I’m Wendy, a bilingual therapist providing counseling in English and Mandarin, with a particular commitment to serving Asian and Asian American communities.

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I earned a dual master’s degree from the University of Pennsylvania:

• M.S.Ed. in Counseling and Mental Health Services  

• M.Phil.Ed. in Professional Counseling  

 

Before that, I completed my B.S. in Applied Psychology at New York University with a minor in Japanese. Across these trainings, one lesson has stayed with me more than any specific technique: the most effective counselors are real, grounded, and willing to show up as a whole person — not just as a “professional role.”

 

Today, I work as a Mental Health Therapist I / Clinician at Pacific Clinics’ Asian Pacific Family Center (APFC) in Rosemead, California, the state’s largest community-based nonprofit provider of behavioral and mental health services. At APFC, our team offers culturally responsive services to Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander communities in many languages. Within this setting, I provide therapy in English and Mandarin to adults and families, many of whom are navigating serious mental health challenges alongside immigration, cultural, and family stressors.

 

My own path into counseling was not purely academic.

 

Like many people who enter this field, I’ve had to make sense of my own history — including trauma, complicated family dynamics, and the pressure to “be strong” and high-functioning no matter what. Through my training and my own therapy, I learned to look at my experiences with more honesty and less self-blame. I also saw clearly what I wished I had received from helpers in the past: someone who could be direct without being cold, analytical without dismissing emotions, and attuned enough to see what was really happening underneath my words.

 

These are the qualities I strive to offer my clients.

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I don’t aim to be a “perfectly soothing” therapist or a motivational speaker. Instead, I try to be:

• honest and reality-based,

• curious about the patterns that keep repeating in your life,

• and deeply respectful of your right to choose a life that may not look “typical” but is truthful for you.

 

My slogan — Uncover, Understand, and Unwind — reflects my belief that insight is not the enemy of feeling, and that careful thinking and emotional healing can coexist in the same room.