Sonya Drottar, LCSW

Sonya Drottar is a licensed clinical social worker with 25 years of experience in California. She focuses on helping people manage stress, anxiety, relationship troubles, and major life changes. Sonya aims to make it easier to talk about hard things and to plan steps forward.

She creates a calm, nonjudgmental space where people can name what they are feeling. Conversations are practical and direct. Sonya uses Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) alongside mindfulness and acceptance-based ideas to help people notice thoughts and change unhelpful patterns.

Her work often addresses parenting and family-related concerns, grief, compassion fatigue, and challenges with addiction or chronic illness. She also supports people dealing with communication problems, commitment or codependency issues, and the stress of caregiving or cancer in the family.

Sessions blend problem-solving with skills practice. Clients learn ways to manage anxiety, cope with loss, and make clearer choices about relationships and work. Motivational interviewing and solution-focused techniques are used to build momentum for change.

Sonya welcomes people who want steady, practical support and who prefer a collaborative approach. She speaks English and is available to work with international clients. Her practice offers flexible formats including video, phone, chat, and text-based messaging.

Approach-driven care for online therapy

Sonya commonly uses Cognitive Behavioral Therapy to help people identify and change thoughts and routines that contribute to anxiety or low mood. CBT often includes simple exercises and small experiments to try between sessions to build different habits.

She also uses Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, which helps people notice difficult feelings without getting stuck and focus on values-based actions. Client-centered work means sessions are paced by each person, with the therapist listening and reflecting so clients feel understood and can set their own goals.

Finding the right approach is part of the work. Sonya will talk with each person about goals, preferences, and what has or has not helped before. Together they decide which techniques to use and adjust the plan as progress is tracked.

Online formats include video calls, phone sessions, live chat, and text-based messaging. Video sessions let people use face-to-face interaction and screen-sharing for materials, while phone sessions can fit a work break or require less bandwidth. Live chat and text messaging are useful for brief check-ins, skill reminders, or when someone prefers writing. These options make it easier to fit therapy into a busy life and keep progress moving forward.