.sayatherapyaz.com

Pricing:

• 160/60 minute session
• 240/90 minute session

Contact Info:

• Website: https://sayatherapyaz.com/