Mental Health in the Asian American Community

with Dr. Emily Hsu and Thuy Tran, LCSW

Mental Health in the Asian American Community

Episode 29, Season 4 | March 7, 2024

Show Notes

Join our guest host, Natalie Tamburello, Community Engagement Manager at CHC, as she engages in a candid conversation about the unique challenges and stigma surrounding mental health in the Asian American community. With our guest experts, CHC Licensed Psychologist, Dr. Emily Hsu and Licensed Clinical Social Worker, Thuy Tran, they discuss not only what they have experienced professionally, but also personally as Asian American mental health professionals. Listen in to gain a deeper understanding of the unique challenges and learn about navigating language barriers, how love is expressed differently in Asian communities, and how we can build cultural bridges with empathy and understanding.

Guest Info
Headshot of Emily Hsu

Dr. Hsu is a bilingual (Spanish) licensed psychologist who has experience working with individuals throughout the lifespan utilizing individual, group, and psychological testing. In pursuit of her desire to provide culturally competent and sensitive bilingual services to ethnic minority populations, she enrolled in the Diversity and Community Mental Health Proficiency Track at the Pacific Graduate School of Psychology at Palo Alto University. Dr. Hsu specializes in suicide prevention and intervention, anxiety and mood disorders, trauma recovery, and interpersonal relationships. Dr. Hsu’s research and clinical interests include decreasing mental health disparities, suicidology, and understanding how the complexities of human diversity influence emotional health and coping styles. Her therapeutic approach is integrative and strongly influenced by Dialectical Behavior Therapy, Cognitive Behavior Therapy, and aspects of rapport building from the humanistic tradition. Previously, Dr. Hsu completed her APA accredited internship at Didi Hirsch Mental Health Services in Culver City, California and her APA accredited postdoctoral residency at Kaiser Permanente in Redwood City, California. At present, Dr. Hsu also conducts quality management at Center for Social Dynamics.


Thuy is a bilingual psychotherapist. She has over 16 years of experiences working with children, youth and families in various capacities. She has a passion to promote the integration of individual, family and community healing. Before coming to CHC, Thuy was a Sr. Social Worker and Foster Family Agency Administrator working with minors who were seeking legal status as refugees, asylees, undocumented youth and victims of human trafficking. As a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, Thuy hopes to offer mental and behavioral health services to those facing unprecedented challenges with transitions and/or individuals coping with trauma, depression, ADHD, anxiety and learning differences. Thuy considers herself a worry-worker, someone who assists individuals identify and utilize their inner resilience to cope with life’s stressors and adversities.