therapy - Kristie.

online therapy in New York

for New Yorkers who've spent a lifetime adapting.

you're here because

strategies that worked for you is no longer enough.

New York rewards the pattern. It rewards the person who figures things out quickly, who keeps moving, who doesn’t need much, who shows up and delivers and then goes home and does it again. In a city that runs on performance and output, being the capable one isn’t just a personality trait. It’s a survival strategy. And it works — until it doesn’t.

If you’ve found your way here, you’re probably not falling apart. You’re functioning, you’re capable, and you’re likely the person everyone else leans on. But internally there’s often more happening than anyone sees. You replay conversations on the way home. You adjust yourself in small ways, often so quickly you barely notice. Even your downtime can feel like something that needs to be used well rather than something you can fully settle into.

New York makes this easy to miss. The exhaustion gets mistaken for ambition. The disconnection gets mistaken for focus. And because the whole city is running on the same fuel, there’s nobody to notice — including you.
There’s a gap between how things look and how they actually feel. If you’ve spent your life being the capable one and you’re starting to wonder why that stopped feeling like enough, that’s exactly where this work begins.

MEET YOUR NYC THERAPIST

hi, i'm kristie

I was born and raised in New York City and I’ve spent my whole life navigating the particular pressure this city puts on people who are already carrying a lot. I grew up first-generation, the middle child of Chinese immigrants, learning early how to move between worlds without fully belonging to either. I’m a queer woman, an entrepreneur, and a therapist who has spent years doing this work myself — which is exactly why I know the terrain.

WHO I WORK WITH

who i work with as a NYC therapist

Adults who have spent years becoming very good at adapting — and are ready to understand what that cost them and what comes next.

First-generation Americans and children of immigrants navigating two worlds at once

Asian Americans and people of color moving through systems that weren't built with them in mind

Queer and LGBTQ+ adults building an identity and a life on their own terms

WHAT I TREAT

what issues does online therapy in New York address?

People come to me for a range of concerns, but underneath most of them is the same experience: strategies that once helped them survive, succeed, or belong that have become too small for the life they're trying to build.

identity & life transitions

The version of yourself that got you here isn't always the version that gets you where you want to go next. Career pivots, coming out, immigration and acculturation, outgrowing a life that looks right from the outside.

perfectionism & self-worth

High-functioning anxiety that's invisible to everyone around you because you're still showing up and delivering. Never feeling like enough regardless of what gets accomplished.

relationship anxiety

Fear of conflict, difficulty trusting others, giving more than you receive. Showing up differently in relationships than you want to and not understanding why.

people-pleasing & boundaries

Chronic self-abandonment. Putting everyone else first so automatically it barely registers. Keeping the peace at the cost of the connection.

existential dread & meaning

Burnout that runs deeper than needing a vacation — the kind that comes from years of performing a version of yourself that was never fully yours. The question underneath the anxiety: what is all of this actually for?

family estrangement

Grief and loss in all its forms, including the losses that don't get named or acknowledged. The complicated weight of distance from family — chosen or unchosen.

HOW I WORK

what approaches do I use?

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea

intersectional & identity-affirming therapy

My foundational lens. I look at the full context of who you are — your race, ethnicity, gender, sexuality, class, and immigration history. You cannot fully understand why someone developed the patterns they did without understanding the world that shaped them.

cognitive behavioral therapy

Helps identify the specific thought patterns and beliefs driving behavior in real time, making it possible to interrupt and redirect them with precision rather than willpower.

dialectical behavior therapy

Provides concrete skills for managing emotional intensity, tolerating distress, and navigating relationships with more clarity and less reactivity — especially useful in moments where insight alone isn't enough.

attachment-based therapy

Examines how early experiences and relationships continue to shape present patterns. For people carrying the weight of complex family systems or immigration history, this is often where the most important work happens.

relational therapy

The therapeutic relationship itself becomes part of the work. How you show up in our sessions often reflects how you show up everywhere else — and that's useful information.

mindfulness-based therapy

Brings present-moment awareness into the work — helping you notice what's happening internally before you react to it. Particularly useful for people whose nervous systems have been running on high alert for a long time.

WHAT CHANGES

what changes after starting online therapy in New York?

As this work deepens your internal baseline begins to shift.

Conversations don’t linger the way they used to.
Decisions feel less loaded.
You become more direct about what you need without replaying it afterward. Relationships feel more present, less split between what you feel and how you think you should respond.
New York stops feeling like something you have to keep up with and starts feeling like somewhere you actually live.

You stop relying solely on your ability to handle things. You begin to trust yourself in a way that feels steadier and less effortful — not because you’ve become a different person, but because you’ve stopped working so hard to be the version of yourself everyone else needs you to be.

fees

investment

Different challenges require different levels of support. Whether you’re exploring therapy for the first time, looking for ongoing support, or seeking focused guidance around a specific issue, there are multiple ways we can work together.

Therapy Session (45 Mins): Ongoing therapy designed to help you navigate challenges, understand patterns, strengthen relationships, and create meaningful change over time.

Therapy Intensive (90 Mins): An extended session that allows us to explore a specific issue in greater depth, helping you gain clarity and make progress without feeling rushed.

VIP Sprint (3 Hrs): A highly focused, deep-dive experience designed for people facing a significant challenge, transition, or decision. Together, we’ll identify what’s keeping you stuck, uncover underlying patterns, and create a clear path forward.

Session

$375

45 minutes

Intensive

$750

90 minutes

vip sprint

$1500

180 minutes

New here or not sure what you need?
I offer a free 15 min chat to talk through what you’re looking for and figure out whether this is a good fit.

FAQs

are you currently accepting new clients?

Yes — I currently have availability for new therapy clients. You can book a free 15-minute consultation to see if we’re a good fit.

where do you practice?

Fully via telehealth. I see clients across New York State — you can be anywhere in New York during our sessions.

how often do we meet?

Weekly is standard and what I recommend, especially in the earlier stages of the work. Biweekly is available for clients who are further along or need more flexibility. 90-minute intensives are available depending on what you’re working on and where you are in the process.

do you take insurance?

I am an out-of-network provider, which means I do not have a contract with insurance companies. If you have out-of-network benefits, you may be eligible for partial reimbursement for therapy sessions. Many PPO and POS plans offer out-of-network mental health benefits, though coverage varies by plan. After each session, I can provide a superbill that you may submit to your insurance company for reimbursement. Depending on your insurance plan, I may also be able to offer courtesy billing. Please note that reimbursement amounts, deductibles, claim approval, and eligibility are determined entirely by your insurance company. As a courtesy, I am happy to conduct an initial benefits verification. However, because insurance information can change and coverage decisions are ultimately made by the insurance company, I strongly encourage clients to contact their insurance provider directly to confirm their out-of-network mental health benefits before beginning therapy.

why don’t you accept insurance?

I choose to remain out of network so that treatment decisions can be guided by your needs rather than insurance requirements. Insurance companies often require a mental health diagnosis, may request access to clinical information, and can place limitations on treatment based on their definition of medical necessity. Remaining out of network allows for greater privacy, flexibility, and autonomy in our work together.Many of my clients seek therapy not only for anxiety, depression, or burnout, but also for relationship challenges, identity exploration, life transitions, questions of meaning and belonging, and personal growth. Working outside of insurance allows us to focus on the issues that matter most to you without being constrained by a third-party payer’s requirements.

what does a first session look like?

The first session is mostly me getting oriented — understanding what brought you here, how you’ve tried to address it before, and what you’re hoping changes. I’ll ask a lot of questions. You don’t need to have it figured out before we start. Most people don’t.

what does online therapy in New York look like?

Once I understand how you move through the world I can usually find the thread — not just the pattern on the surface but what’s driving it underneath. When I see it, I name it directly. Then we figure out where it came from, tracing it back to the family dynamics, cultural expectations, and the room you grew up in and what it required of you to survive it. From there we work with the patterns as they’re actually happening, not just in hindsight. Rather than only talking about these moments, we practice responding differently in them — building the capacity to stay with yourself in the conversations, decisions, and relationships where it actually matters.