Yoga Pasadena Virginia

As a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist in Pasadena and certified EMDR therapist, I specialize in for individuals and couples. Prior to working in private practice, I provided therapy to adults, children and families in agency clinics, schools, women’s shelters, and community-based settings.

My interest in psychology and human behavior evolved from growing up in eastern and western cultures and a desire to make meaning from complexity and contradiction. I was born a U.S. citizen in Vietnam, and am conversationally fluent in Mandarin Chinese. I have lived in Southeast Asia, the Middle East, and the United States. My diverse life experiences and multicultural upbringing inform my ability to embrace paradox and respond with sensitivity to individual, family, and cultural systems.

In addition to my formal training in counseling psychology and somatic studies, I am a certified yoga instructor, reiki practitioner, bodyworker, and a long-time practitioner of Vipassana and Shambhala meditation. My ongoing research focuses on the intersection between neuroscience and mindfulness-based psychotherapy when working with depression, anxiety, trauma and attachment issues.

CREDENTIALS

Education

John F. Kennedy University, Counseling Psychology (Somatic Psychology concentration), M.A.
Johns Hopkins University, Freeman Fellowship for one-year study in China
University of Virginia, East Asian Studies, B.A.

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Post-graduate Trainings

Certified EMDR Trauma Therapist, trained by Laurel Parnell, PhD
Sensorimotor Psychotherapy Trauma Training, Level I-II, trained by Pat Ogden, PhD
Advanced Emotionally Focused Couples (EFT) Therapy, trained by Sue Johnson, PhD
Psychobiological Approach to Couples Therapy (PACT) Level I, trained by Stan Tatkin, PhD
Trauma Resiliency Model (TRM) Level I-II, trained by Elaine Miller-Karas, LCSW
Tension and Trauma Releasing Exercises (TRE), Level I, trained by Jacy Sundlie
Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) with Trudy Goodman, PhD
Analytic Somatic Therapy, trained by psychoanalyst John Conger, PhD
Voice Dialogue with J. Tamar Stone

Certified Ananda Yoga Teacher
Phoenix Rising Yoga Therapy
Energy Medicine Yoga

Professional Affiliations

California Association of Marriage and Family Therapists (CAMFT)
International Centre for Excellence in Emotionally Focused Couples Therapy (ICEEFT)