Therapy for First and Second-Generation Immigrants

LOS ANGELES • CALIFORNIA • IRVINE

Do you identify with more than one culture? Did you move from one country to another and feel that your heart is torn between two places, while neither place feels like home?

Do you feel like an outsider within your family and the larger culture? Do you struggle with being true to yourself while honoring your family’s cultural values?

Do you have guilt about setting boundaries with your family? Do you feel that your outside achievements define your inner-worth?

I am an Iranian-American/MENA therapist. As an immigrant and ethnic minority, I know what it’s like to feel caught between two worlds. Culturally affirming therapy (Also known as Multicultural Therapy or Cross-Cultural Therapy) can help you navigate issues around identity, belonging, self-worth, and family dynamics. I provide a safe space for you to explore your thoughts and feelings while honoring your culture and affirming your unique story. 

As an LGBTQ+ affirming therapist, I understand that sexual orientation and gender identity can bring added layers to one’s experience around their cultural identity. Culturally affirming therapy is a great way to explore your experiences.

Therapist for Cross-Cultural and Multicultural Therapy, Tannaz Alaghband smiling at the camera in Irvine, California

How does therapy help immigrants or people who identify with more than one culture?

  • Provide a safe and affirming space for you to share your true feelings without fearing shame or judgment. 

  • Help you explore and break patterns of intergenerational trauma.

  • Give you space to grieve the loss of your homeland, or of not getting to live in your ancestral home.

  • Understand how shame and guilt have influenced the way you view yourself.

  • Learn tools how to negotiate healthy boundaries without violating cultural norms.

  • Cultivate self-compassion and separate inner-worth from outside achievements

If you're navigating life between cultures, you carry a unique strength. Therapy can help you tap into that strength, honor your heritage, and create a life that aligns with your true self. I offer culturally affirming therapy for first and second-generation immigrants in Irvine, Los Angeles, and throughout California.