Somatic Psychotherapy
In the face of modernity’s daily pressures and existential stress, it’s easy to lose a sense of who we are and what truly matters to us. I hold therapy as a space to slow down, re-member, and honor the call towards greater alignment, thus unfurling a more meaningful and liberatory existence.
My style is collaborative, warm, and direct. I see you as the expert of your experience, and myself as an attuned, curious ally in your study of how your psyche/soma organize and respond to life. As a somatic psychotherapist, I guide awareness into present-moment bodily experience to build connection to the deeper wisdom within and to support a processing of backlogged trauma held within the mind-body continuum.
Learning to be present in our bodies is a key pathway to being present for our lives. This certainly comes with challenges: discomfort, pain, and unprocessed grief may arise. And yet, the way out is through, and I hold a trauma-responsive container in which to honor the sacredness of this psycho-emotional and spiritual alchemy.
Adult and teen individuals, partners of various relational formats (polyamorous/non-monogamous, monogamous, et al.), and family/group constellations.
I work especially well with folks of the Asian diaspora, QTBIPOC, immigrants, artists and creatives, healers and activists, high achievers looking to heal from burnout and perfectionism, and folks with a spiritual bent.
Identifying your longings and what you most care about, and centering these values as a north star in your life
Recognizing the root causes of your suffering and shame, and processing this material with a spirit of curiosity and self-compassion
Bringing awareness to aspects of your experience (emotions, sensations, thoughts, memories, imagery, dreams) that are asking to be tended
Growing emotional literacy and competency in effective communication, thereby fostering authenticity and intimacy within yourself and in your relationships
Unpacking how life experiences and social context — familial, intergenerational, sociopolitical, institutional, historical, etc. — have shaped you, your perception, and your reactions
Expanding your options for how you respond to life’s pressures beyond your conditioned beliefs and default tendencies, and practicing new actions
I draw from a palette of modalities and orientations that support transformation. Together we’ll get to know what best supports you:
SOMATICS
ATTACHMENT THEORY
TRANSPERSONAL PSYCHOLOGY
EXPRESSIVE ARTS
PSYCHODYNAMICS
Neurodiversity affirming
ANTI-OPPRESSION
LIBERATION PSYCHOLOGY
ECOPSYCHOLOGY
INTERNAL FAMILY SYSTEMS
POLYVAGAL THEORY
YIN-YANG PHILOSOPHY
DREAMWORK
ANCESTRAL WORK
COGNITIVE BEHAVIORAL THERAPY
About infinity
I’m a queer and gender-free (they/them) somatic therapist of Chinese descent living on the unceded land of the Chochenyo speaking Ohlone people, aka Oakland, CA. My longstanding curiosities revolve around how we as humans learn, unlearn, move through change, and conceptualize existence.
I geek out about anything to do with the edges of consciousness. My own navigations through profound cycles of grief, remembrance, and rebirth have deepened what it means to serve others’ unfolding processes, and to be in collaborative inquiry of how to live well, love well, and die well. I approach my work with clients with love, curiosity, rigor, and humor as I walk alongside their unique journeys.
I received a Master of Arts degree in Integral Counseling Psychology from the California Institute of Integral Studies (CIIS) and am comprehensively trained in Hakomi Mindful Somatic Psychotherapy. I’ve received additional training at the Center for Mindful Psychotherapy, and my continuing studies include Daoist martial and healing arts, and somatic bodywork (with teachers of the generative somatics [gs] and Strozzi Institute lineages). Some of my greatest teachers in this lifetime have been ceremonial plant medicines and my ancestors.
When I’m not working, I find joy in getting outside for some vitamin D and saying hi to plants and creatures, practicing archery and movement arts, making something (e.g., food, pottery, pigments, paper), connecting and scheming with my community, dancing, reading, and always learning.
Contact
If you sense we might be a good fit for working together, please reach out to schedule a free 20-minute Zoom consultation.
