Meet Judith
Judith Liu, LCSW
Owner · Clinical Director · Clinical Supervisor · Active Provider
EAP Services Available. Judith currently accepts EAP referrals through partnered employer programs. Contact our office to confirm eligibility and schedule a consultation.
About Me
A practice built on connection and purpose
I am the owner, Clinical Director, and a practicing clinician at Steady Compass Counseling Services, founded in 2021 on a commitment to compassionate, individualized care. With over 20 years of experience, I work with individuals, families, and communities navigating complex life challenges — with a deep focus on the human–animal bond, grief, and pet loss. I also serve as a Clinical Supervisor, providing mentorship to graduate-level interns and provisionally licensed clinicians as they develop into ethical, confident practitioners.
My background spans corporate and nonprofit leadership in financial education and housing, which informs my financial social work practice. I have provided immigration evaluation services for many years and have extensive experience working with military families, female active duty service members, and combat veterans. I am currently working toward my Certification in Veterinary Social Work.
Why Work With Me
You are the expert in your own life
My clinical work centers on helping people move through anxiety, grief, burnout, life transitions, and relational challenges with greater clarity and self-trust. I have experience working with adults, children, teens, caregivers, military families, and individuals in high-stress or caregiving roles.
A meaningful part of my practice includes grief and loss counseling — particularly pet loss. I understand how profound the human–animal bond can be and how isolating this type of grief can feel when it is not fully recognized or supported.
I believe you are the expert in your own life. My role is to walk alongside you — offering guidance, insight, and steady support — while creating a safe, nonjudgmental space to explore challenges and strengths. My own lived experiences with adversity shape my empathy and reinforce my belief in our capacity to heal, grow, and move forward, even during uncertain or painful chapters.
Areas of Focus & Approach
Specialized care with a generalist foundation
Areas of Focus
- Animal-Assisted Counseling & ESA Evaluations
- Pet Loss & Grief across the lifespan
- Animal Phobia
- Anxiety & OCD
- Compassion fatigue & burnout for caregivers and helping professionals
- Military mental health — women veterans & active duty
- Financial stress & financial social work
- Immigration evaluations
- Therapeutic play with children & families
- Adult ADHD — executive functioning, identity & self-worth
- Life coaching — solution-focused approach
- Nature-based therapy & mindfulness
Therapeutic Approaches
- Exposure & Response Prevention (ERP)
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
- Acceptance & Commitment Therapy (ACT)
- Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) — elements
- Internal Family Systems (IFS) — elements
- Solution-focused coaching
- Trauma-informed care
- Feminist & narrative-informed perspectives
- Psychodynamic insight when helpful
Animal-Assisted Counseling
Why I work with animals
The Gentle Paw
Animals as co-facilitators of healing
Therapy animals bring a calming, grounding presence that can help reduce stress, ease anxiety, and foster emotional connection. Their nonjudgmental companionship can make it easier to open up, especially when words are hard to find. Whether you're navigating trauma, life changes, or just need a safe space to heal, therapy animals can be powerful partners in the process.
In my practice, animals are co-facilitators — never the focus, always the support. Clients are welcome to choose whether or not they'd like to work with a therapy animal. Depending on comfort and preference, they may request to work specifically with either my therapy dog, Ruby, or my therapy cat, Grogu. Your emotional safety and sense of control is central to our work together.
Learn more at thegentlepaw.com →Licensing & Availability
Where I practice
A Little About Me
The things I enjoy
Outside the Office
Animals have always been central to my life and values. I am deeply involved in animal welfare and therapy-animal work, with years of experience volunteering in rescue, fostering, transport, crisis support, and community education.
At home, I share life with two Boston Terriers, Ruby and Kai Xin, and a Sphynx cat, Grogu. They are a daily reminder of the comfort, connection, and resilience animals bring, and they continue to inspire both my personal life and professional work.
Ready to work together?
Schedule a free consultation to see if we're the right fit for your journey.
Schedule a Consultation