Meet Your South Asian Therapist in Los Angeles
Aleena Kaka, Associate Marriage and Family Therapist, AMFT156025
In person in West Los Angeles and online throughout California
Holding it together for everyone. Quietly wondering where you fit.
You’ve learned to honor your family, meet every expectation, and keep your worries to yourself. But lately, the pressure feels heavier than you can carry alone.
Maybe you’re navigating multiple cultural identities and struggling to find a balance that feels authentic. Maybe anxious thoughts or compulsions are taking up more of your day than you want to admit, or you and your partner keep clashing over family, roles, and expectations. Together, we’ll make room for all of who you are, and build practical tools that bring real relief.
We may be a good fit if you:
-You’ve been in therapy before and left feeling like you had to translate your life for your therapist, or that your closeness with family was treated as a problem to fix.
-Your mind rarely gets a break. You overthink, replay conversations, or seek reassurance, and you’re tired of being told to “just relax” or “stop worrying.”
-You carry guilt, obligation, or unspoken expectations that make it hard to trust your own voice.
-Your faith, culture, or family are part of how you make sense of your life, and you want a therapist who treats them as strengths and context, not obstacles.
-You and your partner keep having the same argument, and you want to understand the cycle rather than just manage it. Your relationship is shaped by more than the two of you, including family expectations, cultural or religious differences, or the pressure to keep up appearances, and you want a therapist who takes all of that into account.
-You’re pregnant, postpartum, or navigating loss or infertility, and you want a space where there’s room for both gratitude and struggle, and where family expectations, in-law involvement, and cultural ideas about motherhood are part of the conversation.
-You’re a parent worried about your teen’s anxiety, mood, or withdrawal, and you want to support them without losing the connection you have.
-Your teen is caught between two worlds, such as school and home or your culture and their peers, and you want them to have a space where neither is treated as the problem.
Specialties
Cultural identityAnxiety & OCDTeensCouplesPerinatal mental healthAccepting new clients · Private pay, Aetna & Medicare
“I’m especially inspired by moments when clients begin to feel more grounded, self-compassionate, and empowered to move through life with greater clarity and confidence.”
How I can help
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I help you make room for every part of who you are, and give you practical tools that bring real relief. Over time:
Guilt and obligation loosen their grip, and you can tell the difference between what you choose and what you feel you owe.
You can hold your values and your relationships together, so honoring your family or faith no longer means abandoning yourself.Intrusive thoughts and compulsions lose their power, and uncertainty becomes something you can live alongside.
You and your partner break out of the same old argument, and feel more connected, safe, and understood.
Your family communicates with more understanding and less conflict, and your teen feels supported, not managed.
You feel more like yourself as you move through pregnancy, postpartum, or the transition to parenthood.
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Compassionate, collaborative, and practical. I understand the weight of family, duty, and cultural expectations, so you won’t have to explain the basics. As a Muslim South Asian woman, I understand how faith, family, and identity can intertwine, and I welcome clients who want their religion or spirituality to be part of the conversation. For anxiety and OCD, I use exposure-based therapy to help you face fears gradually, at a pace that feels manageable. With couples, I help you navigate culture, family, and roles together. I also work with teens, helping them manage anxiety and stress and build a stronger sense of self. As an Associate Marriage and Family Therapist, I work under the clinical supervision of Dr. Alexia Holovatyk, Ph.D., Licensed Psychologist (PSY32945).
Approaches I draw from:
Exposure-based therapy for anxiety and OCD
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for teens
Culturally informed, multicultural therapy
Emotionally-focused couples therapy
Mindfulness and mind-body approaches
Trauma-informed care
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Before I became a therapist, I was a professional equestrian, and I’ve been riding practically my whole life. Horses taught me patience, presence, and how to listen for what isn’t said out loud. They respond to what’s actually happening in your body, not the story you’re telling about it, so you learn quickly to slow down and be honest. That’s still how I try to show up for the people I work with.
Horses and the outdoors are also where I go to heal. When I’m not at the barn, you’ll find me hiking, camping, traveling somewhere new, or playing any board game I can get my hands on.
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I completed my Masters of Science in Marriage and Family Therapy at the University of Southern California. My education was grounded in social justice, with an emphasis on the intersection of mental health and the systems of power and privilege that shape our world.
I completed my traineeship at a community mental health center, and later transitioned to a school-based position providing therapy to teens and their families at a high school. Throughout these experiences, I learned the value of culturally-attuned care, a foundation that still guides my practice today.
I have pursued advanced training in therapeutic modalities such as Internal Family Systems and Emotionally Focused Couples Therapy, as well as in specific topics such as culturally-attuned care and perinatal mental health.
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$175 per session for individual therapy
$195 per session for couples therapy
Private pay, Aetna, and Medicare accepted
Online sessions available anywhere in California or in person at our office in West Los Angeles
Not sure if we’re a fit? Book a free consult and let’s talk