A woman with long dark hair smiling at the camera, wearing a beige and gray cardigan over a white top, and a gold necklace with a pendant, standing against a plain gray background.

01/03

Sarah Ling, AMFT

Registered Associate MFT #165464 / working under supervisioN

I’m an Asian-American associate marriage and family therapist, Restoration Therapy Level 2 trained therapist, certified Brainspotting Level 1 practitioner, and certified Prepare and Enrich counselor, practicing under the supervision of Elizabeth Rhee, LMFT (#122155). I bring warmth, presence, and attunement to the therapy room, with a steadfast confidence that together we will find clarity that leads to meaningful change for you. I offer in-person sessions in Pasadena and Koreatown, and I am available to meet with you virtually throughout California. 

My clinical experience includes working with individuals, couples, and groups from 8 to 80 years old with diverse backgrounds. Before training and working as a therapist, I was a proud and devoted special educator for ten years. This gives me a strong developmental lens on your story, with an appreciation for the relational and cultural systems in your context. I am grateful to bring to the therapy room abundant experience with neurodiversity, ADHD, autism spectrum characteristics, issues of emotional and sensory regulation, chronic medical illness, and the impact of disabilities in adults and children. This is a great place to get guidance and develop greater understanding for how these elements are a part of the whole family and a vibrant life. 

As a daughter of Chinese/Taiwanese immigrants who has lived in diverse social settings, I have a special interest in working with those whose life experiences may not fit neatly into boxes and those who navigate cross-cultural spaces. My clients have shared feeling known and empowered as we explored together the challenging complexity in their lives. I also focus on working with families, parents/children, couples, friends, and siblings, with the recognition that every relationship contains a universe of emotional, practical, and interpersonal dynamics. From my lived experience in a 20-year marriage and as a mother of two children, I know how unpredictable and deeply overwhelming family life can be.

Working with others towards the health of relationships is a deeply-held calling for me. I have a wholehearted belief in each person’s ability to understand and change the patterns in their life, and I am eager to engage in this work with you.

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02/03

Clinical Focus

Anxiety, Depression & Emotional Well‑Being

  • anxiety and perfectionism

  • depression and high-functioning depression

  • grief and loss

  • life transitions

  • women’s issues

Couples, Relationships & Family Systems

Identity, Culture & LGBTQIA+

Neurodiversity & ADHD / Autism Support

  • neurodiversity (ADHD and autism spectrum characteristics)

  • neurodiversity within relationships and families

  • sensory regulation needs

Trauma & Intergenerational Healing

Leadership & High Achievers

  • leadership challenges

  • high-achiever stress

03/03

My Approach

Attuned
Integrative
Empowering

My approach to our work together begins with warmth and attunement. I use a Restoration Therapy framework to identify patterns in your life and bring clarity to your experiences. Using family systems, attachment, and developmental lens, we will uncover the connections between different aspects of your life, empowering you to step into growth and meaningful change. For many, Brainspotting is a somatic approach that provides access to deeper parts of themselves. I am grateful to provide this powerful therapeutic tool and useful way of engaging our complex bodies, nervous systems, and constantly developing brains. My style is present and intuitive, embracing the wide range of human experiences and emotions. I am excited and ready to hear from you about what you are seeking.

THERAPIST-CLIENT FIT IS IMPORTANT TO THE THERAPY EXPERIENCE 

I offer a complimentary 15-minute phone consultation to determine if we might be a good fit to work together. It takes courage to reach out for support. I consider it a privilege to journey alongside you toward your healing and wellness that empowers you to live out your most authentic life.

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Frequently Asked Questions

In-person therapy at our Highland office, with nearby offices in Pasadena and Los Angeles Office in Koreatown. Virtual therapy across California.

  • Yes. A special educator for ten years, Sarah helps parents understand their child's ADHD, autism, or sensory needs and how neurodiversity shapes the whole family. This means that she understands how it impacts both diagnosed and undiagnosed clients into adulthood. She sees clients in person in Pasadena, Highland Park, Los Angeles office in Koreatown, and online across California.

  • Yes. Sarah Ling offers neurodivergent-affirming therapy and works with adults who have ADHD, autism spectrum characteristics, or sensory regulation needs, helping them understand how their brain works and build a life that fits it. She also supports partners of neurodivergent adults, helping couples understand each other's wiring, ease recurring conflict, and share the load in a way that works for both.

  • Our Highland Park team includes:

    • Founder Hatty J. Lee, LMFT #83772

    • Elizabeth Rhee, LMFT #122155

    • Elizabeth Oh, LMFT #157153

    • Michelle Park, AMFT #165227

    • Sarah Ling, AMFT #165464

    • Elizabeth Yoshonis, AMFT #157277

    • Elizabeth Ku, AMFT #149827

    Associates are employed by Oak and Stone Therapy and supervised by a licensed marriage and family therapist.

  • Yes. Sarah offers disability-affirming support for families of children with physical, developmental, intellectual, or learning disabilities, such as Down syndrome, cerebral palsy, hearing or vision loss, speech and language delays, or dyslexia. She helps with the strain on marriages, siblings who feel overlooked, grief, and changing roles. With ten years as a special educator, she understands both the practical demands and the emotional weight families carry.

  • Yes. Sarah helps families navigate disability together, including the strain on marriages, siblings who feel overlooked, grief, and changing roles. With ten years as a special educator, she understands both the practical demands and the emotional weight families carry.

  • Yes. Sarah supports parents of young children, preteens, and teens at every stage, from big emotions and behavior to conflict, independence, and changing closeness, including strained mother-daughter relationships. As a mother of two and a former special educator, she knows how overwhelming family life can be.

  • Yes. Sarah works with dating, engaged, and married couples, including intercultural couples and third culture couples whose partners grew up between countries and cultures. She is Level 2 trained in Restoration Therapy, a relational model widely used in couples therapy, and a certified PREPARE/ENRICH counselor. She helps partners communicate, resolve conflict, and understand each other's patterns, and her own 20-year marriage adds lived understanding to that clinical training.

  • Yes. Sarah, a daughter of Chinese and Taiwanese immigrants, understands most spoken Mandarin and speaks it conversationally. Her sessions are a natural fit for clients and families who move between Mandarin and English. If you'd prefer therapy fully in Mandarin, Nancy Denq, LMFT offers sessions in Mandarin.

  • Yes. Sarah works with clients healing from religious trauma and spiritual abuse, including in Chinese, Taiwanese, and other Asian American church communities where faith, family, and culture are deeply intertwined. Whether you want to keep your faith, rethink it, or step away, she supports you in finding your own path. She also offers faith-integrated care for clients who want their Christian faith included in therapy.

  • Yes. Sarah offers LGBTQIA+ affirming therapy for individuals, couples, and families, and believes each person's identity is a beautiful expression of who they are. For clients from Christian backgrounds, she makes room to explore faith and identity together without being told what to conclude, whether that path includes faith, leaves it, or is still unfolding.

  • Yes. Sarah works with third culture kids, teens, and adults who grew up between countries and cultures, and with parents raising them. Having lived in diverse social settings herself, she has a special interest in people whose lives don't fit neatly into one box. She helps with belonging, identity, grief over places and people left behind, and transitions like moving or returning "home."

  • It depends on what your family needs. Sometimes Sarah works directly with your child, sometimes with you as the parent, and often with both. Many parents find that their own support makes the biggest difference at home. In your free consultation, she'll help you decide where to start.