Unconventional Counseling
Was Borne through a time of great Pain & Uncertainty: My Saturn Return & the initial anxiety of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Over the course of a year, I worked to divest from the belief that the most security I could imagine would come from being an employee, one of a few Black folks and several queer & non-binary folx in a well-known therapy practice. I got along with my colleagues & superiors, I knew the system, and I could see myself working there for a long time.
Until I felt this urge to go my own route and start my own practice. Once I heard the suggestion from a friend it was like an earworm that I couldn’t let go of.
Terrified, self-doubting, and disoriented, I searched for confirmation from my Spirit guides as I tried to understand why Spirit & my soul would disrupt the good thing I had going at such an uncertain time.
After lots of sleepless nights, tears, support, reassurance, and courage-building through facing my fears, UC was finally built.
Over the years, I’ve gotten to practice, play, learn & grow as a spiritual entrepreneur on a path to decolonize therapy in support of both my & my clients’ growth. While I don’t have every vision of what UC will become, its existence is a testament to what can happen when we trust our journeys.

Welcome in! I’m Ayda — an Unconventional Counselor. Counseling with me often feels like a conversation. I practice being in states of deep presence, curiosity, and kindness with my clients to support their greater self-awareness as they move progressively towards their goals.
I’m trained as an LMFT, a Reiki Master, an Astrologer & I’m a self-taught Tarot Reader. Each of these practices are part of my daily life & when it feels right & you are open to it, I invite it into our work together.
Our work—like any relationship—takes on a shape that isn’t prescriptive. It is co-created and personal. We go as deep as you want to & are willing to go. We work together for as long as it feels best for your journey. And we go as slowly or as quickly as feels right to us both.