Why I love working with LGBTQ+ clients & couples

I was raised in an ultra-conservative, evangelical religious culture that included Christian school, church 3x’s a week, youth group events, volunteering, as well as receiving tons of unhealthy messaging about myself, others and the world. As a bisexual teen, I felt oddly comfortable with myself while remaining fully aware that I existed in a “don’t hate the person, hate the sin” environment. I could never make sense of why anyone would be wrong to love whomever they loved, except that it posed a threat to the deeply gender stereotyped white-washed world of the evangelicals. After rejecting and exiting that system, I immediately sought out a sense of community and felt instantly at home with the theater kids, outsiders, creatives, and LGBTQ+ groups that fully embraced me without a second thought.

As I went on to become a therapist, I knew it was important for me to work with this client population, as they’ve faced so much trauma, judgement, and overall struggles. I started by seeing gay and lesbian teens, as well as teens who were gender-questioning, trans, gender fluid. This led to more and more referrals as word spread that I was open, accepting, non-judgemental, validating to these groups (which frankly is sad that that’s something unique amongst therapists).

Ive had countless clients tell me they went through multiple therapists searching for someone who was LGBTQ+ affirming, or that they were nervous when they walked into other therapy offices and saw Bible verses on the wall. This is my passion, and these are my people. I love the nuanced work of navigating lesbian relationships, helping parents understand how to be more supportive of their queer teen, educating and learning all the way. So for those of you who feel hurt, misunderstood, judged, marginalized—you will always have a safe place with me.