Manisha Parikh, LCSW

Manisha Parikh is a licensed clinical social worker (LCSW) in California with six years of professional experience. She focuses on helping people manage stress, anxiety, depression, and trauma. She also supports parents who are facing parenting strain and people trying to build self-esteem and confidence.

Her work is straightforward and collaborative. She treats each person as the expert on their life and looks for strengths to build on. Sessions focus on practical steps and clear goals instead of jargon or vague plans.

Manisha uses approaches that help people change unhelpful thoughts and habits and that center the person's own priorities. She draws on Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, client-centered methods, and motivational interviewing to create short-term goals and longer-term strategies. Trauma-focused techniques are used when past events continue to cause distress.

In a typical session she listens closely, asks questions to clarify what matters most, and helps people try small changes between meetings. She aims for techniques that fit everyday life and that can be practiced at home.

People come to her for many reasons, including feelings of abandonment, attachment concerns, caregiver stress, communication problems, guilt, shame, loneliness, midlife transitions, and women's issues. Her approach is practical and respectful, focusing on what will make day-to-day life feel more manageable and meaningful.

Practical approaches for online therapy and healing

Manisha commonly uses Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and Client-Centered Therapy in online sessions. CBT focuses on identifying unhelpful thoughts and testing new ways of thinking and behaving, which can help with anxiety, stress, and low mood. Client-centered work emphasizes listening, empathy, and the client's own goals, helping people feel heard and understood as they decide what changes to try.

She also uses Motivational Interviewing to help people find personal reasons to change and to build momentum for steps like improving routines or tackling difficult conversations. Choosing the right combination of approaches is part of the therapy process; she will collaborate with each person to find methods that fit their needs, goals, and comfort level rather than imposing a single path.

Online formats include video calls, phone sessions, live chat, and text-based messaging to offer flexibility. Video works well for face-to-face interaction and visual cues, phone sessions can be quicker check-ins or fit into a break at work, and chat or messaging can support short updates or reflection between sessions. These options make it easier to keep therapy consistent around work, caregiving, and travel schedules.