Hello, my name is Guanghua (Elizabeth). It is my honor to get to know you and hear your story. I believe each of us has a story to tell. Many times, it is hard for us to embrace and honor our story due to hurt, pain, imperfection, and shame. I struggled with perfectionism for a long time. I found out that it was easier for me to avoid, deny, cover up, and stuff my weakness, pain, and failures to the bottom of my heart. The more I did so, the more I created a distance from my true self. I am not sure whether you have a similar story or not. Indeed, as human, we all suffer in different ways. We felt lonely in our suffering. Sometimes, we feel stuck, hopeless, and powerless to move forward. It became hard for us to share our vulnerability with other people. This created more shame and we felt we were imperfect, deficient, and less than.

However, there is hope in our suffering. We can move forward with self-growth and healing by meeting our hurt and pain with compassion. Like Brene Brownsaid, “Only when we are brave enough to explore the darkness will we discover the infinite power of our light.” Many times, it is not easy for us to encounter our vulnerable parts. We might feel scared and might be afraid of experiencing unpleasant emotions again. In therapy, you always have me on your side to support you, hold space for you, and walk through this darkness together. I am here for you and you are not alone in this healing process.

I hope we can work together to have more clarity regarding who we are (being) and learn better and healthier ways to handle what we do and how we respond (doing) through owning our stories and loving ourselves. This is the bravest thing we’ll ever do, according to Brene Brown.

I use different methods for counseling. Most often I use trauma-informed approaches for counseling. I use Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), and Emotion Focus Therapy (EFT) to address belief systems, emotional needs and emotion regulations, and new behaviors. I am a certified facilitator of Prepare-Enrich, which I use very often in couple counseling.

My area of specialty is childhood trauma, low self-esteem and self-worth, codependency, burnout, boundary issues, couple counseling, attachment issues, and emotions work.

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          我是一名来自于中国大陆的心理咨询师。我出生且成长于中国大陆。我相信我们每一个人都有自己独有的故事。每一个故事都很特别。很多时候，我们更愿意把我们好的一方面展露出来而把我们的伤痛，失败，苦难埋藏起来。逃避，否定或掩饰似乎是一种逃避的方式。然而这样并不能使我们好起来，相反，我们会更加不能找到真正的自己，我们还可能会怀疑自己的价值和身份觉得我不够好/我是失败者/我不配。

          只有当我们敢于面对黑暗的时候，我们才会发现内心那束光的力量 （Brene Brown）。黑暗不再躲藏，我们也越来越来经历光明，丰盛与自由。可是，直面自己的软弱，不完美，伤害，痛苦，愤怒，不是一件很容易的事情。我愿意与你同行，一同来面对，度过这些铭记于心的时刻。这里是安全的，希望在这里你经历被聆听，接纳，肯定，尊重，也经历成长，医治，饶恕。这些都会成为你前行的力量！

          我常会使用认知行为（CBT），辩证行为治疗(DBT)，和情绪聚焦治疗(EFT)。这些会帮助我们对自己有新的认识 （being），也渐渐有新的行为模式 (doing)。请记得改变是个过程，正如一棵树的成长，一朵花的绽放！

          我的专长在于处理童年创伤，低自尊自信，关系成瘾，疲劳症，界限问题，夫妻辅导，依恋模式以及情绪问题。

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Fun Facts About Me:
favorite color:  blue/green/yellow
favorite drink:  all kinds of tea
favorite food:  a cold dish of clear rice noodles 凉皮
favorite store:  Ross, HomeGoods
love languages:  quality time, action of service
hobbies:  walking in the park, gardening, shopping, reading, and listening to music.