Ellen Kim

LCSW (she/her)19 years of experience
New to Grow
Next available

You’re the one everyone counts on. Who’s holding you up? You show up for your job, your family, your aging parent, your friends, and you make it look easy. Inside, you’re exhausted, stretched thin, or not quite feeling like yourself.

You’re the one everyone relies on. Let’s support you.

I’m a Licensed Clinical Social Worker who helps overwhelmed, high-functioning adults and caregivers understand how stress is affecting their mind and body, so they can feel steadier, more grounded, and more like themselves again. Here’s what makes my approach different. Stress doesn’t only live in your thoughts. It shows up in your sleep, your shoulders, your patience, and your energy. As a certified yoga teacher currently training to become a yoga therapist, I combine practical talk therapy tools with mindfulness and body-based practices, so you leave sessions with something you can use that same night. I grew up between two cultures and worked overseas as an NGO worker, and I’m fluent in English, Korean, and Japanese. If you carry expectations from more than one world, such as the dutiful child, the reliable one, or the one who “should” be able to handle it, I understand the in-between, and you won’t have to translate your story for me. My role isn’t to tell you how to live. I ask thoughtful questions, offer fresh perspectives, and help you reconnect with strengths you already have, even when stress, grief, or change make them hard to reach. You don’t have to wait until you hit a wall. Reach out today and let’s start where you are.

First session

Starting therapy can feel vulnerable, especially if you’ve never done it. You don’t need a diagnosis, clear goals, or a perfectly worded problem. Knowing that something doesn’t feel right is enough. In our first session, we will: Talk about what brought you here and what you hope will feel different Look at what’s been weighing on you, including your history, relationships, and current responsibilities Identify what you’d like to change and where to begin Give you space to ask me anything, so we can both decide whether we’re a good fit There’s no pressure to have the answers. We’ll start where you are.

Strengths

I see the whole you. I take time to understand your values, relationships, cultural background, and the stories that shaped you, whether you’re facing burnout, grief, caregiving, a health diagnosis, or a major life transition. Mind and body, together. Talk therapy plus mindfulness and somatic (body-based) practices, especially helpful when stress or trauma is held in the body and words alone don’t reach it. Practical, not just reflective. You’ll leave with tools for your real life: your calendar, your family, your inbox. A bridge to what you need. I connect you with resources, perspectives, and solutions, and ultimately back to your own capacity to move through hard seasons.

Ideal clients

- You’re caring for a loved one while trying to keep up with work, family, and everyday life - You're a healthcare professional experiencing burnout and/or compassion fatigue - You’re exhausted from being the person everyone depends on - You’re coping with grief, loss, or the uncertainty of a serious health diagnosis - You look like you have it all together, but you’re running on fumes - You’re in a major transition (personal, professional, relational, or cultural) and wondering what you want - You’ve never thought of yourself as “someone who needs therapy”

Treatment methods

Mindfulness-Based Therapy

Step out of the worry loop. Learn to meet the present moment with curious, non-judgmental awareness instead of replaying the past or dreading the future. A grounded, research-supported way to change your relationship with difficult thoughts and physical stress.

Solution-Focused Brief Treatment

Build on what’s already working. Rather than spending weeks analyzing how a problem started, we focus on your strengths, your hopes, and small, doable steps you can take now.

Cognitive Behavioral (CBT)

Change how you respond when you can’t change the circumstances. We can’t always control illness, loss, or change, but we can work on how we interpret and respond to them. Practical, structured, and goal-oriented.

Somatic

Work with what your body is holding. As a certified 200-hour yoga teacher, I help you notice how stress, grief, and burnout show up in your body and nervous system, and offer gentle practices for settling them. This works from the body up, complementing traditional talk therapy.

Narrative

You are not your problem. You’re the expert on your own life. We’ll look at the stories you’ve been carrying and help you shape ones of resilience, agency, and hope.

Location

Virtual sessions

Identifies as

  • Asian / Asian American

  • Christian

  • Person of Color (POC)

  • Woman

Top specialties

  • Anxiety

  • Grief

  • Life Transitions

Other specialties

  • Chronic Illness / Medical Issues

  • Depression

  • Family Conflict

  • Trauma and PTSD

Serves

  • Adults (18 to 64)

  • Elders (65 and above)

  • Individual Therapy

  • Woman

Doesn't specialize in

  • Burnout

  • Coping Skills

  • Couples Counseling

  • Mood Disorders

  • Older Adults

  • Racism

  • Self Esteem

  • Spirituality

  • Women's Issues

Licensed in

  • CaliforniaLicense 28714

Accepted insurance

  • Amerihealth Administrators

  • Amerihealth NJ Medicare Advantage

  • Arlo

  • Cash - $175 per session

  • Centivo

  • Cigna

  • Cigna - HealthEZ

  • EAP:Cigna

  • EAP:Evernorth

  • Evernorth

  • GTEB

  • L.A. Care PASC-SEIU

  • L.A. Care Covered

  • L.A. Care Covered Direct

  • Medicare

  • Carelon Behavioral Health (Commercial)

  • Sutter Health Plan

  • IHSS Healthy Workers

  • Tufts Health/Cigna

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Schedule 60 min