About Marian
Hello! I’m Marian (rhymes with librarian)
a Fil-Am California registered art therapist and LMFT (licensed marriage and family therapist). Animal lover, BTS army, highly sensitive person with an artist soul.
I additionally studied art therapy in graduate school in 2011 (when others said just a master’s in Marriage and Family Therapy would suffice) because my brain works best when I have training and foundational understanding… and then I can approach our work intuitively and with flexibility. I don’t want my clients to feel like they are a guinea pig (as cute as guinea pigs are) in order for me to figure out how to incorporate art and clinical training to see what works/sticks.
I also didn’t want to rely heavily on the healing nature of art-making itself to address the needs you have (because then you have just gone to town at Michael’s yourself, right?).
It’s been hard for you to risk seeming to not have it all because you having it together is what knitted the fabric of your family together.
You found a therapist once and the therapist seemed checked out, rushed, and low-key judgmental of you. She nodded and furrowed her brow when you talked about your relationship with your family. You wondered if you were being a burden to her and so you kept the your explanation polite and brief. You think to yourself that she would get it if she was Filipino or an immigrant herself, but you shut that down real quick by thinking you were just trying to get in your own way by finding some blame with the therapist.
Let me tell you: I’ve had experiences where my white therapist continually minimized familial challenges and even implied that I shouldn’t talk to them anymore if I was feeling so much distress. I’ve felt the microaggressions of being recommended resources for other cultures that were not my own and nodding along that it was applicable to me. I was a kid that was told to “stop being so sensitive” and people-pleased like Mei Mei from Turning Red. I had to unlearn the unhelpful coping and communication skills I acquired growing up when I got into relationships in my 20s. Most importantly, I got really empathetic that change does not happen overnight (personally and for others), missteps happen, and you cannot make or expect others to change for you.
That’s the thing. I tell you these things because I use the emotions I felt strongly in the past in order to relate with and empathize with you on a deep level, whatever it is you bring into therapy. Even if I have not had the exact same experience as you, I believe my “put-myself-into-your-shoes” skills is an innate gift I use with my clients. So if at some point, you might feel overwhelmed and cry in our session, I encourage you not to think that it will make me feel uncomfortable or look at you a certain way. I know the release and relief of having someone being able to sit with those feelings, because I have been on the other end. It’s okay. I’ll totally continue to show up next week and the week after.
TL;DR: I am committed to being fully present in our work so that you can know that when you feel inadequate, you have someone who is curious to explore that feeling with you rather than prescribe you cookie-cutter wisdom. I aim to be a therapist who sees you as capable AND human at the same time, because I recognize I am human too.
““Anything that’s human is mentionable, and anything that is mentionable can be more manageable. When we can talk about our feelings, they become less overwhelming, less upsetting, and less scary. The people we trust with that important talk can help us know that we are not alone.””
Media + Press:
Click here to watch my podcast interview on Open Mind Night Podcast about HSPs and art therapy or listen on podcast platforms:
Education:
Masters in Psychology: Marriage and Family Therapy and Art Therapy, Phillips Graduate Institute (PGI)
Bachelor of Arts in Visual Arts: Art History with a minor in Film Studies, University of California San Diego
Credentials:
Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist - MFT #100892
Registered Art Therapist - ATR #18-337
Research:
Master’s research paper at PGI —
Art Therapy for Asian American College Students in Order to Alleviate Acculturation Stress: A Program Design
Experience and Populations:
First-generation diverse college students
Inpatient residential treatment centers (adult and teen) - group therapy and individual therapy
Residential facility for foster youth teens
Medical (children inpatient, adult general medical inpatient, adult mental health inpatient, adult outpatient group therapy for chronic pain)
Schools (special education, charter, nonpublic)