WELCOME
Avery Chao | IFS | Art Therapist
Integrate Internal Family System and Art Therapy for Emotionally Complex, High-Functioning Adults.
Begin your Healing Journey
You may be someone who:
-
Feels high-functioning on the outside, but overwhelmed internally
-
Struggles with self-criticism, emotional numbness, or burnout
-
Is navigating identity, belonging, or cultural expectations
-
Has done talk therapy before but still feels stuck
-
Finds it hard to fully express emotions in words alone
Your healing journey here is not about fixing you—it’s about helping you understand and transform your inner system.
How I Work
-
Internal Family Systems (IFS) – understanding and healing different parts of you, including patterns shaped by early attachment and intergenerational experiences
-
Art Therapy – accessing emotions and feelings beyond language
-
Sensorimotor Guided Drawing and Somatic informed – regulating your nerve system and psychosomatic symptoms
-
Attachment-based work (AEDP, EFT) – building safety and emotional connection, including patterns rooted in childhood, interpersonal experience and family history
-
Trauma-informed & Culturally Responsive Care – LGBTQIA+ affirming, cross culture, at your pace, with respect for your system
I have comprehensive training in IFS (completed Level 2, currently in consultation toward certification), and I am a board-certified art therapist (ATR-BC) with additional certification in Sensorimotor Guided Drawing. I've also trained extensively in EFT couples therapy and AEDP.
Learn More About My Background>
As a first-generation immigrant, I understand the complexity of living between cultures. Sessions are available in English and Mandarin.
EFT Couples Counseling
Art Therapy
LGBTQIA+ Affirming
Sensorimotor & Somatic approaches
Cross cultural & Bilingual
IFS + Art Therapy Supervision & Consultation
Are You a Therapist Wanting to Go Deeper?
I provide consultation and supervision for clinicians integrating IFS, art therapy, and cross-cultural work— worldwide via Telehealth.
Many well-trained therapists find themselves running into the following in clinical practice:
Clients gain deep cognitive insight, yet emotional and behavioral patterns stay stuck
Client resistance or extreme protectors emerge and it's hard to stay grounded
Working with clients from collectivist, filial-duty-oriented family systems (commonly in East Asian cultures or South East cultures), individualistic attachment frameworks don't map onto Parts shaped by collectivist or family/cultural context
Unclear how Attachment Trauma and Developmental Trauma shape a client's protective system
Wanting to deepen work through sensorimotor or creative arts, but unsure where to start or how to go further
High-functioning clients who look successful but feel exhausted and stuck within — hard to reach what's beneath the performance
I offer individual and group supervision to help you build tolerance for frustration when facing resistance and extreme protectors, integrating attachment theory, developmental trauma, IFS, art therapy, and sensorimotor work into your clinical practice — available worldwide via Telehealth, in Mandarin and English.
Articles
Hi I'm Avery Chao
Hello, I'm Avery Chao, an IFS-trained art therapist and art therapy supervisor based in New York City, originally from Taiwan. I work with high-functioning adults navigating complex inner worlds, and with clinicians who want to bring more depth and creativity into their practice. Sessions in English and Mandarin, available worldwide via Telehealth.
I offer integrative coaching combining Internal Family Systems (IFS), art therapy, sensorimotor art therapy guided drawing, and attachment-based approaches (AEDP, EFT) to support deep, lasting change. Coaching focuses on understanding your inner self and fostering personal transformation, not just fixing problems.
In addition, I provide consultation and supervision for therapists who want to integrate these modalities into their clinical work, especially for clients who have already done extensive self-analysis, whether through cognitive or psychodynamic approaches, but have not yet connected to their felt sense or transformed underlying trauma and patterns. I offer more experiential and relational approaches that go beyond traditional talk therapy.
This website is aimed at making mental health accessible and relatable. I hope you find support and self-discovery here, helping you uncover inner strengths and foster personal growth.
Let’s Connect
Thank you for your interest in connecting with Avery.
If you're looking to embark on Art Therapy, IFS Coaching, Clinical Consultation and Supervision or any collaborations, please submit a request. Once I received the form, I will contact you within 3 business day. Since this work is collaborative, please feel free to reach out with any questions or for further information.