My Blog

The “Other Things” That Protect My Mental Health

  THE “OTHER THINGS” THAT PROTECT MY MENTAL HEALTH   With all the injustice and economic uncertainty happening in the United States, I’ve noticed my mental health taking a hit. In my rearview mirror, I can see my depression slowly creeping closer. In the...

Let’s Laugh Together

   LET'S LAUGH TOGETHER: TURNING SURVIAL HUMOR INTO COLLECTIVE HEALING I’ve spent years talking about mental health in rooms that were quiet. Sometimes it’s painfully quiet. Quiet because people were listening. Quiet because people were hurting. Quiet because, in...

From Self-Loathing to Self-Celebration

  FROM SELF-LOATHING TO SELF-CELEBRATION ““You’ve survived too much to ever doubt your worth again.” — Unknown A few weeks ago, I did something wildly outside my comfort zone and completely off-script from my usual patterns. I celebrated myself. Even though I’ve...

The Tutor Who Changed Everything

As I continue on the journey of learning to grieve my past losses, I have started journaling about the events and experiences that shaped me. The losses I write about are not always about death. They can be a career change, a significant life transition, or the end of...

We are Bamboos

A few weeks ago, I had the privilege of speaking at the Pacific Clinics Multicultural Family Center, where I shared parts of my journey with mental health and immigration. One of my talks was titled “We Are Bamboos – Thriving Between Two Worlds.” This blog is an...

Learning to Grieve

LEARNING TO GRIEVE Grief is an innate human experience. Yet, it’s something that people often don’t like to discuss or don’t know how to process. Traditionally, grief is defined as deep sorrow associated with death. The way I define grief encompasses changes, both...

Stressed, Again? A Mid-Year Reflection

Why was I So Stressed again? A Mid-Year Reflection   Stress is a pulse in our chest, a tension in our shoulders, a fog in our brain, and impatience with our reactions and behaviors, as well as the people around us. Last year, I wrote about stress from a deeply...

Reflections on Our Journey with Healthy Communities

Reflections on Our Journey with Healthy Communities: Bridging Faith and Mental Health   Over the past few months, I’ve had the profound honor of hosting and facilitating six sessions of Healthy Communities: Faith and Mental Wellness (HC). This initiative was more...

Reframing Uncertainty: Finding Clarity in a Chaotic World

REFRAMING UNCERTAINTY: FINDING CLARITY IN A CHAOTIC WORLD Lately, nearly everyone I talk to has been experiencing some level of anxiety. The world feels heavy. Change is constant, and uncertainty is the norm. Many Americans are deeply anxious about the economy,...

Bridging Faith and Mental Health – For My Mother

BRIDGING FAITH AND MENTAL HEALTH - FOR MY MOTHER Earlier this year, I had the honor of receiving a contract from the Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health for a project titled “Healthy Communities: Faith and Wellness.” The mission of this initiative is to...

Confront Imposter Syndrome With These Strategies for Self-confidence

  Confront Imposter Syndrome With These Strategies for Self-confidence By Amy Collett Have you ever felt like a fraud, despite your accomplishments? You’re not alone. Imposter syndrome is a common experience where you doubt your abilities and feel undeserving of...

Unplug for Mental Health

UNPLUG FOR MENTAL HEALTH   Since November, I have completely unplugged from all news outlets. Fifteen years ago, I cut the cable TV and stopped watching the news, except for the occasional major sports game on regular TV channels. Five years ago, I stopped using...

Intersection between Cultures and Mental Well-Being: Insights from Southeast Asia

     INTERSECTION BETWEEN CULTURES AND MENTAL WELL-BEING: INSIGHTS FROM SOUTH EAST ASIA In December and January, I had the privilege of exploring and traveling through Southeast Asia, specifically in the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand. This...

A Fresh Start: Wishing You Health, Wellness and Self-Care in the New Year

  A FRESH START: WISHING YOU HEALTH, WELLNESS AND SELF-CARE IN THE NEW YEAR! Wishing You a Happy New Year Filled with Health, Wellness, and Self-Care As we say goodbye to the past year and welcome in the new one, it’s a great time to reflect on all that we’ve...

End of the Year Reflection

END OF THE YEAR REFLECTION As this year comes to a close, I find myself reflecting on a journey filled with challenges, growth, learning, and transformation—both personally and professionally. This year has been a testament to the importance of balance, purpose, and...

Random Thoughts

RANDOM THOUGHTS My mind is struggling to form singular, cohesive thoughts right now, so this blog will be another collection of different half-baked ideas and questions I've been reflecting on and trying to sort out lately. Storytelling Theater. We have officially...

How Do You Man UP? Seven Ways to Man UP!

HOW DO YOU MAN UP? SEVEN WAYS TO MAN UP! This blog is inspired by a conversation I had with one of my readers, a male immigrant who has lived in the U.S. for decades. He asked during our discussion, “How do you actually man up?” This blog is my attempt to answer that...

Storytelling Theater for Healing

STORYTELLING THEATER FOR HEALING   In August, we delivered seven Storytelling Theater’s Red Doors performances/workshops. Since early this year, I have been mentioning Storytelling Theater and Red Doors. Some of you/my readers might still be wondering what...

Compassion/Empathy

COMPASSION/EMPATHY   Back in February, through the just keep living foundation, I facilitated a mental wellness workshop at Venice High School in Los Angeles. Using blank kites, I asked the students to draw things on them that gave them joy and hope. After...

Home Renovation and Mental Health

HOME RENOVATION & MENTAL HEALTH I’ve entered a whole new phase of “adulting.” It’s called home renovation. This year, due to various semi-urgent reasons, I started renovating my place. I have years of work experience in both residential and commercial...

Lifting Your Spirits Through the Pandemic

This blog is by CoffeeWithJR guest blogger, Tina Martin. Lifting Your Spirits Through the Pandemic As the pandemic has progressed throughout the last 18 months, people have begun to give more consideration to their health and well-being. Many have created healthier...

read more

Environment – Doing My Part

Happy New Year, my friends! As we move into 2022, I’ve been asking myself how I can do my part to make the world better. Instead of trying to overwhelm myself with all of the challenges the world is experiencing, I am focusing on a specific issue, the environment....

read more

Mexico City

I went to Mexico City in November. I stayed with my two friends and had a full Mexico City experience. I really enjoyed and loved the culture, food, and people there. I am extremely thankful for my friends that showed me around their favorite local spots and...

read more

Virtual vs. In-Person

In October, for the first time since the pandemic, I have finally started giving in-person trainings. After staring at my screen for almost two years, my first reaction while giving my first in-person workshop was, “Who are all of these people and why are they here?”...

read more

Seasonal Affective Disorder

Since I was young, every fall I’d experience and suffer from Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). Over the last ten years, I have worked really hard to heal and recover myself from this form of depression. After years of hard work and support from my former therapist,...

read more

Watching Myself on a Big Screen

“Coffee Talking Mental Coffins” was screened at the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival last month at the Regal L.A. Live movie theater. This new cut of “Coffee Talking Mental Coffins” is over ten minutes long and I divulged more about the connections between my...

read more

How to Launch Your Denver-Based Business

This blog is by CoffeeWithJR guest blogger, Eva Benoit. If you’ve been thinking about relocating or starting a business in Denver, the time has never been better. In addition to being one of the most picturesque places in the country, Denver is also known for its...

read more

Random Thoughts about Time, Tapas, Podcast

This summer’s heat has my brain all jumbo up. Instead of writing a comprehensive blog for the month, I am going to share with you all some of my random thoughts from July. I am still fascinated with the concept and reality of time, specifically time zones. I am...

read more

Monthly CoffeeWithJR

Join over 3,000 subscribers and sign up for my free monthly email newsletter and blog, where I share my mental health journey as an immigrant, travel stories, and other exciting projects!

Stay In Touch

11 + 11 =

Copyright © 2026 Divi. All Rights Reserved.