Private Practice

“Great experience”

My experience with Dr. Elham Shoja was very positive, she is educated and well informed about her job.

“Excellent therapist!”

Dr Shoja goes beyond call of duty! She's compassionate, caring, Professional, and knowledgable. She's tough yet gentle and understanding. If it wasn't because of her my marriage and life would have been destroyed! Thanks Doc!

“OMG! What a difference!”

Met Dr. Shoja at one of her seminars and decided to start therapy with her. It only took 1 session for her to point out what seemed to have been THE ISSUE in my entire life! She's so easy to talk to and is very knowledgeable and professional. I was amazed how much I was learning in a single session. I session per week and you end up thinking on your own the rest of the week! As though she knows what buttons to push. I loved working with her and after 8 months of therapy I felt like a brand new person with a lot to live for.
Thanks Doc :-)

“Beyond My Expectations”

I have been seeing Dr Shoja over a year. She is well versed in dealing with anxiety, depression, family affairs and individual self worth. She is honest, attentive and will challenge you. I look forward to my sessions with her because I know that within that time I get a reality check and she will keep me on the right path. I will recommend Dr Shoja to anyone who needs help handling everyday challenges in their life.

“If you need someone who's good at what they do, look no further.”

Let me first start by saying that before going to Dr. Shoja, I tried a lot of other therapists in my network both for couple's therapy as well as for my personal needs. Many are those who jump to conclusions without asking the right questions, or are quick to advise without having a thorough understanding of the problem.
Dr. Shoja is truly an expert in her field. She asks the right questions to get to the root of the problem even if you don't know yourself what those problems are. It was truly a roller coaster ride (the good kind) when I went to see her. I had no idea why I was experiencing what I was going through, and she guided me to see the problems for what they were, offered solutions to those problems, and they really helped.
The other thing that in my opinion is very important for any healthcare provider is the ability to have empathy and care about her patients. I could see that in every session that she truly cares about her patients and can connect with them at a level not many other therapists do. She is also passionate about her field of work and that truly translates into why she is the remarkable therapist that she is.
Highly recommended. You will not be disappointed. I have recommended her to many people who all have the same opinion.

“She is my angel and she can be yours too.”

Dr. Elham Shoja was still studying at Chapman University when I was in my divorce process. I was a mess, but she was all I needed! I remember that I got her number from Dr. Holakooee's office. I called her once. She asked me some questions about my problem and we set a time to meet, but I didn't go! Not that I didn't want to, but because I was so depressed that I couldn't even leave my bed. She called several times after that, but I didn't answer. Every time she left a comforting message that if the cost was a problem she would lower it to whatever I could afford, or if the transportation was the problem, she could arrange a lift. She called me once, and I listened to her but did not respond. She said that she understand totally why I'm not answering, but if I went to see her in person she would help me get through my agony. So I picked up the phone, made an appointment and continued to go religiously, and here I am, healthy and happy, having overcome all the problems that seemed to chain me down! I will never forget that even after she got her doctorate, she helped me big time with her true generosity and kindness and professionalism years after I got through with her therapies. Dr. Shoja is more than a therapist. Yes, she is relatively young, but she can make you feel like your own mom plus knowledge- you can trust her with your deepest or weirdest emotions and not be judgmental. I recommend her to everybody if any age who has lost the motivation to live their life to the fullest and want to find their happiness again. I can't thank her enough for teaching me how to be happy again, and how to relax and stop stressing so much over the most difficult time in my life.

“An Extraordinary Clinician”

Dr. Shoja changed my life in a way that I could not imagine in a million years. Dr. Shoja is an exceptional clinician who knows her job very well. She was able to identify my symptoms and went to the root of the problem. She had a systematic approach in treating my symptoms and did not give up until every single issue was addressed. She assigned me goals and helped me reach them every step of the way. What I love the most about Dr. Shoja is that she does not ask you to come in unless absolutely necessary. She didn’t waste my time nor my money. Every single session had a defined treatment goal. I recommend her to any patient who needs a mental health professional, highly skilled in the field.

“Excellent *”

Dr Shoja is one the best things that ever happened to me, I have been to a couple of other therapists and have done nothing like what she has done for me. She is caring, passionate, realistic, knowledgeable and straightforward. She has saved my marriage, lifted my longtime depression like no one else has done. I actually look forward to see her each week.

“Kind, Warm, Smart And Professional.”

Great for individual sessions and cultural differences. Dr Shoja is kind, warm, smart and professional. She has some great insights that can be helpful in couple sessions and individual sessions, especially if there is a cultural alignment with her cultural background. She can be very helpful with individual and marriage communication especially around communication style. She delivers a set of communication “feeling words” that can be helpful to those that are not used to communicating feelings. The words can also be found on the internet, but she brings the communication style to life. She really shines with individual sessions, more so than marriage sessions. Some of the top reasons for divorce are lack of shared vision, dishonesty, different priorities and interests. Where Dr. Shoja shines in marriage counseling is with cultures that put more priority and value on extended relatives vs. spouse and the family unit. Her style is more “family group think” and “ extended relative’s codependency” vs. individual responsibility and the marriage unit. This is odd for a therapist, but it is more of a cultural bias than a professional fault. She is great at identifying issues. Some of the universal values of marriage around communication, honesty and transparency do not rate highly vs. group think and thus she really shines more with people that share a cultural experience with her cultural background vs. western concept of marriage and equality. She sometimes dispenses economic advice, even though she is not a financial planner. The advice is very misguided. She sometime has challenges managing her own billing, so take financial advice with a grain of salt. Therefore individual sessions are much more valuable and this is especially true if she gets to concerns around self-esteem or other core issues earlier rather than later. Her kindness, warmth, and intelligence is top-notch.

“She is different than the rest.”

I have tried many therapist and experienced many therapy sessions in my quest to find the right therapist. My search ended when I came across Dr. Shoja. She was able to fulfill every quality I needed in a therapist: empathetic, knowledgable, resourceful, approachable, and comfortable. Unlike most sessions and therapist I experienced, my sessions with Dr. Shoja felt like conversations with a trusted confidant rather than me pouring my heart out to a complete stranger and feeling weird, vulnerable and unfulfilled afterward. No matter how busy Dr. Shoja gets with other clients, she does a great job taking notes and remember all the details you share with her so you truly get the most out of every session (this is an issue I had with many other therapist). This is very important because over time she connects the dots to these details and helps you see the “big picture”. She isn’t going to give you cliche answers or tell you what to think, instead she helps you get to the answers yourself and that makes all the difference. Anyone can give advice, but when someone has the power to help you reach valuable insight on your own (with her help and direction), it really sticks to you and helps make lasting change in your life. If you are like me and have experienced many therapist and are feeling skeptical and hopeless, give Dr. Shoja a shot, you wouldn’t regret it. If this your first time seeking a therapist, save your time and money and start with her. You have nothing to lose and a lot of insight to gain!