Balancing Culture, Career, and Burnout: South Asian Therapy in NYC for Professionals in Law, Finance, and Consulting

If you’re a South Asian professional in New York—billables, bonuses, and slide decks running your life—you probably know how to look “successful” while feeling completely overextended.

You might be in Big Law, a bank, or a top consulting firm. Your calendar is packed, your phone never shuts up, and everyone at home still introduces you as “the lawyer,” “the finance guy,” “the management consultant.” On paper, it’s everything you were supposed to want. In your body, it’s starting to feel like a slow-motion collapse.

This is exactly where South Asian therapy for professionals in NYC can matter—not as a luxury, but as a pressure-release valve for a system that’s clearly not built with you in mind.

The numbers: burnout isn’t in your head

High-achieving fields are not neutral environments.

• Recent surveys show lawyers report feeling burned out about half the time they’re at work, with elevated rates of anxiety, depression, and substance use compared to the general population.

• A study of Quebec lawyers found that burnout increased with workload and decreased with decision latitude—so the more hours and the less control, the worse the burnout.

• In finance, cross-sectional research on over 1,000 finance workers found that performance pressure is strongly linked to depression, anxiety, and even suicide indicators.

• A global analysis of workplaces found that finance and insurance workers show some of the highest burnout rates across sectors, with poor mental health costing those industries more than double other fields.

• Consulting isn’t far behind: long hours, travel, unstable workloads, and constant performance reviews create a culture where burnout is common and often glamorized as “hustle.”

So if you’re exhausted, cynical, or fantasizing about quitting your job and disappearing to Portugal, that’s not random. It’s a rational response to chronic stress.

And then you add being South Asian on top

Now layer South Asian family systems, migration, and racism on top of Big Law, Wall Street, or consulting culture.

Studies across the U.S., U.K., Canada, and Australia show that South Asian communities in high-income countries carry higher rates of mental health problems than many host populations, while also facing more barriers to accessing care—stigma, shame, limited culturally competent providers, and services that don’t reflect their realities.

Research with South Asians in the U.S. also shows that acculturative stress and everyday racism are strongly associated with higher anxiety and depressive symptoms.

Put that into your actual life:

• Parents or extended family who see law, finance, or consulting as the payoff for migration and sacrifice.

• Internalized messages that you have to be the “good child,” the provider, the one who “makes it.”

• Subtle or overt racism and bias at work—being mistaken for the junior, talked over in meetings, or slotted into “diversity work” on top of your actual job.

• Visa stress, remittances, or being the family's financial safety net, even while you’re burning out.

No surprise that many South Asian professionals in NYC don’t just feel tired—they feel trapped between culture, career, and the cost of both on their mental health.

Why a South Asian therapist in NYC can feel different

You don’t need a therapist who’s just impressed by your LinkedIn.

Alternatively, you need someone who understands why walking away from a prestigious firm doesn’t feel simple, even if it’s ruining your sleep, relationships, or body. Someone who understands log kya kahenge, the obligation to send money home, the way caste/class/gender scripts your choices, and the pressure to keep “winning” even when you’re done.

A South Asian therapist—or a therapist deeply grounded in South Asian diasporic realities—can:

• Understand how law, finance, or consulting becomes identity, not just employment.

• Track the role of immigration history, family sacrifice, and community expectations in your career decisions.

• Help you name racism, colorism, caste dynamics, and gendered expectations without minimizing them or over-pathologizing culture.

• Hold space for queerness, non-traditional relationships, or wanting to build a life that actually fits you—not just the version your family expected.

Scoping reviews on South Asian mental health in high-income countries underline that culturally attuned, accessible services are a key lever for improving engagement and outcomes.

This is where South Asian therapy for professionals in NYC can be uniquely useful—especially when your therapist understands the dynamics of Big Law deal teams, 2 a.m. model turns, partner track, bonuses, RFPs, comp cycles, and performance ratings.

What we might actually work on together

This isn’t about convincing you to quit tomorrow or blindly “lean in” harder. It’s about expanding your options.

In therapy at Boundless, we might:

• Name what’s happening without gaslighting you. Mapping burnout, anxiety, and dissociation as symptoms of chronic stress—not proof you’re “not cut out for it.”

• Untangle inherited scripts. Where did you learn that your worth equals your billables, bonus, or title? How did migration, caste, class, or gender shape that story?

• Explore values outside prestige. What you actually want your life to feel like, not just look like from the outside.

• Build boundaries that work in high-pressure environments. Micro-boundaries (email rules, calendar blocking, no-meeting windows) and macro decisions (saying no to promotions that require 24/7 availability, shifting teams, or planning an exit).

• Plan for change without blowing up your life overnight. Scenario-planning: staying and renegotiating your relationship to work, moving firms or sectors, or building a long-term path out that respects your financial and family realities.

The goal isn’t to make law, finance, or consulting “less intense”—you know the game. The goal is to help you stop disappearing inside of it.

You’re allowed to be more than your business card

Balancing culture, career, and burnout is not a solo project. You were never meant to carry all of this alone: family expectations, racialized workplaces, financial pressure, and a nervous system that’s been stuck in “go” for years.

South Asian therapy in NYC—whether you work with an Indian therapist, a South Asian therapist, or another culturally responsive provider—can give you a space where your ambition is respected, your exhaustion is believed, and your culture is understood instead of oversimplified.

You’re not weak for feeling burned out in systems that consume people. You’re paying attention.

You get to build a life where your skills still matter, your community is still honored, and your mental health isn’t collateral damage.

Begin South Asian therapy for professionals in NYC today

High-achieving careers in law, finance, and consulting often come with relentless pressure. Long hours, constant performance demands, and an unspoken expectation to always be composed and capable. For South Asian professionals in NYC, this stress is often compounded by cultural values around success, family responsibility, and the belief that rest or emotional struggle is a sign of weakness. Many South Asian attorneys, consultants, and finance professionals find themselves burned out, emotionally numb, or quietly questioning whether this pace is sustainable.

At Boundless, we recognize the complex intersection of cultural identity, professional ambition, and internalized pressure to “keep going.” Our therapists provide a culturally responsive, affirming space for South Asian professionals to slow down, unpack burnout, and explore the emotional impact of living at the crossroads of career expectations and cultural conditioning. You don’t have to earn rest or resilience. Your well-being deserves care.

Here’s how to begin South Asian therapy for professionals in NYC:

1. Schedule a free 25-minute consultation to talk through what’s weighing on you, whether that’s career burnout, imposter syndrome, family expectations, or the emotional toll of high-stakes work in law, finance, or consulting.

2. Book your first South Asian therapy session to begin addressing chronic stress, perfectionism, identity conflict, and the pressure to constantly perform at a high level.

3. Start building a more sustainable path forward with South Asian therapy for professionals in NYC that honors your cultural background while helping you reconnect with clarity, balance, and emotional well-being.

Additional mental health services at Boundless in NYC

At Boundless, we approach therapy with the understanding that each person’s healing process is unique. We offer a range of therapy services for individuals, couples, and families, with a strong commitment to culturally responsive care. Our clinicians work thoughtfully with South Asian couples, LGBTQ+ individuals, and those navigating trauma, anxiety, depression, and other emotional concerns.

Our team integrates multiple evidence-based approaches, including EMDR, Internal Family Systems (IFS), Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) with Exposure and Response Prevention (EXRP), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), and somatic and mindfulness-based interventions. In addition to individual therapy, we offer group therapy, clinical supervision, professional trainings, and secure online therapy options, allowing care to be adaptable, collaborative, and tailored to your goals.

Meet the South Asian therapist guiding your healing process

Prerna Menon, LCSW and Certified Clinical Trauma Professional, offers warm, trauma-informed care for individuals healing from experiences such as childhood sexual abuse, incest, addiction, and complex family relationships. Her work also supports clients coping with racialized stress, questioning or affirming their gender or sexual identity, and managing the emotional challenges that can arise from living between cultures.

References from a South Asian therapist for professionals

• Karasz, A., Patel, V., Kabita, M., & Patel, A. (2019). Mental health and stress among South Asians. Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health, 21(Suppl 1), 7–14. 

• Lee, Y. M., & Min, L. Y. (2023). Performance pressure and mental health among finance workers in Korea: A cross-sectional study. Annals of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 35, 1–9. 

• Menon, G., Sarma, H., Bestman, A., O’Callaghan, C., & Yadav, U. N. (2025). A scoping review to identify opportunities and challenges for communities of South Asian origin in accessing mental health services and support in high-income countries. BMC Public Health, 25, 24619. 

• Nickum, M., Cadieux, N., & Dagenais-Desmarais, V. (2023). Burnout among lawyers: Effects of workload, latitude, and mediation via engagement and over-engagement. Psychiatry, Psychology and Law, 30(5), 790–808. 

• Siddiqui, S. M., O’Malley, A. J., & Moriarty, D. G. (2022). Acculturative stress, everyday racism, and mental health among South Asians in the United States. Frontiers in Public Health, 10, 954105. 

• The Financial Times. (2024, December 16). Global mental health crisis hits workplaces. Financial Times. 

• OneLegal. (2024). Lawyer depression in the legal profession: Know when to seek help. OneLegal Blog. 

• Massachusetts Board of Bar Overseers. (2024). Attorney well-being. https://www.massbbo.org 

• Acheloa Wellness. (2023, August 16). Consulting burnout: How to identify and overcome burnout. Acheloa Wellness Blog.