Sarie Wu, AMFT #156970

Navigating the human experience can be frightening, exhilarating, and confusing all at once. We move through life searching for meaning, questioning our purpose, and wondering if there is a “right” way to live. Perhaps one of the hardest realizations is that there is not always a right or wrong path, but choices that lead to different outcomes. Learning to live with that uncertainty while staying connected to who we truly are is part of the adventure of being alive.

I believe many of the patterns we struggle with began as ways of getting through life with the emotional resources we had at the time. Anxiety may help us anticipate danger, withdrawing may protect us from rejection, and perfectionism may come from feeling that acceptance must be earned. Therapy gives us a chance to understand these patterns before deciding what we want to change.

My name is Sara Wu, and I am an Associate Marriage and Family Therapist (AMFT #156970) in California. I earned my bachelor’s degree in psychology with a minor in neuroscience from the University of Michigan.

Healing is Possible

My academic journey then brought me west, where I earned my master’s degree in counseling psychology, with an emphasis on health and mindfulness, from Santa Clara University. My experience includes working in Partial Hospitalization (PHP) and Intensive Outpatient (IOP) programs, as well as school-based mental health settings. These settings taught me the importance of clinical assessment, emotional safety, and meeting people where they are, especially when their distress feels too big to manage alone.

I draw from person-centered therapy, CBT, IFS-informed ideas, DBT skills, mindfulness, Motivational Interviewing, family systems, and existential therapy. I value clinically sound approaches, but I also believe therapy is a very human experience. To me, therapy is not about becoming someone else, but finding the safety and freedom to truly be who you are.

Depression

Depression can bring a heaviness that reaches far beyond sadness, leaving us disconnected from ourselves and the things that once gave life meaning. Hopelessness, numbness, and exhaustion can make even small tasks feel impossible. I want to honor the depth of that pain while using approaches such as behavioral activation and CBT to help clients slowly reconnect with themselves and what matters to them.

Anxiety

Anxiety can make the world feel unpredictable, leaving us caught in worry, racing thoughts, and a constant need to prepare for what might go wrong. It can also live in the body through tension, restlessness, and a sense of danger even when we are safe. I use CBT, mindfulness, grounding, and other appropriate coping strategies to help clients understand these cycles and respond to uncertainty differently.

Life Transitions & Relationship Loss

Change can shake our sense of identity and the future we pictured. The end of a romantic relationship or friendship can be especially painful because we grieve not only the person, but the life and memories we thought we would share. I help clients make room for that grief, explore attachment patterns, and begin finding themselves again.

Therapeutic Approaches & Interventions

Mindfulness: I incorporate mindfulness by helping clients slow down and notice their thoughts, feelings, and how emotions show up in their bodies. I believe therapy should be a place where we feel safe enough to pause and think before reacting. Sometimes that small pause gives us the room to understand ourselves and make a different choice.

Internal Family Systems (IFS): I also draw from IFS-informed ideas when clients feel pulled in different directions. Sometimes one part of us wants connection while another is afraid of being hurt. I find it helpful to approach these conflicting feelings with curiosity rather than criticism, and to ask what each response may have been trying to protect.

Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT): I use DBT-informed skills to help clients manage intense emotions, tolerate distress, and communicate more effectively. One concept I particularly value is radical acceptance: acknowledging reality even when we wish it were different. Acceptance does not mean approval or giving up; it means not spending all our energy fighting what we cannot change, so we have more energy for what we can.

Motivational Interviewing (MI): I use Motivational Interviewing to help clients explore what they want and what might be holding them back. I believe thoughtful questions can be a pathway to discovering hidden truths about ourselves, including feelings and fears we may not have fully recognized. I do not want to hand clients answers; I want to help them find their own.

Existential Therapy: I draw from existential therapy to explore meaning, freedom, responsibility, mortality, and the choices that shape our lives. I am especially interested in questions of purpose: what gives our lives meaning, and how do we keep moving when the answers are uncertain? I believe a meaningful life does not have to be free from suffering.

Trauma-Informed Care and Higher-Acuity Experience: Working with individuals in PHP and IOP settings has shown me how important it is to establish safety before expecting someone to process painful experiences. Trauma can affect our relationships, our ability to regulate emotions, and the way we see ourselves. I focus on stabilization, psychoeducation, grounding, and practical coping skills, while attending to risk and safety needs when appropriate. I believe clients should have a say in the pace of their work and should never feel pressured to share more than they are ready to.

Person-Centered Therapy: I believe that one of the most important parts of therapy is having a space where we can be ourselves without fear of judgment or expectations. Drawing from Person-Centered Therapy, I emphasize empathy, unconditional positive regard, and the therapeutic relationship as a foundation for growth. Rather than assuming I know what is best for someone, I want to understand their experience and help them find their own answers, while offering clinical guidance and support along the way.

Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR): Used to gently process and release trauma stored in the nervous system, helping to reprocess distressing memories so they no longer disrupt your present life. This structure approach allows your brain to naturally unwind painful memories, shifting from active emotional triggers into neutral past events. 

Reestablishing Safety & Processing Emotions

I hope therapy can be a safe place where you don't have to have everything figured out. A place where we can pause, ask difficult questions, sit with uncertainty, and make room for the complexities of being human. Together, we can explore what matters most to you and work toward building a life that feels more authentically your own.

My goal is to help you access your inner wisdom, develop lasting skills for personal growth, deepen your relationships with yourself and others, manage challenges, and improve your overall quality of life. I offer a complimentary 20-minute consultation to discuss your unique needs and explore how we can work together to achieve your therapeutic goals. This initial meeting is an opportunity for us to connect, and for you to ask any questions you may have about the therapeutic process.

Individual therapy sessions are 50 minutes/$140 per session and couples sessions are 50 minutes/$160 per session. 

Email: sarie.therapist@gmail.com

Phone: (213) 458- 7338