Introducing BJU's New Psychologist: Bojun Hu
Born in China and raised in the USA, Bojun Hu is back in the Middle Kingdom to help the psychological health of the good people of Beijing. A Harvard-Medical-School-trained psychologist and a certified yoga instructor, she uses a holistic approach in her practice.
What should people come to see you for?
I see people with all types of daily-life as well as extraordinary difficulties – any distress from depression to anxiety to adjustment and transitional problems. Transitional problems can be the transition from one culture to another, from one phase of life to another, or it can be due to a significant event such as a job change, a death, or marital difficulties. I see those types of distress as well as more severe psychological difficulties, such as bipolar disorder, psychosis, personality disorders, and trauma. I typically see adults (16 and over). Because of my focus on the mind and the body, I also welcome people with a desire to have a more integrated lifestyle that seeks a balance between one’s emotional life, one’s mental state, and one’s bodily existence.
What kind of work do you do with people who want to have more of a balance in their lives?
It can be a range of things. Because of my training as a yoga teacher, I incorporate meditation and simple yoga poses to treat anxiety and depression. The entire therapeutic process can also be a very meditative one, one where we work collaboratively and take time to reflect and to feel so that we can observe what we are, as individuals, experiencing at this point in our lives – what is important to us, what has been difficult, and how do we want to move forward, given our gifts and resources, to come to a clearer vision of what gives our lives meaning. That type of sustained, non-judgmental, open inquiry is a meditative process.
What are some of the goals of therapy?
Leading a more meaningful life, forming better, more fulfilling relationships in one’s life, finding joy and fulfillment in one’s creative efforts, in one’s work – all of these can be goals and everyone’s goals are different. Some goals may not be overtly related to personal growth – for example, how to face the fact that one’s parents are dying. That’s not an overtly growth-oriented goal, but death is a part of the human condition, and as important as it is to create and expand, it’s as important to find out how we each uniquely face our human limitations.
Do you usually treat people over several appointments?
Yes, definitely. When people first come, they get a bit nervous, thinking, “Is this person going to understand me? Can I really tell this person what’s on my mind and not be judged? Will therapy really help me?” All these different questions are so normal. Typically, it takes two or three sessions to get a rhythm going, for both the therapist and the client to get a feel for one another. Clients have to decide “Do I like this therapist? Do I want to work with them? Am I ready to trust them to provide a safe environment where I can take risks that I have not been able to take before – try out new things that I have not been able to try out before?”
All of those risks and growth opportunities arise from a strong foundation of trust, and it takes time to build trust. So, I usually recommend at least a few sessions so that people can make a more informed decision about whether I’m the person they want to work with, to help and support them in the change process.
What made you choose to become a psychologist?
Even growing up, I’ve never been into small talk. I’ve always wanted to know what’s going on – what do you think of the world? What makes you get up in the morning? What do you find meaningful and beautiful in life? I think we all have unique visions. I realized while I was in college what a joy it would be to have the chance to understand a person’s life and see how they see the world – and be paid for it! I thought yeah, I like that job. And later, as a group therapist, I discovered that therapy groups can be powerful containers for emotional vulnerability as well as interpersonal exploration and growth. Groups are a way of forming supportive communities that can support us over time. Having a role in that village-building process is thrilling and enlivening for me.
Have you come across any misconceptions about your field?
One of the funny things I’ve noticed since I’ve moved to China is that when I tell Chinese people that I’m a psychologist, many people’s next question was “do you do hypnosis?” Maybe because of the media and television, there seems to be a public association between psychology and hypnosis. Maybe it’s the idea that suddenly, almost miraculously, someone is able to show you what you didn’t know before and make you remember things you were not able to before, and somehow you can very quickly be “cured”. So, whether or not someone is actually interested in hypnosis, I think there is a desire to be “cured” of something quickly.
I think the psychological process is primarily a process of self-healing and a process of coming to a different type of relationship with oneself and one’s environment. Whatever relational pattern we’ve been using, each one of us has been using it for 20, 30, 40, 50 years. We’re not going to see a significant change in that pattern within a week or even a month, but I think with patience, with people around us to support us, we can come to a more adaptive way of being with ourselves, being less critical of ourselves, being more accepting, and also being able to feel more confident in our abilities to create, give, and receive love. I think all these things are possible – they just take longer than people expect.
What brings you to Beijing?
My husband, who is Chinese, found a job in Beijing. At the time, I realized that I was ready to experience something new in my life. After twenty-some years living abroad, I wanted to return to my roots. I was born in China and lived here for the first few years of my life before moving to the US. I think in many ways I’m very American, but in other, more unspoken, guttural ways, I’m very Chinese. I’m also a Buddhist. I wanted to come back to this country to feel my roots more deeply. For example, even though people don’t necessarily practice Buddhism very overtly in this country, in the culture, in the way that my own extended family celebrates the new year with a temple visit or understand distress and illness in terms of Chinese medicine, there is implicit knowledge that continues to be transmitted through the generations. It is this everyday culture that I desire a deeper contact with here in China.
Bojun Hu is our new Psychologist. She speaks English and Mandarin. To make an appointment with her, please call the BJU Service Center at 4008-919191.
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