Punit Mahendru

Punit Mahendru is a California licensed psychologist with 30 years of professional experience. She helps people facing stress, anxiety, relationship concerns, low self-esteem, depression, and major life changes. She speaks English and Hindi and aims to meet people where they are. Her approach is compassionate and practical. Sessions focus on clear goals and simple steps you can try between meetings. She adapts conversation and planning to fit each person's needs rather than using a one-size-fits-all method. Punit also addresses deeper themes that often accompany life transitions. These include attachment and abandonment worries, communication problems, caregiver stress, chronic illness or pain, and feelings of isolation or low self-worth. She pays attention to cultural background and women’s issues when they affect what someone brings to therapy. Clinically she uses evidence-informed approaches such as Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, and Existential perspectives, along with mindfulness and relationship-focused techniques. In practice this means working on thoughts and behaviors, exploring personal values and meaning, and improving how people connect with others. Starting therapy with her involves a focused intake and collaborative planning. The aim is steady progress toward whatever matters most to the individual, whether that is managing anxiety, navigating a separation, rebuilding confidence, or finding renewed purpose.

Therapeutic approaches and how they translate online

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) helps people clarify what matters most to them and take committed steps toward those values. It often involves short exercises and values-based planning to reduce avoidance and increase meaningful action. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) focuses on identifying unhelpful thoughts and patterns and testing small behavior changes to ease symptoms like anxiety and depression. Existential Therapy looks at questions of meaning, choice, and responsibility, and can help during big life transitions or feelings of emptiness.

Finding the right approach is part of the work. The therapist will collaborate with each person to pick or combine methods based on their goals, daily life, and what feels most useful. That process can begin in early sessions and be adjusted over time as needs change.

Confirm available session options before booking, since the biography does not list specific formats. Online therapy can make scheduling easier and help fit sessions into a busy routine. It can also allow for shorter check-ins when days are tight, support using mindfulness or behavioral experiments between meetings, and reduce travel time so therapy fits around work, caregiving, or medical appointments.