Nicole Shieh grew up in San Francisco, connected to the city’s progressive, creative, multicultural communities. She graduated from the California Institute of Integral Studies in 2012 and has 13+ years of experience working in both community and private practice clinical settings, including college campuses, low income housing and homeless youth shelters. She holds a BA in sociology and has always been interested in understanding the influence of history, society and culture on individual subjective problems and pathologies.

Before pursuing a degree in counseling, Nicole’s work experience included fundraising and development in the non profit social service sector. She raised money for the organization, San Francisco Women Against Rape where she was also a peer counselor for several years. This experience led her to become curious about how to “go deeper” in her listening to those with histories of sexual and violent childhood traumas.

Nicole started her journey to becoming a therapist through regular meditation practice and participating in weeks-long silent meditation retreats, engaging in Buddhist teachings about the true nature of suffering in all living creatures. The values of silence, listening, being present, and cultivating compassion remain essential in her work.

In graduate school, she landed on psychoanalysis as a rigorous theory and practice of exploring the complexities of the unconscious side of our psyches. This led her to pursue her own longterm psychoanalysis and a two year post-graduate training in psychoanalytic therapy, learning how to adapt and reinterpret historic ideas and techniques in today’s contemporary world.

In addition to practicing therapy, she has taught classes, facilitated workshops, case conferences, and provides clinical supervision to pre-licensed trainees at California Institute for Integral Studies.

Education

  • Masters Degree in Counseling Psychology from California Institute for Integral Studies, graduated 2012

  • Access Institute Psychoanalytic Training Program, graduated 2014

  • Bachelors in Sociology, Wesleyan University, graduated 2005

Clinical Work Experience

  • Access Institute (Intern)

  • The Clinic Without Walls (Trainee)

  • Larkin Street Youth Services (Counselor)

  • Asian Community Mental Health Services (Intern)

  • Roosevelt Middle School, Oakland (Intern)

  • San Francisco State University Counseling Center (School therapist)

  • CIIS Pierce St and Church St (Supervisor)

Teaching Experience

  • Adjunct Professor, California Institute of Integral Studies, 2020-2021

Corporate Presentations

Beyond the Stigma: A Conversation about Mental Illness in the API Community, November 2021

The Mental Health Impact of Anti-Asian Violence, January 2022

API Healing and Community Empowerment, February 2022