About Aya
Aya Okumura is a licensed clinical social worker with two decades of experience helping people manage stress, anxiety, grief, low self-esteem, and depression. She offers straightforward support for coping with life changes and rebuilding confidence. Aya speaks English and Japanese and works with clients from Hawaii and beyond.
Aya focuses on practical conversations tailored to each person's needs. Sessions tend to center on what is happening now, what matters most to the client, and small steps that can make daily life easier.
Background and approach
She aims to create a respectful and caring space where people can sort through overwhelming feelings at their own pace. Her practice addresses a wide range of concerns related to long-term illness and caregiving, workplace stress, social anxiety, panic, and adjustment at midlife.
She also supports people facing end-of-life issues, grief after loss, and the emotional impact of medical diagnoses such as cancer or HIV/AIDS. Aya brings experience working across multicultural settings and with people wrestling with isolation or identity questions. Aya uses conversational, person-centered methods and tools that help clients set realistic goals and try new ways of approaching problems.
She adjusts the pace and focus of sessions based on each person’s priorities. Aya is explicit about what she does not provide: she does not write official disability, Social Security, FMLA, court, or employer documentation. People looking for steady, compassionate guidance through anxiety, life transitions, or grief will find a practical, calm approach in her work.
She encourages courageous first steps and supports progress one conversation at a time.
Approaches for online support and practical change
Aya commonly draws on Client-Centered Therapy and Solution-Focused Therapy in her online work. Client-Centered Therapy means conversations focus on the client's experience, with the therapist listening carefully and adapting to what the client needs. It helps when someone wants a supportive, nonjudgmental space to make sense of strong emotions. Solution-Focused Therapy concentrates on small, achievable steps and what works now. It is useful for people who want concrete changes and short-term plans for reducing stress or improving confidence.Choosing the right approach is a team effort. Aya will talk with each person about their goals, preferences, and past attempts to address problems. Together they decide which methods to try and adjust them over time based on what helps most.
Online therapy offers flexibility in how sessions happen. Video calls allow face-to-face conversation and visual cues. Phone sessions can be a good option when bandwidth is limited or a quick check-in is needed. Live chat and text-based messaging work well for brief updates, between-session support, or when writing feels easier than speaking. These options make it simpler to fit therapy into a busy life while working with a licensed professional.
Questions people ask
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What this therapist works with
Most often
Also listed
- 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
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