About Me

My legal name is Ning Wang, but I go by Chelsie. I use she/any pronouns. I moved to Pullman in 2019. Prior to Pullman, I grew up in Honolulu, Hawaii. I am a first generation immigrant, born in Beijing, China (unfortunately I don't speak Mandarin well enough to offer my professional services in that language). I am a naturalized U.S. citizen and hold dual citizenship (Canada). My header photo was taken when I was given the opportunity to visit the Great Wall of China. 

I graduated with my Master's in Social Work in 2019. I currently work full time providing community based mental health services to adult with severe and persistent mental illness, and filled a similar role in Hawaii as well. I wanted to expand into providing individual therapy because I really enjoy(ed) working with the clients with whom I could provide some form of counseling and therapy to. I found that I really looked forward to providing supportive therapy and working on a goal with those clients. 

I chose the name Checkpoint Counseling, PLLC because I play a lot of video games and wanted to borrow the concept of a checkpoint. A safe space, where one can rest and recharge, in preparation for the next step. When I'm not working, I'm calling out to my Quaker parrot so he can call back, offering millet to my parakeets, and picking up after my dogs (hey, it's not all glamorous). Pets aside, I like to crochet and find it very soothing to simply take a walk. 


Credentials

Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker, State of Washington - LW61297578

I am only able to provide services to you if you will be physically located in Washington state during the time of our appointment.

Professional Focus

I am passionate about incorporating culturally sensitive therapy and multicultural therapy in my approaches due to my own personal experiences as a Chinese immigrant and woman of color.  I work best with issues stemming from anxiety, low self esteem, poor boundaries, and lack of emotional awareness. If you find yourself in a position where you can't explain why you feel a certain way or do certain things, or that you're stuck in a cycle, therapy can be a great way to build that resilience and awareness. 

I have personal experience with stressors that can come from choosing to be child free so I am able to bring more to the table when working with issues that can stem from this choice, like working to cope with societal & familial pressure to have children, working to make space for the complex emotions that may arise from making such a choice, or working through some ambivalence about whether or not this choice is right for you. This doesn't need to be the focus of our time nor does it need to go beyond a mention (or none at all), but if you find that it may be helpful to work with someone who has this similar lived experience, I'm here! :)

My approach style is more goal and solution oriented, so modalities that focus on creating and reaching goals, such as Solution-Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT), are ones that I find I gravitate towards and am more comfortable using. I acknowledge that sometimes the sources of our concerns are simply out of our control, so I am comfortable and passionate about providing supportive therapy so that healing can come from simply being able to have a safe space to vent your frustrations and be heard. I do not subscribe to the idea of a perfect or best way to help someone; what works for me may not work for you, I am happy to work with you on finding the best resources to meet your needs.