Dr. Yamaguchi was born in Seattle, Washington, and grew up in the Midwest. Her first career was as a Medical Researcher, and she worked at the Mayo Clinic, the University of Utah Medical Center, and UCLA Medical Center in that capacity. She has been a licensed psychologist since 1990 with special interests in Health Psychology and Cross-Cultural Issues.

She has been on the inpatient staff at UCI Medical Center and has experience in rehabilitation psychology at Rancho Los Amigos Hospital. Her experience includes the Pacific Clinics in Pasadena and the Asian Pacific Mental Health Clinic in Gardena.
Dr. Yamaguchi completed a post-doctoral fellowship in Behavioral Medicine and Cross-Cultural Psychology at Harbor/UCLA Medical Center. She also served as a psychologist for the Torrance Memorial Hospital inpatient psychiatric unit and was part of the pain management team at Torrance Memorial Medical Center. She has spent many years working with the terminally ill and hospice organizations. She has a special interest in the interconnections of mental and physical conditions, Holistic medicine, and pain management.

She is married and has three grown children.