Breaking the Ice: How Zola Counseling Solutions is Creating a Home for First-Time Therapy Seekers

Starting therapy can be daunting, especially when it’s your first time and you’re not sure what to expect. That’s precisely the moment when Asia Rodriquez and her team at Zola Counseling Solutions step in.

Founded in 2019, Zola Counseling Solutions is a group mental health practice based in downtown Silver Spring. Asia launched the business as a solo therapist, but today she has a growing team of four clinicians serving clients across Maryland, DC, and Virginia. The practice specializes in working with people of color who are new to therapy, most of whom are navigating mental health support for the first time.

“Many of our clients are between 20 and 40 years old, but we serve folks outside that range too,” Asia explains. “They’re often coming in with some hesitancy or not quite sure how therapy works. We work to make it feel safe and approachable.”

Zola Counseling Solutions offers both in-person and virtual services. While the practice originally started in DC, Asia moved it to Montgomery County in 2021. “I’ve lived in MoCo for the past ten years,” she says. “It just made sense to plant roots here.”

Asia’s own roots are wide-ranging: she grew up in a military family and moved nearly every year before settling in Maryland after graduate school at the University of Baltimore. That experience of constant transition helped shape her intuitive understanding of people seeking stability, connection, and care. These are the core values that now define her practice.

From Solo Clinician to Group Practice Leader

Zola didn’t begin as a group endeavor. For the first few years, it was just Asia, seeing clients and refining her approach. In 2021, she made the decision to expand, hiring additional therapists and creating a mentorship-style model. Today, her team includes newer clinicians who are gaining experience under her guidance while also building their own client bases.

Asia still sees the bulk of Zola’s clients herself. “I'm the key contributor right now,” she says, “but part of our mission is about building a practice where clients can feel seen and supported, no matter which therapist they work with.”

More Than a Practice. It's A Movement

Zola Counseling Solutions is part of a broader movement to expand access to culturally responsive mental health care. For clients of color, finding a therapist who understands the nuances of their experience can be transformative. “We’re intentional about creating a space that feels welcoming and reflective of our clients’ realities,” Asia says.

That intentionality extends to the way Zola operates. The practice is evolving beyond direct therapy services to offer specialized consulting for other mental health private practices. Drawing on years of experience running a successful practice, Asia now helps other clinicians and group practices streamline operations, improve clinical supervision, and develop sustainable systems. 

Whether it’s offering the option for virtual sessions, the flexibility for clients new to therapy, or the diversity of the team itself, Zola is rethinking what accessible, affirming care looks like in practice.