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James Y. Shih

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Podcast Episodes

Featured
Yin & Young Podcast EP 75: Eight Years in Review
May 27, 2025
Yin & Young Podcast EP 75: Eight Years in Review
May 27, 2025
May 27, 2025
Yin & Young Podcast EP 74: Gabriel Toya-Meléndez - Filmmaking, Identity, and Finding Your Tribe
Feb 11, 2025
Yin & Young Podcast EP 74: Gabriel Toya-Meléndez - Filmmaking, Identity, and Finding Your Tribe
Feb 11, 2025
Feb 11, 2025
Yin & Young Podcast EP 73: Paul Hoi #2 - Japan Stories, Skiing, Solo Traveling
Nov 24, 2024
Yin & Young Podcast EP 73: Paul Hoi #2 - Japan Stories, Skiing, Solo Traveling
Nov 24, 2024
Nov 24, 2024
Yin & Young Podcast EP 72 : William Gee Wong - Author of "Sons of Chinatown"
Jun 28, 2024
Yin & Young Podcast EP 72 : William Gee Wong - Author of "Sons of Chinatown"
Jun 28, 2024
Jun 28, 2024
Yin & Young Podcast EP 71  Aileen Cho - Intergenerational Trauma, Marriage, and Healing
Apr 18, 2024
Yin & Young Podcast EP 71 Aileen Cho - Intergenerational Trauma, Marriage, and Healing
Apr 18, 2024
Apr 18, 2024
Yin & Young Podcast EP 70 - Writer Peter Kageyama returns with MIDNIGHT CLIMAX
Feb 21, 2024
Yin & Young Podcast EP 70 - Writer Peter Kageyama returns with MIDNIGHT CLIMAX
Feb 21, 2024
Feb 21, 2024
Yin & Young Podcast EP 69 Daniel Tong - Editor: Finding your place in film and pursuing your passion
Feb 9, 2024
Yin & Young Podcast EP 69 Daniel Tong - Editor: Finding your place in film and pursuing your passion
Feb 9, 2024
Feb 9, 2024
Yin & Young Podcast EP 68 - Married Life, Cooking, Regret and Time
Aug 28, 2023
Yin & Young Podcast EP 68 - Married Life, Cooking, Regret and Time
Aug 28, 2023
Aug 28, 2023
Yin & Young Podcast Episode 67 - Kelly Hebestreit - Art, Identity, and Please Take Off Your Shoes
Apr 29, 2023
Yin & Young Podcast Episode 67 - Kelly Hebestreit - Art, Identity, and Please Take Off Your Shoes
Apr 29, 2023
Apr 29, 2023
Yin & Young Episode 66 - Peter Kageyama - Writer
Feb 2, 2023
Yin & Young Episode 66 - Peter Kageyama - Writer
Feb 2, 2023
Feb 2, 2023

Podcast disclaimer

Yin & Young Podcast EP 71 Aileen Cho - Intergenerational Trauma, Marriage, and Healing

April 18, 2024 in Asian American, Relationships, Mental Health

We’re so happy to have Aileen Cho, a licensed therapist based in the Southern California area, as our guest this episode! Aileen is a 2nd generation Korean-American clinician that offers psychotherapeutic services in both English and Korean. In this podcast (a first for Aileen) she shares her personal and professional insight into intergenerational trauma, marriage challenges, and the various ways she helps individuals to find their own way to heal.

Aileen’s website: https://www.aileenbcho.com/

Contact Aileen (currently not accepting new clients until Sept. 2024): aileen@aileenbcho.com

Highlights:

  • 00:00 James gives a brief intro of Aileen. They met at the Asian American Theater Festival at UCSD.

  • 01:45 We do a check-in. Aileen is very pregnant.

  • 04:25 Born in LA, her mother's family were North Korean refugees and shares a story about her paternal grandfather who was sold as a child slave to a Japanese family.

  • 07:00 Discusses how she was born into intergenerational trauma due to her family’s history. She is the keeper of stories for her family.

  • 09:45 Started off in acting and theater in college, while also going to therapy.

  • 11:25 After college: Her shift to the mental health field and eventually getting her Master’s in Drama Therapy.

  • 12:40 Intergenerational trauma:

    • Separation of North and South Korea.

    • The way we rear children is influenced by our own trauma.

  • 16:00 Advice to young people deciding about whether to go to therapy.

  • 20:20 How were your first steps into therapy?

  • 23:11 Finds that Korean American therapists are rare in her field and overall there’s a dearth of Asian American therapists.

  • 25:25 More Asian Americans are going into clinical practice as well as seeking therapy. Most of her clients are now Asian Americans.

  • 28:27 Mental health issues particular to Asian Americans.

  • 31:55 Aileen’s Time Capsule Theory in regards to immigrants and the children of immigrants.

  • 36:10 How to get boomer parents into family therapy.

  • 37:35 How has being a therapist and going to therapy affected your own relationships?

  • 40:50 Challenges with married life.

  • 48:05 Communication issues with couples.

  • 49:50 In the current social climate, the pressures of expectations of marriage has never been higher. Recommends Mating in Captivity by Esther Perel.

  • 57:27 Collective grief and drama therapy.

What do you to stay balanced? (59:40)

Language corner (01:02:27):

  • Circumstances that bring people meant for each other together; destiny; connection.

    • Mandarin: 緣分 (yuánfèn)

    • Korean: 인연 (inyeon)

  • Empathy*

    • Korean: 공감 (gong-gam). From the hanja 共感, gung6gam2 in Cantonese, gònggǎn in Mandarin.

    *Aileen shares that the word “empathy” comes from the Greek words “in” (em) and “feeling” (pathos). Compare this to Korean, empathy = 공감, which is “communal" (공/共) + “feeling” (감/感). Shows individualistic vs collectivist cultural differences in the languages.

01:09:17 Aileen and her husband have inherited her mom’s secret kimchi recipe.

———

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Like/comment to helps others find our work! Yin & Young is produced by James Y. Shih and Daniel Yin. Support us on Patreon: patreon.com/yinyoungpodcast 

Email: yinyoungpodcast@gmail.com

Tags: yin young podcast, podcasts, language, Therapy, drama, theatre, trauma, relationships, marriage, psychotherapy
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