LGBTQ+ Affirming Therapy

Affirming Care from a Queer Therapist

Finding a therapist who truly understands what it means to be queer — not just one who says they're "affirming" on their website — can be exhausting. You shouldn't have to educate your therapist about your identity, explain what non-binary means, or justify your relationship structure before you can even get to the thing that brought you to therapy in the first place.

I get it, because I've been there. As a queer therapist, I bring both lived experience and specialized training to my work with LGBTQ+ clients. I earned my Master's in Clinical Psychology from Antioch University Los Angeles, where I specialized in LGBT Psychology — one of only three programs in the United States offering a dedicated course of study in queer psychology at the time. That experience didn't just give me clinical tools; it deepened my awareness of how profoundly the mental health field has failed queer and trans people, and it shaped my commitment to doing this work differently.

In my practice, being affirming isn't an add-on or a checkbox. It's foundational to everything I do. I'm a member of WPATH (the World Professional Association for Transgender Health), and my approach is sex-positive, kink-affirming, poly/CNM-affirming, and neurodiverse-affirming. Whether you're coming to me for identity exploration or something that has nothing to do with your queerness, you can trust that you're in a space where all of who you are is welcome.

What I Work With

LGBTQ+ clients come to me for all kinds of reasons — some related to identity, and many not. The beauty of working with a queer therapist is that you don't have to compartmentalize. We can talk about your anxiety and how it intersects with being closeted at work. We can process a breakup and the unique grief of losing queer community along with a partner. Nothing exists in isolation.

That said, some of the identity-specific areas I work with most often include:

Identity Exploration and Coming Out

Whether you're questioning your sexual orientation, exploring your gender identity, or navigating a new understanding of yourself at any age — I'm here for all of it. Coming out is rarely a single event; it's an ongoing process that looks different in every relationship, workplace, and family system. I help clients find language for their experience, process the fear and grief that can accompany self-discovery, and develop strategies for coming out on their own terms.

Gender Identity and Transition

If you're exploring your gender identity or navigating a social, medical, or legal transition, I provide a supportive, non-gatekeeping space to work through the complex emotions that can arise. As a WPATH member, I stay current on best practices in transgender health care. I also write support letters for gender-affirming medical care when clinically appropriate.

Minority Stress and Intersectionality

The cumulative toll of living in a world that wasn't designed for you is real. Minority stress — the chronic stress of navigating heteronormativity, transphobia, microaggressions, and systemic discrimination — affects mental health in measurable ways. I help clients understand how minority stress shows up in their lives (often as anxiety, hypervigilance, depression, or relational difficulty) and develop resilience without minimizing the very real harm that causes it.

Relationships and Intimacy

I work with couples and relationship groups of all configurations — monogamous, polyamorous, open, and everything in between. Queer relationships often exist outside the scripts that heteronormative culture provides, which can be both liberating and challenging. I help partners navigate communication, trust, intimacy, and the unique dynamics that arise in queer partnerships, including chosen family, community boundaries, and navigating different levels of outness.

What to Expect

Your first session is about connection. I want to hear your story, understand what brought you here, and start building the kind of trust that makes deep therapeutic work possible. I'll ask about your goals, your history, and how I can best support you. I'll also share a bit about my approach so you can decide if we're a good fit.

From there, therapy looks different for everyone. Some clients come in with a specific focus — processing a coming-out experience, working through gender dysphoria, or navigating a difficult family dynamic. Others need a space to think out loud and figure out what they're feeling. I follow your lead, drawing on trauma-informed, evidence-based approaches (including EMDR when appropriate) while keeping your identity and lived experience at the center of our work.

I offer both in-person sessions in my Pasadena office and telehealth throughout California. Sessions are 50 minutes, and I offer a limited number of sliding scale spots. I believe that affirming mental health care should be accessible, and I'm committed to making that a reality in my practice.

Is This Right for You?

Working with me might be a good fit if:

• You want a therapist who understands queer experience from the inside, not just from a textbook
• You're exploring your sexual orientation or gender identity and want a nonjudgmental space to figure things out
• You're navigating coming out — to family, friends, at work, or to yourself
• You're experiencing the mental health impacts of minority stress, discrimination, or family rejection
• You're in a queer or non-traditional relationship and want a therapist who won't pathologize your partnership
• You're seeking support around gender transition — social, medical, or legal
• You've had negative experiences with therapists who didn't understand your identity
• You're dealing with something that has nothing to do with being queer, but you want a therapist who won't make it weird

If any of this resonates, I'd love to connect. Book a free 15-minute consultation and let's talk about what you're looking for. No pressure, no commitment — just a conversation.