Hafsah graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with a M.S in Clinical Rehabilitation and Mental Health Counseling in 2018. Hafsah then gained extensive training under Drs. Susan Girdler and Crystal Schiller in the psychopathology and pathophysiology of reproductive mood disorders at the UNCCH Center for Women’s Mood Disorders, exploring estradiol variability, stress, and affect in perimenopausal women and peripubertal girls. Additionally, she explored the efficacy of mindfulness-based stress reduction intervention and social support for women with high stress. 

In 2020, Hafsah began her graduate work in the Clinical Psychology PhD program at UIC with Dr. Eisenlohr-Moul serving as her primary scientific mentor. Hafsah’s current research focus is (1) using multilevel modeling to determine varying trajectories of hormone sensitivity across the menstrual cycle, (2) exploring premenstrual exacerbation of mood disorders, and (3) exploring risky behavior (i.e., suicidality, high-risk sexual behavior, delinquent behavior) and high arousal symptoms (i.e., antisocial behavior, irritability/ anger, and impulsivity) across the menstrual cycle.