Dr. Miwa Hitsumoto, PsyD, LMFT, is a Japanese-born, U.S.-licensed marriage and family therapist with more than 25 years of clinical experience specializing in Japanese and cross-cultural mental health, relationships, and family issues. Her perspective combines extensive clinical experience in the United States with an ongoing connection to contemporary life and professional communities in Japan, where she returns several times throughout the year and spends significant time in both Shimonoseki and Tokyo.

Dr. Hitsumoto brings a distinctly Japanese cultural perspective together with decades of experience living and working in the United States. Her work encompasses Japanese and cross-cultural mental health, intercultural relationships and families, adjustment to life abroad, parenting and family dynamics, and the ways cultural expectations shape communication, relationships, and emotional well-being.

In addition to leading LA Counseling, Dr. Hitsumoto serves as Executive and Clinical Director of the Center for Japanese Mental Health (CJMH), a U.S. nonprofit organization focused on culturally and linguistically appropriate mental-health information, education, outreach, and professional collaboration for Japanese-speaking and culturally connected communities.

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Dr. Hitsumoto is available for media interviews, expert commentary, speaking engagements, professional consultation, and selected publishing and collaborative projects. Her experience is particularly relevant to topics involving Japanese mental health and culture, cross-cultural relationships and families, parenting and family change, adjustment to life abroad, communication across cultures, and the differences between Japanese and American social and family expectations.

Her combination of clinical experience and continuing engagement in both Japan and the United States allows her to offer a perspective that is both culturally grounded and current.

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• Japanese mental health, culture, and values
• Cross-cultural counseling and adjustment
• Intercultural couples, marriage, and family relationships
• Parenting, family dynamics, and generational differences
• Separation, co-parenting, and changing family structures
• Communication across Japanese and American cultures
• Mental-health concerns affecting Japanese people living abroad
• Counselor consultation, supervision, and professional development

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In 2026, Dr. Hitsumoto served as a designated discussant in a symposium examining Japan’s new joint parental authority framework after divorce and its implications for parents, children, and families at the 18th Academic Conference of the International Brief Therapy Association in Yamagata. She also served as a judge and commentator for the conference’s B-1 GRAND-PRIX counseling-skills competition.

These activities reflect her continuing engagement with contemporary clinical, family, and social issues in Japan and her collaboration with Japanese and international counseling professionals.

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Dr. Hitsumoto has been featured in publications and media outlets for her expertise in cross-cultural counseling and mental health.

Featured Articles and Interviews

• “In Tokyo, Simone Biles and Naomi Osaka share mental-health struggles as Japan confronts workaholic culture” by Nathan Vanderklippe in The Globe and Mail, July 28, 2021. Read the article →
• WOM Bangkok magazine article about Dr. Hitsumoto and psychotherapy, March 2019. Read the article →
• U.S. Frontline magazine column about psychotherapy, October 2017.
• “Sexuality in Japan” by Erik Augustin Palm in Modern Psykologi magazine, March 30, 2016. Read the article →

Television and Radio Appearances

• TJS Radio interview at Japanese Classic Car Show about mental health, October 30, 2021. Watch the video →
• TJS Radio interview at OC Japan Fair about mental health, October 17, 2021. Watch the video →
• Guest speaker on Shinichi Hitsumoto’s syndicated radio program (broadcast from Ehime, Japan) explaining psychotherapy, 2016. (Two separate appearances).

Monthly Columns

• Monthly columnist for L’ovest magazine covering mental health and relationships, Los Angeles, CA, 2006-2014.

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Dr. Hitsumoto speaks at seminars, workshops, panels, and professional programs on mental health, cross-cultural counseling, family and relationship issues, and professional development.

Workshops and Seminars

• CBT workshop for National Foundation of Brief Therapy showcasing live, unscripted couples counseling session, Tokyo, Japan, July 21, 2023. Visit NFBT website →
• Seminar for NAMI South Bay Japanese Support Group explaining CBT & psychotherapy; Torrance, CA, November 10, 2019. Visit their website →

Panel Discussions and Guest Speaker Events

• Panel guest speaker at Microsoft Cloud Computing Webinar, “Mental Health & The Holidays,” Bellevue, WA, December 14, 2021.
• Panel guest speaker for the Japan Foundation, “Breaking the Silence, A Conversation with Kazuki Takizawa & Dr. Miwa Hitsumoto,” discussing the benefits of creating art for mental health, Los Angeles, CA, August 19, 2021. Watch the video recording →

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• Education: MA and PsyD in Clinical Psychology
• California, Board of Behavioral Sciences, License #MFT41010
• Texas, Behavioral Health Executive Council, License #203764
• Nevada, Board of Examiners, License #2965-R

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For media interviews, speaking engagements, publishing opportunities, and professional collaborations involving Dr. Miwa Hitsumoto, please contact:

Chi Yu
Operations Manager, LA Counseling
chi@LAcounseling.com

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