Che Wong, LCSW

A story that resonated with me in the beginning of my healing journey, was the legend of the Koi fish: a tale of perseverance and reflection. There was once a school of Koi fish making a long journey upstream, promised by the Gods that if they made it up a significant waterfall, they would be transformed into a dragon- the most powerful creature of all. However, as the Koi continued going against the current, many were met with stronger streams, pushing them backwards with each attempt. Some decided to return to the flow, accepting this limitation. Many Koi who made it past these streams were then met with boulders blocking their path. Exhausted and missing their way of life, some of them returned downstream. For 100 years, the Koi's efforts were ongoing but unsuccessful, until finally a single Koi made it as close to the waterfall as ever before but fell backwards once again. Wanting to surrender, the Koi looked at the rest of their community downstream and realized, “I have already lived my life down there. I need to begin a new life for myself.” The Koi eventually persevered to the top of the waterfall, and as promised, was transformed into a dragon, leading the Koi below to follow it against the current. I share this cultural tale because my life as a queer, Bay Area, first-generation, Chinese-American woman has provided me the lived experiences and values to walk this path alongside others with humility, compassion, and unconditional hope. While I recognize several of the barriers & wounds we experience are systemic, structural, historical, & generational, I have found that connection and empowerment are incredibly healing in the face of adversity, in addition to the perseverance demonstrated by the Koi. Similar to the story of the Koi, how often do we find ourselves caught in a stream of hardships that won't let up? Or just as life would have it, we find our flow but lose our footing and fall backwards into old patterns? While healing is not linear, my greatest hope as a therapist is to support, guide, and reflect back to those around me their strengths, skills and ability to learn new ways of managing the obstacles of life - so that we may continue to find our strength against our greatest hardships. My therapy approach is focused on developing healthy partnerships with clients and acting as a mirror, reflecting back their values and capabilities that they have always had throughout their lives. The challenges I am most passionate about include cultural identity, life transitions, grief, depression, anxiety, complex trauma, executive functioning, self-esteem, communication challenges, and attachment. Overall, my greatest blessing, privilege, and passion as a therapist has been supporting individual children, adolescents, young adults, parents, and the entire family with transforming their trauma into a reality of joy, healing and creating a path towards peace.