Psychotherapy Experience ~
Sayun completed her clinical internship hours by providing psychotherapy to diverse populations and age groups in a variety of clinical milieus, including schools, community clinics and homes. While working primarily with individuals and groups in her private practice in Pasadena, she devotes a portion of her energy to counseling underserved women and children in a transitional shelter.
Special interests include holistic and client-centered approaches to explore relationship challenges, cultural identity, anxiety/stress, generational trauma, grief/loss, and personal empowerment and development across the lifespan. As a registered marriage and family therapy intern, Sayun currently works under the supervision of holistic psychotherapist, Chris Tickner, MFT (42576). She expects her MFT licensure by Spring 2010.
Background ~
Sayun's interest in psychology and human behavior evolved from being immersed in multiple cultures while growing up and a desire to make meaning from complexity and paradox. She earned her graduate degree in Counseling Psychology (with a Somatic-Transpersonal emphasis) from John F. Kennedy University in the San Francisco Bay Area. After earning her undergraduate degree from the University of Virginia, she received a year-long Freeman Fellowship to study as a post-graduate in China at the Johns Hopkins-Nanjing University Center.
Sayun was born a U.S. citizen in Vietnam during the US-Vietnam War, and grew up in United States, Burma, Thailand, Turkey, and China. Prior to her work as a holistic therapist, Sayun worked in short-wave radio journalism and international trade. Her diverse life experiences and multi-cultural background inform her ability to respond empathically to individual, family, and cultural systems. Sayun is fluent in Mandarin, and is also a certified yoga teacher and long-time practitioner of reiki and vipassana meditation.