You should not have to choose between your culture and your healing.
JiVA Mental Health is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit providing culturally rooted therapy, education, and community programs for South Asian individuals, families, and communities across California. Therapy is available in four or more South Asian languages. Sessions start at $40.
1,000+
people impacted
4+
South Asian languages
$40
Sliding scale starting price per session
2023
Founded and serving since
"When I began therapy with JiVA, I didn't realize how much of my pain was connected to my family's past. The stories of struggle and survival I grew up hearing weren't just history, they were alive in me, affecting my relationships and sense of self. JiVA has helped me see the connections and start the process of untangling my own identity from the trauma of previous generations."
About Us
In Sanskrit, JiVA (जीव) generally means “soul,” “life,” or “living being”
JiVA means life. And we believe every life deserves to be held with compassion, culture, and care.
JiVA Mental Health is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit initiative transforming how South Asian communities understand, access, and experience mental health care. Born from a deep recognition of the stigma, shame, and generational trauma many carry, JiVA was created to meet our community where we are—with compassion, culture, and clarity.
Why JiVA Matters:
The Power of Therapy Backed by Data
Too Few Get Help
Asian American communities continue to face substantial gaps in mental health treatment, and culturally responsive care can be especially difficult to find.
Stigma Still Hurts
Stigma, shame, and lack of culturally attuned care are the top reasons South Asians don’t reach out for help.
Culturally Matched Care
South Asian representation among certified postpartum mental health providers remains extremely limited. JiVA is helping expand that pipeline through training scholarships.
Silence Creates Struggle
Language barriers, cultural guilt, and fear of family judgment keep many from seeking therapy, even when they’re struggling in silence.
What the South Asian community says about this work
It's not just about breaking taboos. It's about breaking barriers that hinder access to an already broken mental health system. JiVA collectively empowers the human spirit.
Richa Moorjani — Actress and Activist, Never Have I Ever
In a world that demands conformity, let our South Asian community stand out for embracing diversity in mental health. It's time for us to reclaim our voices and rewrite our narrative with JiVA's support.
Aparna Shewakramani — Author, Indian Matchmaking
Wearing a mask of perfection is a survival tool many South Asians learn early. But it's in unmasking that we reclaim our humanity.
Dr. Monisha Vasa — South Asian Psychiatrist and Mental Health Advocate
Care That Understands Your Culture and
Transforms Your Life
Book a Free
Consultation
Take the first step by booking a free 15-minute discovery call. Ektha personally handles every consultation call and will help guide you toward care that affirms your story, heritage, and emotional well-being.
Experience Culturally Conscious Therapy
Our integrative therapy combines clinical care with cultural insight. Together, we’ll explore the root of your challenges and build emotional strength, peace, and self-trust.
Create Change and Rewrite Your Stigmas
Whether you're the cycle-breaker in your family or just beginning your journey, JiVA offers you a place to be seen, supported, and empowered, every step of the way.
Who We Serve
South Asian Women & Mothers
Whether you're navigating relationships, career expectations, fertility journeys, or postpartum transitions, we provide a supportive space that honors your voice and your culture.
South Asian Men
We create space for South Asian men to talk openly about pressure to provide, emotional restraint, identity, and intergenerational expectations — without judgment.
Multicultural Couples & Families
We help partners and families bridge generational gaps, cultural expectations, and communication challenges with compassion and curiosity, not judgment.
→ Because healing family dynamics starts with
shared understanding
LGBTQIA+ South Asians
We offer affirming care for queer and questioning individuals facing family pressures, identity challenges, or cultural stigma. You deserve to feel seen, safe, and celebrated.
→ Therapy that centers your truth without
compromising
your roots.
Youth, Teens, & Cycle-Breakers
For teens and young adults navigating identity, anxiety, and academic pressure, we offer culturally conscious therapy that empowers resilience and self-worth.
→ You’re not too young to feel this much. And
You’re not alone.
Perinatal Mental Health Training
In partnership with Postpartum Support International (PSI), JiVA offers scholarships to train South Asian clinicians and community members in perinatal mental health, expanding support for new parents and dismantling cultural silence around postpartum struggles.
Workshops That Center Your Stories
Our wellness workshops are safe spaces where South Asians explore mental health through community, storytelling, and cultural insight. Whether it’s navigating shaadi pressure, identity, or generational dynamics, JiVA blends ancestral wisdom with modern tools to support healing that feels familiar.
Cultural Events That Bring Us Together
From chai & chat circles to 5K awareness walks, our events create collective spaces for joy, learning, and reflection. JiVA events are more than social—they're a form of resistance and renewal for South Asians reclaiming mental well-being as a right.
Boldly Brown
California's first South Asian men's mental health group. Building space for men who have been told their whole lives that needing support is weakness.
Meet The JiVA Team
Board of Directors & Impact Board
JiVA’s Board of Directors provides governance and strategic leadership, while the Impact Board advances community partnerships, programs, and culturally responsive mental health advocacy. View the complete, current leadership roster on our About Us page.
Taking the first step is the hardest part. We make the rest simple.
Tell us a little about what you are carrying. No commitment required. Ektha handles all intake calls personally.
Based on your intake call, you will be matched with the right therapist. Sessions are weekly, available via telehealth or in person.
Fill out our financial assistance form. It takes less than 10 minutes. Financial assistance may be available based on eligibility and current program capacity.
