LGBTQ THERAPY
Your LGBTQ status goes with you everywhere. In some places, it’s celebrated. In others, it’s tolerated. Even still, in some places, it’s rejected. At times, you feel ostracized, unseen, and judged.
Are you trying to manage how your identities fit into your life, relationships, and workplace? Maybe you saw a therapist before who made it all about your LGBTQ experience, and you just want someone who understands and can help with what’s really important to you.
Maybe, you’re questioning your sexual orientation and/or gender identity and want to process the possibilities in a safe space. Perhaps, you’re a parent or a loved one of someone who’s LGBTQ and want to make sure you’re as affirming as possible.
Engage in LGBTQ therapy online with an LGBTQ therapist in Colorado Springs, CO and PSYPACT states
What if I’m unsure if I fall under the LGBTQ umbrella?
That’s okay! If you’re open or curious about your identities or experiences, we can explore them together. And if you’re not, that’s okay too. It can feel hard to know where to start and overwhelming to be curious with ourselves. This is where meeting with a professional who can help guide you through your thoughts and desires is helpful. You are the one who decides which parts of yourself and your experience you want to disclose. You will not be pressured to share anything you don’t want to share.
What’s the difference between sexual orientation and gender identity?
Sexual orientation is attraction (or lack thereof) to a certain gender(s). It can be depicted on a spectrum between straight and gay. However, not all sexual orientations fall on the spectrum.
Gender identity is one’s internal conceptualization of whether they’re male, female, a combination, or neither. It also is often depicted on a spectrum between cisgender (identifying with the sex you were assigned at birth) and transgender (not identifying with the sex you were assigned at birth). Again, not all gender identities fit on this spectrum.
Why is LGBTQ affirming therapy important?
It may seem like it goes without saying, but having an affirming therapist is key to progress in therapy, regardless of whether you want to focus on your LGBTQ identities. LGBTQ people experience more barriers to access and progress in therapy than their non-LGBTQ counterparts. Imagine establishing a relationship with a therapist, working on goals in therapy, and discovering your therapist has a bias against LGBTQ people and/or relationships. This can destroy rapport and negatively impact progress. The therapeutic space necessitates acceptance and non-judgment. Working with a LGBT competent, affirming, and celebrating therapist should be the backdrop of your therapeutic experience.
More specifically:
1. It creates psychological safety
Clients don’t have to educate, correct, or brace themselves. An affirming therapist:
- Uses correct names and pronouns
- Understands queer/trans identities as normal variations of human experience
- Doesn’t assume heterosexuality, cisgender identity, monogamy, or gender roles
That safety alone lowers anxiety and allows deeper work to happen.
2. It reduces minority stress
LGBTQ people experience chronic stress from:
- Discrimination and microaggressions
- Rejection or conditional acceptance
- Navigating unsafe systems (family, work, religion, healthcare)
Affirming therapy names this as external harm, not personal pathology—helping reduce shame, hypervigilance, and burnout.
3. It addresses internalized stigma
Many clients carry internalized:
- Homophobia
- Transphobia
- Biphobia
- Religious or cultural shame
Affirming therapy helps untangle “something is wrong with me” from “I was taught something harmful.” That’s often deeply healing.
4. It supports identity development and self-trust
This includes:
- Coming out (or choosing not to)
- Exploring gender or sexuality without pressure
- Navigating changes in identity over time
The goal isn’t always labels—it’s authenticity, agency, and self-trust.
5. It provides understanding of LGBTQ-specific relational dynamics
Affirming therapists are more likely to understand:
- Queer relationship structures
- Chosen family
- Dating dynamics in smaller or safer communities
- Power differences related to outness, gender, or transition
This prevents misinterpretation and pathologizing of healthy differences.
6. Many LGBTQ clients have trauma related to:
- Family rejection
- Religious harm
- Bullying or violence
- Medical or institutional mistreatment
Affirming therapy ensures trauma is treated without reinforcing the original harm.
7. Many LGBTQ clients have trauma related to:
- Family rejection
- Religious harm
- Bullying or violence
- Medical or institutional mistreatment
Affirming therapy ensures trauma is treated without reinforcing the original harm.
How am I qualified to work with LGBTQ folks?
I have lived experience as an LGBTQ person navigating queer and non-queer spaces. While everyone’s experiences are different, there are common threads among LGBTQ people. I have a plethora of personal and professional training working with and researching LGBTQ experiences.
LGBTQ people experience more trauma, loss, traumatic loss, and grief than those who aren’t. Often, queer people hold multiple marginalized identities. The trauma of being LGBTQ in a cisgender, heterosexual world is something no LGBTQ person can escape. The stress that comes with being “different” and misunderstood affects physical and mental health. Trauma therapy is one of my other specialties, which I can utilize in our work together. Work with someone who is competent to help you reach your therapeutic goals.
Maneuvering your career, relationships, dating, and daily life as someone who’s LGBTQ can be both challenging and rewarding. Let’s navigate this together. Heal from within.
