About Aya
Aya Okumura is a licensed clinical social worker with two decades of experience helping people facing stress, anxiety, grief, low self-esteem, and depression. She writes treatment plans with sensitivity and compassion. Aya focuses on practical steps people can use to cope with life changes and regain a sense of control.
She adapts conversations and goals to each person's needs. Sessions emphasize respectful listening and straightforward strategies. Aya aims to make small, manageable changes feel possible rather than overwhelming.
Background and approach
Aya draws on client-centered methods that keep the person’s priorities front and center. She also uses motivational interviewing to help people find personal reasons to change. Narrative and solution-focused ideas support new ways of seeing problems and finding workable next steps.
Her background includes clinical work across settings and diverse populations, and she is licensed to practice in California and Hawaii as an LCSW. Aya is comfortable working with issues tied to caregiving, chronic illness, end-of-life concerns, workplace stress, and multicultural challenges. Sessions are offered in English and Japanese, and she accepts international clients.
Aya can also support people facing social anxiety, panic, post-traumatic stress, and relationship communication struggles. She does not provide documentation for disability, Social Security, FMLA, courts, or employer requests.
How Aya’s Approaches Work Online
Aya uses client-centered therapy to focus the work on the person's own goals and values. This approach is about listening closely and shaping sessions around what matters most to the individual, which often helps with anxiety, low self-worth, and life transitions.She also uses motivational interviewing to help people find their own motivation for change. That method involves asking questions that clarify a person’s reasons for change and breaking larger goals into small, actionable steps suitable for day-to-day life.
Choosing the right approach is a collaborative process. Aya talks with people about their goals and tries different techniques until they find what fits. She adjusts the plan over time based on what is working and what the person prefers.
Online therapy offers practical flexibility. Video calls allow face-to-face conversation when visual cues are helpful. Phone sessions can be simpler when bandwidth is limited or when someone prefers not to use video. Live chat and text messaging are useful for brief check-ins, quick problem-solving, and maintaining momentum between longer sessions. These options make it easier to fit therapy into work, caregiving, or treatment schedules while keeping the focus on progress and daily coping.
Frequently asked questions
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Specialties and expertise
Top specialties
Also works with
- Cancer
- Caregiver issues and stress
- Communication problems
- Coping with life changes
- Depression
- HIV / AIDS
- Hospice and end-of-life counseling
- Isolation / loneliness
- Midlife crisis
- Mood disorders
- Multicultural concerns
- Panic disorder and panic attacks
- Post-traumatic stress
- Self-love
- Social anxiety and phobia
- Women's issues
- Workplace issues
Therapeutic approaches
- Experience
- 20 years
- Licensed
- California, Hawaii
- Languages
- English, Japanese