Annie Armstrong Miyao
Annie is an author, licensed psychotherapist, consultant, and mother.
Before becoming a licensed psychotherapist, she spent 15 years working in the theatre and film industries. Through this experience, she developed a strong sense of empathy, openness, and creativity. Her years in the creative arts was a schooling in the ways people express their emotions and define themselves. It was an in depth exploration of the patterns that play out across the collective experience of being human.
Annie always wanted to be of service, to help people tell their stories, and to share in the exploration of ways in which others experience life. As a therapist, her lifelong passion for hearing peoples’ stories was married with her desire to help people find more peace, meaning, and reflect on their innermost thoughts, feelings, and potentials.
She studied Depth Psychology at Pacifica Graduate Institute—drawn to the work of those studying myth, archetypes, and religion both in connection to psychology and as ways to understand the human condition.
Her clinical work has been interwoven with her becoming a mother—expanding her knowledge of human development, emotional capacity, shifts in identity and mostly, love.
She began publishing her writing after the birth of her third child. After a decade of listening to stories she felt compelled to share her broad observations and personal experiences. She uses her columns to reach beyond her practice, sharing her training more broadly, and reflecting collective struggle and resilience. She has become a trusted source for soulful reflection on the human condition.
Her first book, Dream Minding, invites and guides anyone who is curious about themselves to access the inner wisdom available to them through exploring the meaning of their dreams.
She received her Bachelor of Arts Degree from Trinity College in Theater and Dance and her Masters Degree from Pacifica Graduate Institute in Counseling Psychology with an emphasis in Depth Psychology.
Art by Jane Fisher
Approach
Through a holistic approach that includes a creative exploration of the patient’s life experience, Annie combines her training in depth psychology— uncovering unconscious drives and patterns —with practical approaches developed from mindfulness, somatic theories, positive psychology, and neuroscience.
She orients towards the basic, healing nature of the relationship between therapist and patient. She works collaboratively helping people gain insight, develop appropriate stress tolerance, and nurture positive experiences both inner and intra personally.
She helps people tap into undiscovered potential, create positive change, and work through a myriad of issues.
She has specialized training in depth psychology, psychodynamic theory, interpersonal neurobiology, somatic experience, Jungian analytical psychology, dream minding, and mindfulness.
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Twice a month, Annie shares personal stories and psychological insight— weaving together dream, image, and lived experience— offering grounded ways to listen inward and cultivate greater clarity, peace, and meaning in your day-to-day life.