Sophia (Chih Ning), Wu

She/ Her

Tier I Therapist

When we were young, we used to expect life with a happily ever after. We believed that getting into a good school, securing a stable job, and earning a substantial income would bring us happiness. It is only as we grow older that we realize life is more challenging than we had imagined. We come to understand that an essential skill we hadn't previously had the opportunity to learn is how to care for ourselves during difficult times and rediscover our sense of hope.

If I have the chance to accompany you on a journey through life, I see myself as your shoulder-to-shoulder companion. Standing by your side, I will listen to your experiences, guide you to explore your emotions, face complex relationship issues, help you discover your true self, and build inner peace and a sense of direction. Most importantly, I will assist you in reestablishing faith in yourself and caring for yourself so that you have the ability to face the challenges on your own.

Through a combination of art creation and narration, we will design a healing journey that is tailored to your needs. When you find it challenging to articulate your thoughts, we will use visual artistry as an alternative language to discover the inner world, facilitate mental, emotional, and spiritual healing in the process, and open up an opportunity for transformation.

I speak Mandarin and English.

If I have the chance to accompany you on a journey through life, I see myself as your shoulder-to-shoulder companion.

My Story

After graduating from business school in university, I co-founded a non-profit organization aimed at empowering Indonesian migrant workers with vocational skills while fostering mutual understanding between locals and migrant workers. Subsequently, I served in an educational foundation and a social enterprise advocating for gender awareness and women's empowerment. These experiences allowed me to intimately comprehend the loneliness of being in a foreign land, the challenges of facing social prejudices, and witnessing how through listening and companionship, one can rebuild confidence.

Moreover, my personal experience with depression and eating disorders enables me to empathize deeply with souls struggling in life. Psychotherapy and art therapy helped me navigate through these low points, such as reducing the impact of negative thoughts on myself through mindfulness, understanding the meaning of loneliness in life through existentialism, or placing meaning into past experiences through creative expression. My journey of recovery makes me believe that you, too, going through inner turmoil, can build resilience and have the potential to grow with professional assistance.

Finally, as a foreigner arriving in an unfamiliar country to start from scratch, I understand the feeling of not fitting in, constant self-doubt, and the anxiety of facing uncertainties and aspiring to achieve goals in the future.

I believe that my life experiences and professional training as an art therapist will allow me to support you through vulnerable moments with humility and genuineness, accompany you in finding meaning in your experiences, and help you transform into a new version of yourself.

Therapeutic Approaches

I believe that everyone's story deserves to be heard, and I also believe that each person possesses their own inner wisdom to face life's challenges. Based on these beliefs, I employ a client-centered, humanistic therapeutic approach, combining art therapy with cognitive-behavioral therapy, existential therapy, narrative therapy, and mindfulness, adjusting and applying them according to the needs of each individual. Regardless of the method used, I deeply believe that each person has unique values and self-healing capabilities, and I respect the individual differences that come from different cultures and backgrounds.

Perhaps, like you, I do not come from an art background. Exposure to art therapy for the first time can be accompanied by concerns, nervousness, and uncertainty about how to begin. My personal experience and professional training have taught me that you don't need to worry about artistic skills at all. You just need to explore like a child, experiencing changes in sensations, the flow of emotions, the sense of accomplishment in completing a piece, and uncovering the unique story behind your artwork. Art creation provides us with an opportunity to untangle thoughts, emotions, and needs that are difficult to describe in words. My role is to create a safe space for you, assisting you in exploring and expressing your inner self in your own way, gaining healing, transformation, and growth in the process.

Specialties

self-doubt, high achievement pressure, perfectionism, eating disorder, depression, anxiety, emotional management, cultural adaptation, career confusion, self-exploration, loss and grief.

Credentials

Supervisor: YuehChun Chao, LCAT 002513
Degree: School of Visual Arts (SVA) / MPS in Art Therapy (2025)
Degree: National Taiwan University (NTU) / BBA in Business Administration

Professional Experience

Womany Media Group Social Enterprise
Junyi Academy Educational Foundation
One-Forty Non-profit Organization
Freelance Project Manager/ Brand Consultant/ Copywrite

More about me

I was once a dog mom, but unfortunately, he left this world suddenly just before his sixth birthday. It was my first time facing the loss of a beloved one, and at that time, I didn't know how to handle the overwhelming grief that washed over me. It was art therapy that helped me express my suppressed emotions and find a way to cope with the end of this relationship. If you are also facing the end of a relationship and don't know how to move forward, I invite you to join me in using nonverbal language and the magic of art creation to heal from sorrow.

Book a Session with Sophia