Haining (Helen) Yu, MD, MPH
Dual board-certified child, adolescent, and adult psychiatrist. Trained at Harvard, Columbia, and UCSF. Practicing in San Francisco and across California.
My work with patients and clients draws on my clinical training as well as my lived experience. I have worked across a broad range of clinical settings: academic, non-profit, and health-tech; small community clinics and large hospital systems. I have presented at national and international conferences, and I am actively involved in advocacy.
I am also a trained biomedical engineer and epidemiologist, and I have worked as a middle school teacher. I immigrated to the United States as a child and lived throughout the country before settling in San Francisco for my medical training. I speak Mandarin and some French.
I live in San Francisco with my partner, my children, and our dog. I enjoy spending time outdoors, gardening, hiking, and watching mystery shows.
How my training shapes the work.
I see each patient as a whole person. That means holding the biological, psychological, social, and functional picture together rather than treating a symptom list, because those dimensions shape one another and a plan built on only one of them seldom lasts.
It also means the goal is not only to relieve suffering. I want to help you get to what matters to you, the things you are actually trying to do with your life, your work, and your family. I do not use cookie-cutter solutions; every approach is carefully thought through and tailored to the particular person I am working with.
Children and families as a system
My training as a child and adolescent psychiatrist gives me particular expertise with young people. I take a whole-systems approach: how the family is functioning as a whole, how parent-child relationships are affected, and how the child is, or is not, fitting into their school and community.
Adults, seen developmentally
That same training gives me a distinct perspective on adults: how childhood experience has shaped a person, and what is still being carried into their work, their relationships, and their own parenting. I especially enjoy working with transitional-age youth who are growing into their adult selves, and with adults who are recognizing a pattern for the first time.
Cultural identity as clinical material
I have a longstanding interest in how cultural identity shapes mental and emotional wellbeing, and I have lectured on cultural identity formation. For many patients this is not a side topic. It is central to the work. Having immigrated as a child myself, I understand what it is to move between languages and expectations, and what that costs a family across generations.
Maternal mental health and parenthood
I also have expertise in women's and maternal mental health, including infertility, pregnancy, and the postpartum period. Becoming a parent, or trying to become a parent, can evoke complicated feelings. I work with adults navigating parenting struggles, and with those who find that their own mental health is holding them back from being the kind of parent they want to be.
Credentials.
Education
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Harvard Medical School
Doctor of Medicine (MD)
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Columbia University
Master of Public Health (MPH), Epidemiology
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Georgia Institute of Technology
Bachelor of Science (BS), Biomedical Engineering
Post-Graduate Training
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University of California, San Francisco
Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Fellowship
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University of California, San Francisco
General Psychiatry Residency
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San Francisco Center for Psychoanalysis
Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy Training Program
Board Certification & Licensure
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American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology
Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
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American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology
General Psychiatry
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Medical Board of California
Licensed Physician
Currently accepting new patients.
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