Tag: Culturally Responsive Therapy

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Meet Your Therapist: Clinician Spotlight Series – Vy

What are one or two interventions that you enjoy using and have found to be supportive to clients?   

I mainly draw from attachment theory, Emotion-Focused Therapy, Solution-Focused Therapy, and Narrative Therapy. Whether working with individuals or couples, this might look like us getting curious together about how past relationships show up in your life today, slowing down to really notice and work through your emotions, focusing on small and meaningful steps toward the changes you want, and exploring new ways of telling your story that feel more authentic and empowering. As a relational therapist, I also believe that the relationship clients and therapist build together to be the catalyst for change. We can sit in the therapy room all day and use the most advanced interventions, but nothing is as healing as the relationship. I focus on creating a warm, collaborative, and culturally attuned space where clients feel seen, heard, and understood, and the therapeutic relationship itself becomes a source of insight, growth, and lasting change. 

What are your favorite clients to work with (populations of special interest)?   

I provide culturally affirming therapy for BIPOC and LGBTQ+ individuals and couples, offering a safe, supportive space where one’s identities, experiences, and cultural background are honored. I specialize in helping clients navigate cultural and systemic challenges, family expectations, and the complex balance of multiple identities while staying authentic to themselves. I also support children of immigrants, first-generation adults, multicultural, and multiracial clients through major life transitions, relationships, or in exploring identity, helping clients process their experiences, embrace their roots, and find their voice. My goal is to provide therapy that is inclusive, collaborative, compassionate, and tailored to the unique needs of BIPOC and LGBTQ+ communities. 

What inspired you to become a therapist? 

If you’re reading this, you’ve probably realized how challenging it can be to find a BIPOC, Asian American, and/or neurodivergent therapist. Experiencing this as a client myself inspired me to become the kind of therapist I wish I had. As a neurodivergent Asian American daughter of immigrant parents, I understand how complex it can be to balance family expectations, cultural values, and feeling “in between” worlds. I know how vulnerable it can feel to share your story, and I feel honored to witness my clients’ courage and growth. My hope is to create a space where you feel fully seen, deeply understood, and empowered to write the next chapter of your life on your own terms. 

What insurance(s) do you accept? 

I accept individuals and couples with OHP, Providence (individuals only), Blue Cross Blue Shield, Regence, and Kaiser 

What have you learned from your work / collaboration as a therapist working with individuals and communities?  

What I’ve learned from my time as a therapist is that people are incredibly resilient, even when they don’t always feel that way. I’ve seen how healing grows in safe, supportive relationships and how much it matters to have your story heard and valued. Working with multicultural communities, including children of immigrants and first-generation adults, has reminded me that therapy isn’t about fixing anyone; it’s about walking alongside people as they make sense of their experiences, connect with their strengths, and move toward a life that feels true to who they are. 

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De-Stigmatizing Mental Health in Hispanic Families: A Personal Perspective

The American Psychiatric Association reports that research shows that in Latine and Hispanic communities, the risk factors of acculturation stress and immigration are causing mental distress and an increase in mental health issues (APA, 2017). Overall, there is a lack of Spanish-speaking mental health care providers in the U.S., and there are disparities in the treatment and medication access between Latinx and Hispanic and white clients. (American Psychiatric Association, 2017). Research shows that low-income individuals and those living in poverty are more vulnerable to mental health conditions and mental illness, and that individuals with mental health disorders are more at risk of living in poverty. 

Kate Hernandez, a Professional Counseling Associate at Sakura Counseling, shared some of her story with me and spoke to the cultural stigma and experience as a first-generation Mexican American and daughter of a single mother who was undocumented while Hernandez was growing up.“You’re probably struggling and not even realizing it”; We discussed what it was like for Hernandez as a young person in the U.S. surrounded by her mother and family members in a Mexican family system where generational trauma informs culture, perspective, and mental health. “Very few Hispanic people have existed in a time where they were actually calm and present,” Hernandez continued, “Hispanic families don’t see it as trauma. In most Hispanic families, that’s how it’s been for a long time.”  

In Latine and Hispanic communities, cultural values such as ‘familismo, ‘confianza’ and ‘respeto’ nurture and anchor individuals and family systems in interconnectedness and mutuality. ‘Familismo’ describes a foundational value in the culture of Hispanic and Latine communities, which is the value of family, and ‘Personalismo’ describes the importance placed on relationships with others. These core values are cultural anchors, as often are religion, spirituality, and faith. As much as family, community, and faith are protective factors in these communities, there are also challenges to accessing mental health care, such as generational trauma, cultural stigma toward mental health, and systemic barriers, such as inequity and lack of access to care due to lack of access to education, language barriers, and/or fear of deportation. 

Hernandez became inspired to become a mental health provider after she began learning about the brain and mental health in a high school psychology class. Hernandez described the DSM-V as “a book that gave me answers” while she was learning about trauma and its symptoms and observing mental health challenges in her family for the first time. Hernandez began to see her friends of higher socioeconomic status through a new lens; “If they have it, why can’t we?” We discussed how mental health has looked in Latine and Hispanic communities, and how much need there is still today to de-stigmatize mental health.  

Studies show that Latin American and Hispanic adults are 50% less likely to receive mental health treatment (NAMI, 2025) despite 1 in 5 Latine adults living with a mental health illness (UnidosUS, 2024), the most common being post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, and anxiety (NAMI, 2025). In 2020, the APA (Bailey; APA, 2025) stated that only 5.5% of mental health providers were able to provide services in Spanish, and only 4.4% of psychologists were Hispanic, even though Latine and Hispanic adults make up 17.6% of the U.S. population, and are expected to make up 30% of the total population by the year 2060 (APA, 2017).  

Professional Counselor Associate Hernandez described the very real stigma still existing in Latine and Hispanic communities today, and the “huge work in progress” that is currently underway in changing that. “Third generation and on are starting to make the change…it’s on us to break that, because we have access to education.” Hopefully, timely equitable pathways to educational and professional development opportunities will be created so that Latine and Hispanic elders and families will receive the culturally responsive mental health care they critically need and deserve. 

Sources 

American Psychiatric Association. (2017). Mental Health Disparities: Hispanics and Latinos. https://www.psychiatry.org/File%20Library/Psychiatrists/Cultural-Competency/Mental-Health-Disparities/Mental-Health-Facts-for-Hispanic-Latino.pdf 

Bailey, D. (2020, Jan. 1). Answering the demand for services: Underserved communities are driving a heightened need for health-service psychologists. American Psychological Association. https://www.apa.org/monitor/2020/01/cover-trends-demand-services#:~:text=Cultural%20and%20language%20needs&text=%E2%80%9CIt’s%20crucial%20for%20psychologists%20to,she%20and%20other%20psychologists%20say 

National Alliance on Mental Illness. (2025). Hispanic/Latinx. https://www.nami.org/your-journey/identity-and-cultural-dimensions/hispanic-latinx/ 

National Alliance on Mental Illness. (2025). NAMI Compartiendo Esperanza: Mental Wellness in Hispanic/Latin American Community. https://www.nami.org/support-education/mental-health-education/nami-compartiendo-esperanza-mental-wellness-in-hispanic-latin-american-community/  

UnidosUS. (2024, March 23). Rompiendo Barrereas: Dismantling Barriers to Latino Mental Health Care. https://unidosus.org/blog/2024/03/23/rompiendo-barreras-dismantling-barriers-to-latino-mental-health-care/#:~:text=Despite%20many%20Latinos%20experiencing%20mental,8%25%20of%20the%20psychology%20workforce  

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Meet Your Therapist: Clinician Spotlight Series – Kade

What are one or two interventions that you enjoy using and have found to be supportive to clients?   

I usually use a mix of two or more, but if I only could pick two, it would be Internal Family systems (IFS) and Relational-Cultural Theory (RCT). IFS highlights our internal emotional experience often learned from traumatic moments throughout out life and helps to integrate restoration into our learned experiences so that we may learn how to love both our more difficult experiences and the ones we hope to become. RCT utilizes community as a core foundation of how we heal. RCT focuses on mutual empathy, support, empowerment, power dynamics, and reducing systemic oppression through community action. My work often focuses on what we can do as individuals to create better local communities, leading to increased self-empowerment and significantly reducing symptoms of trauma, depression, anxiety, hopelessness, and social stress.  

What are your favorite clients to work with (populations of special interest)? 

I primarily work with queer and trans clients often desiring gender affirming care, have experienced family trauma, neurodivergence, and/or religious trauma. I am passionate about and work well with clients who are willing to explore how systemic oppression, generational family dynamics, and relational dynamics affect who we are and who we will become.  

What inspired you to become a therapist? 

While in high school, I took a Psychology 101 class and fell in love with the human mind, human development, and learning about social dynamics. Early on in my personal mental health journey, I started out wanting to be the therapist I needed when I was young. Over time and through healing some of my own traumas, my passion to become a therapist blossomed into becoming a community-oriented healer. I want queer and trans folx to have a place where they feel seen, listened to, supported, and have hope for something better.  

What insurance(s) do you accept? 

I accept Individual clients with OHP Care Oregon, Kaiser, Blue Cross Blue Shield, Regence, and Moda. Once fully licensed at the end of this year, I will also accept Pacific Source.  

What artists, creators, mental health practitioners, healers, or practices help to guide, inform, and/or inspire your work as a therapist? 

For body and emotion regulation practices I use Somatic, polyvagal, and mindful breath work tools. I have been inspired by these therapists, healers, story tellers, and teachers from Instagram, Tiktok, Patreon, and Substack: 

  • Social Media: Je Amaechi (Obeahbae), Portia Noir, Dr. Raquel Martin, Dr. Charlie Amaya Scott (Dineaesthetics), Jameelah Jones (Sunny Dae Jones), Tony Nabors (Racial Equity Insights), Trevor Wentt, Dr. Keoshia Worthy (Worthytherapy), Liz Rhea LMSW, Christabel Mintah-Galloway RN BSN 
  • Books & Social Media: Imani Barbarin (Crutches and Spice), Alok Vaid-Menon, KB Brookins, Dr. Kali Hobson, Dr. Nicole LePera (the.holistic.psychologist), 
  • Books: Dr. Devon Price, Angela Y Davis, Bell Hooks, 

What does it mean to you to heal, or be a healer/agent of healing? 

I acknowledge that I am only one part of a larger system of healing. I believe that my part is to help provide relevant local resources and useful tools for finding safety in one’s body, build spaces for relationship repair, and help folx find security in their identity. To heal is to find self-assurance and peace even within existential hardships.  

What have you learned from your work / collaboration as a therapist working with individuals and communities? 

Since becoming a therapist, I have seen what it looks like to heal alongside others. I have learned that it’s okay to keep growing even while helping others in their personal journey. From a therapist intern to a nearly fully licensed, my clients have seen parts of my gender transition. Working with other therapists, I have built so much confidence in showing up to client sessions authentically while still maintaining ethical boundaries.