Nurturing your authentic self in a demanding world.
Therapy for Asian American Women
Ready to work with an expert who really gets you? Need a super smart therapist because you’re pretty smart?
The average run-of-the-mill therapist can’t take you where you need to go.
We were raised to be ambitious and high-achieving. As adults, we continue to put a lot of pressure on ourselves and feel incredibly responsible all the time. We were raised to work hard and to be achievement-oriented. That’s why we are where we are—we’re living the dream but somehow, it doesn’t feel the way we thought it would. Life is stressful, dissatisfying, tedious, frustrating, unfair. We feel anxious when the unexpected happens. Other people trigger us and with exasperation, we wonder why they can’t be more self-aware and considerate. When the work day is done, we turn to food, TV, and shopping to find…peace? Joy? Or are these things coping mechanisms for something deeper?
For many high-functioning Asian American women, there comes a time when we take a step back and think, “This is it?” We worked so hard to get here, only to discover that it’s a grind until we retire. It feels a bit anti-climactic, doesn’t it? The truth is, many of us are not where we want to be in our personal lives. While we were busy forging that path to success and getting to the next thing, here’s what we didn’t learn:
The skills and perspectives needed to be happy
How to manage stress and anxiety
How to create and maintain healthy relationships
That being “nice” and people pleasing can diminish us
Why didn’t we learn these things? Many of us did not learn or have modeled for us within our immigrant families the things we now find most challenging, perhaps because of intergenerational differences in values and expectations. Or perhaps our families of origin were in survival mode or too chaotic and dysfunctional to show us the way. If this is you, you’re not alone.
I see you.
Here are the areas I explore with Asian American women in their 30s and older.
Emotional intimacy with friends and partners
Marriage vs long-term partnership or singlehood
Do I want children?
Self-acceptance (yes, I’m calling out your dieting)
Nurturing and expressing your authentic identity
Accessing states of flow, deep relaxation, ease
Acknowledging and processing childhood trauma
Career pivoting
Career acceptance
Intergenerational trauma
It’s time for a new chapter in your life, when you focus on developing your whole self.
Hi, I’m Chu Hui, aka Dr. Cha. I’m an Asian American psychologist.
I specialize in Asian American women in their 30s and at mid-life.
I’m a 1.5 generation Korean American woman. I left a good job with a fantastic salary and pension to, well, do this. This was not on my roadmap for being a financially secure and successful adult child of immigrants. But when I turned 40, I realized I needed to do the work that was really calling to me and live the life I always dreamed of. It’s called a mid-life understanding, not a crisis. I don’t believe everyone has to radically pivot the way I did, but my experience transformed my purpose and that’s why I’m here. I serve my community by validating and normalizing our unique cultural experiences and by helping people honor their whole selves.
So, ready to talk?
Learn more about my expertise.
As Featured In
Confidence Daily
