Affirmative, not just 'safe'

Therapy where you don't have to educate your therapist.

LGBTQ+ affirmative individual and couples therapy — including non-monogamy, polyamory, and kink-aware work. No translating. No teaching. Just the therapy. Online across California.

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Good fit if

You want a therapist who already knows the context — coming out, gender, identity, relationship structure
You're navigating family of origin, religious deconstruction, or stigma-related stress
You're in a queer or non-traditional relationship and want therapy that treats it as the norm, not the deviation
You're non-monogamous, polyamorous, in a relationship anarchy structure, or kink-involved and want a therapist who won't pathologize
You're exploring gender and want supportive, non-directive therapy — we don't push outcomes

Not a fit if

You're seeking 'conversion' or change-directed therapy — we don't provide that and never will
You need specialized gender-affirming care letters (top surgery, HRT) — we may not be the right fit; we'll refer

Not sure which column you're in? Book a free consult. If we're not the right fit, we'll help you find someone who is.

What the work looks like

How we actually work together.

This isn't a different modality — it's a different starting point. We use the same evidence-based frameworks as any therapy (CBT, Gottman, EFT, EMDR, IFS), but you won't spend the first six sessions teaching your therapist what polyamory means, why misgendering from family still hurts even when you're years out, or how to hold the tension of loving a faith tradition that doesn't love you back.

For couples and relationship structures of any size: we treat the structure you're practicing as the working structure. No pressure to reorganize into monogamy, no pressure to 'pick one' partner. The work is communication, attachment, and clarity — whatever the container is.

Our clinicians hold LGBT-Affirmative Therapy certification (AAMFT), and we're committed to keeping current on best practices for LGBTQ+ clinical care — which changes as the field evolves.

Modalities we draw from

Affirmative therapy frameworkGottman MethodEFTNarrative therapyCBT

Who on our team does this work

3 therapists who specialize here.

Christina Mathieson

LMFT

Human sexuality, couples work, trauma recovery, and affirming care for individuals navigating relationships, identity, and life transitions.

Michelle Cortez

AMFT

Anxiety, cultural identity, relationship challenges, and the weight of carrying trauma quietly. Relational and culturally responsive at heart.

Jalyse Stewart

AMFT

Trauma-informed therapy for women — especially Black women and BIPOC clients — healing from childhood sexual abuse, complex trauma, and what a lifetime of carrying other people's weight does to the nervous system.

FAQ

Common questions about lgbtq+ affirmative therapy.

Do I need a specific LGBTQ+ therapist, or does any of your team work with queer clients?

All our therapists work affirmingly with LGBTQ+ clients. Christina (LMFT) holds the LGBT-Affirmative Therapy certification from AAMFT and is our most extensive trainer in this work; the team as a whole is aligned.

Can you write gender-affirming care letters?

We can sometimes provide letters for LGBTQ+ clients in established therapy, but we're not specialists in gender-affirming care letter-writing. For clients specifically seeking letters for HRT or surgery, we may refer to a provider who specializes in that.

Do you work with non-monogamous and polyamorous relationships?

Yes, substantively. We're non-monogamy-affirming and work with poly, open, relationship-anarchy, and kink structures. We'll ask how your structure works so we can work within it rather than against it.

My partner and I are queer but our issues aren't about being queer — will you still fit?

Yes, absolutely. Queer couples deal with the same relationship dynamics as any couple. Working with an affirmative therapist just means the context is already held — we can spend session time on the actual work instead of explaining your life.

References & further reading

APA Guidelines for Psychological Practice with Sexual Minority Persons — American Psychological Association
APA Guidelines for Psychological Practice with Transgender and Gender Nonconforming People — American Psychological Association
AAMFT — LGBTQ-Affirmative Therapy resources — AAMFT

Last clinically reviewed: April 18, 2026 by Christina Mathieson, LMFT #115093.

Ready to talk it through?

Free 15-minute call. We'll figure out if lgbtq+ affirmative therapy is the right work for where you are, and match you with the right person on our team.