Dr. Lauren Lee

I'm a clinical psychologist specializing in people in their 20s - 40s who are navigating the complicated middle ground between who they've been and who they want to become. I also work with mothers and parents managing the push and pull between professional ambition and life at home.

My research background is in relationship endings: breakups, divorce, and the identity questions that come with them. As an Asian and Pacific Islander woman myself, I bring cultural awareness into how I think about identity, family pressure, and the expectations we carry.

I'm warm, genuinely curious, and I ask a lot of questions — not because I'm following a script, but because the details matter. I'm also direct. If I notice a pattern worth naming, I'll name it — and I'll check in to make sure we're interpreting it the same way.

My approach draws on CBT, ACT, Motivational Interviewing, and mindfulness — but I'm not attached to any one framework. What I care about is that what we do together actually shows up in your life. That means we spend less time completing structured worksheets and more time trying things out in real situations, noticing what happens, and adjusting.

I think of therapy as a genuine collaboration: I offer observations and perspective; you're the expert on your own experience. I work well with people who want to understand themselves — not just feel better in the short term, but actually see patterns more clearly and make choices that feel more like theirs.

Our first session is mostly about getting the full picture. I'll ask about what brought you in, what you've tried before, what's going well and what isn't, and what you're actually hoping will be different. I also leave real space for your questions — about my approach, what therapy with me looks like, whatever's on your mind.

One of my favorite questions to explore early is: at the end of our work together, how would your day-to-day life look different? Your answer becomes a compass for everything we do. If you're not sure yet, that's completely fine — figuring it out is part of why we're here.