About Dr. Kaneshiro
Dr. Susan Kaneshiro (CA PSY22537) is a bilingual (Spanish/English) clinical psychologist who has specialized in psychological immigration evaluations since 2009. She conducts evaluations for I-601A hardship waivers, VAWA petitions, U-Visas, T-Visas, asylum cases, F-1 reinstatements, I-751 petitions, I-212 applications, and N-648 disability certifications.
At the heart of Dr. Kaneshiro’s immigration work is a simple belief: your story matters. Immigration cases often require people to describe some of the most difficult and deeply personal experiences of their lives: trauma, abuse, victimization, family separation, hardship, loss, and fear about an uncertain future. Dr. Kaneshiro provides a respectful, culturally responsive space where clients can tell those stories and feel understood.
Her role, however, extends beyond listening. Drawing upon clinical interviews, psychological testing, behavioral observations, available records, and relevant psychological research, Dr. Kaneshiro translates complex personal experiences into clear, comprehensive psychological reports. Her evaluations provide attorneys and immigration decision-makers with an independent expert psychological opinion regarding a client’s psychological functioning, history, symptoms, and the potential consequences of immigration-related circumstances.
Throughout her career, Dr. Kaneshiro has used her psychological expertise to advocate for the well-being of immigrants and their families and to help decision-makers understand consequences that may not otherwise be readily visible. This has included careful consideration of the effects of separation and other immigration-related stressors on families and U.S. citizen children. She has also educated, supervised, and consulted with other mental health professionals seeking to improve the quality of psychological services provided to immigrant and Spanish-speaking communities.
Dr. Kaneshiro’s professional commitment to culturally responsive care extends to her psychotherapy practice. She is a collaborative, identity-affirming, and sex-positive therapist who recognizes that culture, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, spirituality, disability, relationships, and other aspects of identity shape how we experience ourselves and the world around us.
Her clinical expertise includes trauma and PTSD, anxiety, mood disorders, and somatic concerns. She views therapy as more than the treatment of symptoms. Therapy can provide a toolbox for understanding ourselves, changing patterns that no longer serve us, strengthening relationships, and creating lives with greater autonomy, connection, meaning, flow, and enjoyment.
Dr. Kaneshiro’s broader career has included university teaching and leadership, psychological research, mentoring, and clinical work within diverse communities. Her academic experience includes serving as Program Chair for Counseling Psychology at Argosy University, Orange County; teaching as adjunct faculty at The Chicago School of Professional Psychology; and teaching in the Marriage and Family Therapy program at California State University, Fullerton. She also previously served as a senior staff psychologist at Monsour Counseling and Psychological Services, providing services to students across The Claremont Colleges.
Throughout these roles, Dr. Kaneshiro has worked with culturally and socially diverse communities, reflecting her longstanding commitment to understanding people within the context of culture, identity, relationships, and lived experience.
Today, Dr. Kaneshiro provides fully remote psychological services throughout California, allowing clients to complete immigration evaluations or participate in psychotherapy from the privacy and convenience of their own space.
To inquire about an immigration psychological evaluation or psychotherapy with Dr. Kaneshiro, call 714-404-7398.
At the heart of Dr. Kaneshiro’s immigration work is a simple belief: your story matters. Immigration cases often require people to describe some of the most difficult and deeply personal experiences of their lives: trauma, abuse, victimization, family separation, hardship, loss, and fear about an uncertain future. Dr. Kaneshiro provides a respectful, culturally responsive space where clients can tell those stories and feel understood.
Her role, however, extends beyond listening. Drawing upon clinical interviews, psychological testing, behavioral observations, available records, and relevant psychological research, Dr. Kaneshiro translates complex personal experiences into clear, comprehensive psychological reports. Her evaluations provide attorneys and immigration decision-makers with an independent expert psychological opinion regarding a client’s psychological functioning, history, symptoms, and the potential consequences of immigration-related circumstances.
Throughout her career, Dr. Kaneshiro has used her psychological expertise to advocate for the well-being of immigrants and their families and to help decision-makers understand consequences that may not otherwise be readily visible. This has included careful consideration of the effects of separation and other immigration-related stressors on families and U.S. citizen children. She has also educated, supervised, and consulted with other mental health professionals seeking to improve the quality of psychological services provided to immigrant and Spanish-speaking communities.
Dr. Kaneshiro’s professional commitment to culturally responsive care extends to her psychotherapy practice. She is a collaborative, identity-affirming, and sex-positive therapist who recognizes that culture, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, spirituality, disability, relationships, and other aspects of identity shape how we experience ourselves and the world around us.
Her clinical expertise includes trauma and PTSD, anxiety, mood disorders, and somatic concerns. She views therapy as more than the treatment of symptoms. Therapy can provide a toolbox for understanding ourselves, changing patterns that no longer serve us, strengthening relationships, and creating lives with greater autonomy, connection, meaning, flow, and enjoyment.
Dr. Kaneshiro’s broader career has included university teaching and leadership, psychological research, mentoring, and clinical work within diverse communities. Her academic experience includes serving as Program Chair for Counseling Psychology at Argosy University, Orange County; teaching as adjunct faculty at The Chicago School of Professional Psychology; and teaching in the Marriage and Family Therapy program at California State University, Fullerton. She also previously served as a senior staff psychologist at Monsour Counseling and Psychological Services, providing services to students across The Claremont Colleges.
Throughout these roles, Dr. Kaneshiro has worked with culturally and socially diverse communities, reflecting her longstanding commitment to understanding people within the context of culture, identity, relationships, and lived experience.
Today, Dr. Kaneshiro provides fully remote psychological services throughout California, allowing clients to complete immigration evaluations or participate in psychotherapy from the privacy and convenience of their own space.
To inquire about an immigration psychological evaluation or psychotherapy with Dr. Kaneshiro, call 714-404-7398.