Therapist Vaj Thoj Cindy

01/14/2026

Each person has a unique experience and history that needs to be honored. Mind and body stress, emotional overwhelm, anxiety, and depression are all signs you have been experiencing too much or too little of something without adequate resourcing in order to heal. Therapy is a space to learn about po...

01/09/2026

Emotional neglect is a real experience, and we need to talk more about it.

“I had a great childhood. Nothing bad happened, but I don’t know why I feel like this.”

Maybe it’s not about what happened. Maybe it’s about what didn’t happen.

I encourage you to read my piece to learn more.

The Invisible Wounds of Emotional Neglect: What It Is, How It Happens, and What Can Help by Cindy Vang | Jan 9, 2026 | Anxiety, Children & Teens, Depression, Family Therapy, Parenting, Relationships, Trauma | 0 comments For the past few months, I have been doing a deep dive into the world of emotion...

01/08/2026

It’s 10:23pm. What did you just do?

I just paid for the first training of Training Season 2026. Let’s go!!!!!!!!

01/07/2026

I love being a mom. It’s a role that I hold to the highest priority, but it can be difficult and stressful some days.

And today was one of those days where one child wanted to tell me something about their sibling and then the sibling is now mad and wants to tell me something that child did.

Then I have a house full of angry children and siblings.

So we sat down for a lesson, summarized in 3 points, and I’m sharing it with all of you.

In my house, there are no snitches or tattletales. But if something isn’t safe, we say something because we’re a family, and family always shows up for each other.

12/27/2025

Happy Hmong New Year to each and everyone of you!

The Hmong have lived in America for 50 years now, and I am astonished to see our growth in that time frame. In all areas of life, I have witnessed the growth of my people. From Olympians to farmers, from educators to doctors, from actors to activists, and many more, it has been an inspiring experience to say the least.

Of those 50, I have contributed 39 years, and of those 50, my daughter has contributed 7, and there is only more to come.

My wishes for the Hmong American community as we go into our 51st year is for hope and healing, recovery and joy, growth and accountability, and underneath it all, prosperity and resiliency.

May we continue to be all that we were meant to be, one generation after another.

12/22/2025

It’s the holiday season…

And sometimes, Santa Clause does not show up to town with the most pleasant gifts.

I had a conversation last night, and I explained that the holiday season is not always a pleasant experience for people. She asked me what do we work on, and I gave a rundown of the top 3 things I work with clients on.

So however way your holidays are planned this year, I send well wishes, lots of validation, and permission to take a break and set some boundaries.

12/13/2025

Child therapists buy Happy Meals for the sandtray miniatures! McDonald’s does not understand their contributions to the world of children’s mental health. 😄😄😄

12/12/2025

Everyone has needs, and the “good kid” is not immune from it.

A kid is “good” often because they have keen observation skills that helps them stay protected and out of the danger zone. But since they’re kids, they filter their observations through their young child lens, making sense of it on their own.

If you have a “good kid” in your house, take time to give these 3 things to them. There is more, but these were my top 3 from my observation and personal experience.

12/11/2025

Being a therapist was a state of becoming. I believe that I was destined to be in my field, contributing in the ways that I currently am.

But sometimes, my work gets lonely. Maybe I take confidentiality too seriously or perhaps it is because I see my becoming a therapist as a calling, but I recognize that choosing my field also meant choosing to not show up in certain places and choosing to keep my work-related thoughts and emotions to myself.

But this is also why I choose to be a therapist for therapists and children of therapists. Therapists are human. We have human experiences and human emotions, and we also need confidential spaces for ourselves.

12/08/2025

I have been thinking about the concepts of disability, different abilities, neurodivergence, and ableism for quite some time now.

As a highly sensitive, possibly ADHD, and neurodivergent person, I have felt both able and disabled and both have had different circumstances and expectations of what I needed to be able to do.

In the therapy I provide, I work effortlessly on trying to provide a space that can be available to everyone’s abilities. I have seen young people and older people thrive, showing me their different abilities.

I really encourage everyone to reflect on their own ableism experiences. In committing to that practice, I believe we can really create a far more kind and affirming society for everyone.

12/07/2025

It is very difficult to have compassion for ourselves in adulthood when we do not have parents or caretakers giving us that compassion as a child.

Many children do not know if or when they have done something inappropriate or not okay. They rely on the adults to teach them that. To grow from their actions requires compassion and empathy. Otherwise, they are steeped in shame, believing that they are bad, not enough, or wrong.

When these children grow to be adults, they become self-shaming and self-disparaging, which is essentially, self-harming.

If you’re an adult who struggles with self-compassion, you can heal, grow, and give yourself what you needed as a child.

If you’re a parent or caregiver to a child, you can give them the space to grow and heal with compassion and empathy.