New Therapist FAQ

In this episode, I sit down with Dr. Uejin Kim, whose personal journey has deeply shaped the way she shows up with her patients. She shares her path from being the perfectionistic eldest daughter to rebelling against God, and ultimately returning to a spiritual relationship that is more grounded, honest, and lived-in. Along the way, we explore how her own experiences—along with the help of therapy...

In this episode, I sit down with a Korean American psychologist who reflects on vulnerable early-career moments when cultural differences shaped how she understood clients’ expressions of suicidal ideation. In her culture of origin, language about death and wanting to die was often woven into everyday speech — a nuance that initially influenced how she assessed risk in the therapy room. Together,...

In this episode, I sit down with a Chicago-based art therapist Elizabeth Yoo-lae Cho to explore why creative expression can unlock what words sometimes can't. She explains how she uses clients' artwork to track therapeutic progress over time in ways traditional talk therapy can't capture. We also dive into her experience as a Korean American woman whose training environment was white-d...

In this episode, I sit down with my friend Eunhyey Lok to explore the familiar experience of feeling we're not being effective for our struggling client. It's so easy to attach our self worth to our effectiveness, isn't it? This is where the concept and reality of limits comes in full force. They may talk about it in grad school, but actually confronting it is something else. We hope you enjoy the...

In this episode, I sit down with clinical psychologist Dr. John Han to explore what happens when a difficult client stirs up our own countertransference—and why choosing not to quit can become a deeply healing moment for both therapist and client. We also discuss the fear of performance that so often pulls us out of true presence, and share honestly about the unique challenges many Korean American...

In this episode, I sit down with seasoned therapist Gary Quan who opens up about a professional regret from early in his career: avoiding wise counsel and letting anxiety and over-productivity drive his work. We explore how fear, isolation, and the Asian cultural pressure to perform can impact even the most well-intentioned clinicians—and what he wishes he had done differently. This candid convers...

Traditionally, a new therapist seeks out an office space to rent part-time from a more seasoned therapist. Sometimes we get lucky and fill our caseload quickly and all the stars align so that all our clients can see us on one particular day of the week. Sometimes we're not so lucky and we end up paying a lot more for overhead than we expected. Is there a better way? Yes! Jen Kim, co-founder of...

Soo Jin Lee and Linda Yoon co-wrote an EXCELLENT book called "Where I Belong: Healing Trauma and Embracing Asian American Identity." But this book didn't appear out of thin air. How did it go from idea to the shelf at Barnes and Noble? Linda and Soo Jin saw the lack of resources written by people of color, and decided to contribute to the solution. We hope that the telling of their p...

By now you may have heard about the No Surprises Act and the Good Faith Estimate. It's a law meant to protect the consumer from charges they were not expecting. It's still early in the execution stage, and I am in the process of wrapping my head around it while putting it into action in compliance with the law.    As a way of helping you also wrap your head around it, I have enlisted the help of m...

What should I consider before making the decision to get on insurance panels? Dr. Lynn Raine chats with me to help you make a more informed decision! Find out more about Dr. Raine's services: therapywithlynn.net rainecounselingservices@gmail.com And as mentioned in today's conversation, I think Simple Practice is an EHR tool that will help SIMPLIFY your practice so that you can invest MORE of your...

Being organized can be so tough, but it can be so helpful in our private practice. If you need some inspiration to get more organized, I think you will enjoy listening to this episode! Helen Kim is a registered associate MFT who shares some things that have allowed her to stay organized. She also provides some tips on how she has stayed motivated, which can be hard to do for new therapists and vet...

Today we are going to be talking about social media again! Nearly all your clients are on social media for hours every day. How do you leverage this and give them helpful content, plus get more visibility for your practice? We’re going to talk more about this today with Dr. Marie Fang, she is a licensed psychologist practicing in San Jose, CA. She is the host of Private Practice Skills, a popular...

Everyone has had to make sweeping adjustments to account for doing therapy exclusively online. Perhaps no one more than child therapists. Child therapists can no longer use their wondrous magical office space to allow their kid clients to do non directive play therapy.    Vanessa Longnecker has helped me to reimagine what is possible and impossible. She has adjusted not only the way she conducts c...

The person who submitted this question added the phrase "as a White therapist," and I'd just like to add that I as a Korean-American therapist would ALSO like to know how to become more culturally competent! Helping me answer this question is Dr. Shawan Worsley. I am SO glad she agreed to be on this episode. She teaches cultural sensitivity to clinicians with wisdom and warmth, and I think you wil...

How do I gain hours for licensure when I have little to no experience? I've only done waitressing! I've only done babysitting! Would a potential employer think I am qualified? Believe it or not, you probably have transferrable skills that you are not aware of. And there is is ALWAYS something else you can do to further make yourself an attractive hire. Dr. Lynn Raine joins me today to share her in...

Today's episode is all about getting into the minds of pastors. Pastors are extremely under-represented as far as therapy clients go. This is troubling considering the amount of stress pastors experience.   Joining me today is Dr. Ben Shin. He is an associate professor at Talbot School of Theology , teaching in both the masters and doctoral programs. He is the teaching pastor at New Life Vision ch...

Joining me again is Hatty Lee, the founder of Oak and Stone Marriage and Family Therapy, Inc. in Los Angeles. She has a thriving Instagram account with active engagement with her followers. She provides great perspective today for any of you considering starting a professional social media account! Some talking points: Is social media important for therapists? How do potential clients find you? An...

You want to start collecting your hours for licensure. Some friends are telling you they love their private practice site because of the freedom and flexibility. Others are telling you they love their DMH site because they make good money and there's no shortage of clients. Which one is right for you? Migum Gweon joins me to discuss this important question. She serves as director of clinical train...

Joining me again is Dr. Marie Fang! Marie is a licensed psychologist practicing in San Jose, CA and she is the host of Private Practice Skills, a wonderful and helpful youtube channel for therapists in private practice. Today we tackle the question: How do I master confidence? (Hint: Such a thing doesn't exist!)   Private Practice Skills https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQikIOuT7ZqLcyUJOEMq1mQ   P...

What an anxiety filled question! We all want to pass our exam this time around so we don't have to wait a long period of time before re-taking the exam. Plus we really want to get started with the career we love. Helping me answer this question are Jessica Sotelo (LCSW) and Ryan Forsell (LMFT).  They recently passed their exams and graciously offered their time to talk about the experience. They w...

There will often be times when our client experiences deep grief. And we as therapists help them get through it. But what if we the therapist are also experiencing our own season of personal grief?    Today’s question is: How do I hold my client’s grief when I’m experiencing my own grief?   Helping me answer today’s question is Lynn Raine, Ph. D., LCSW. Lynn is a professor at Azusa Pacific Univers...

Some of your clients will need medication in order for you to really help them achieve their therapy goals. Do you have a list of local psychiatrists whom you trust? Do they treat their patients with care? One of the best ways you can serve your client is by having trusted psychiatrists to refer them to. But how do you build such a list of referrals?   Helping me answer this question is Dr. Esther...

We have a 2 part question for today: What kinds of workshops do churches most desire from a therapist?  How does a therapist start a relationship with a small Korean church? I know this 2nd question is very ethno specific, but our guest answers it in such a way that applies to most any situation.   This is a crucial time in our history to be partnering with churches. Many churches want to know how...

Many of you will be, or are already working with, couples or individuals who are getting divorced. The more you get to know trustworthy lawyers in your area, the better you can serve your client.   So how do we actually get to know them?   Rather than guessing, I felt it would be most helpful to actually ask a family lawyer. Helping me answer today’s question is Cheryl Kang Prout, the managing par...

What an important question! There are definitely pros and cons to both. We’re going to answer today's question with the point of view of someone who has just gotten licensed, or is almost there. And for all of you in the process of trying to gain hours for licensure, we’ll have a separate episode addressing earning your hours so stay tuned for that. Helping me answer today’s question is Hatty Lee,...