LGBTQ+ therapists in San Rafael, California CA
Serving LGBTQ+
Courageous Counseling Center
Licensed Professional Counselor, MS, LPCC
Think of us as your allies who will walk with you through this challenging and difficult time. With compassion, insight, and honest communication, we explore the territory of your emotions, behaviors, and limiting patterns and beliefs to help you gain perspective on your life and relationships. This increases your resiliency and capacity to handle life’s stressors and struggles, bringing you more ease, peace, and happiness.
9 Years Experience
Serving LGBTQ+
James Norwood
Psychologist, Clinical Psychologist
"Psychoanalysis is an authentic encounter between two people" -R.D. Laing. Therapy is hard, but it doesn't have to be awkward. You'll want a therapist who is warm without being intruding, thoughtful but not distant, caring but not smothering, someone you feel you can trust both because they are good at what they do, but also because they are another person who can understand what you're going through. I know very well the strength required to take the first step in confronting some of life's most pernicious problems with someone you do not know yet. That is why I listen carefully with a professional ear but also attempt to maintain an approachable, personal dimension to psychotherapy sessions.
I'll always remember what it was like to be a psychotherapy patient for the first time. How disorienting it was and yet how immeasurably rewarding it became as I could start to confide in my therapist. Now, it is my mission to be a reliable confidant to my patients; to listen without judgment, to understand, to relate, and to work through difficult experiences. Being a therapist has always felt like an incredible privilege. I cannot imagine anything more rewarding than helping people find their way to a life they are happy with.
I am available by email or phone if you have any questions about starting therapy and I offer free preliminary conversations.
10 Years Experience
Serving LGBTQ+
Brad Byrum
Marriage and Family Therapist, MA, MBA, LMFT
I am sometimes awed, often humbled, and continually inspired by the courage my clients display in working with the psychological suffering in their lives. I am grateful for the gift of being their therapist, offering my own unique array of training, skills, and experience in ways that most support each of them in their unique journeys toward their preferred futures.
Utilizing neurologically informed and mindfulness-based cognitive behavioral approaches, I help clients change how they think, feel, and behave. As my client, I will offer you my full attention, compassionately and mindfully, accepting you just as you are, without judgment. I will focus on your strengths, honor your wisdom, engage with you in your struggles to change what you want to change, and support your self-discovery. Working together, we create a safe space where this can happen, in the way it wants to happen, in you.
8 Years Experience
Serving LGBTQ+
Erika Shershun
Marriage and Family Therapist, MA, LMFT
I specialize in helping trauma survivors, especially survivors of childhood and/or adult sexual trauma, reclaim the life they were meant to live. If you're struggling with symptoms related to trauma, such as being easily triggered, anxiety or depression, dissociation (feeling spaced out, numb, unable to ground, or connect to your body's sensations) trouble sleeping, nightmares, or flashbacks and more, you're in the right place (for an extensive list of trauma symptoms check out my post https://www.healingsexualtrauma.com/post/what-are-trauma-symptoms). My goal is to help you get the results you're looking for while offering lots of needed compassion and understanding. I'm the author of the Healing Sexual Trauma Workbook, the upcoming Healing Sexual Trauma Guided Journal (2024), and teacher of the PESI Sexual Trauma Clinical Training. I'm dedicated to supporting my clients as they navigate their healing journey.
11 Years Experience
Serving LGBTQ+
Adrian Scharfetter
Marriage and Family Therapist, PhD, LMFT, CST
As a sex therapist, I am dedicated to creating a safe and non-judgmental space where individuals and couples can explore and enhance their sexual well-being. With a background in psychology and specialized training in sexual health, my approach combines empathy, communication skills, and evidence-based interventions to help clients navigate and overcome challenges in their intimate lives. I am committed to fostering open conversations, promoting sexual education, and empowering clients to build fulfilling and satisfying relationships.
10 Years Experience
Serving LGBTQ+
Misty Johnson
Counselor/Therapist, LCSW
Are you experiencing communication challenges in your relationships? Challenges with sex or intimacy? Are you questioning or exploring gender and sexuality? I am here to support you and offer you tools and a place to process your current experience. I provide a safe space to explore who you are becoming and to discern old thought patterns that are no longer of service. I provide a healing space free of judgement and offer tools that you can immediately integrate into your current experience. I will collaborate with you and work with the intersections of your unique experience.
6 Years Experience
Serving LGBTQ+
Philip Starkman
Registered Psychotherapist, MSW, RSW
As a result of years of dedicated practice, I have had the privilege of supporting clients through a diverse range of challenges. This journey has refined my therapeutic approach into a distinct, holistic methodology that integrates the profound insights acquired from extensive study under both the venerable wisdom masters of the East and the renowned healers of the West. This fusion of knowledge and perspectives equips me to provide therapy that is not only deeply insightful but also highly effective, customized to meet the specific needs of each client. My approach is designed to honor the unique journey of every individual, offering a path to healing and growth that is as compassionate as it is empowering. Please feel free to contact me in order to have a free 15 minute introductory phone call.
53 Years Experience
Serving LGBTQ+
Eric van der Voort
Psychologist, PsyD, CST, CSWT
As a kink-identified Psychologist and Certified Sex Therapist, I work with kinky, non-monogamous, & LGBTQ+ people to address sexual performance anxieties, desire discrepancies, porn and/or substance use, and communication difficulties. I also help straight-identified men understand and appreciate their attraction to trans women. My inclusive practice enthusiastically welcomes those of any sexual orientation, gender identity, kink, relationship dynamic, and behaviors between consenting adults.
9 Years Experience
Serving LGBTQ+
Dr. Christina Charlotin
Psychologist, Psy.D.
My goal in my work is to empower you to break away from the chronic emotions, thought patterns, behaviors and outcomes that do not serve you. When setting our treatment goals, we’ll discuss what you’d like to gain, what you’d like to keep, & what you’d choose to no longer experience. With that information, we’ll work towards creating your version of happiness.
12 Years Experience
Serving LGBTQ+
Melissa Klass M.A., LMFT
Marriage and Family Therapist, M.A., LMFT #119163
One word. Relationship. Specifically ours. Yours and mine. Healing happens when you are seen, heard, and felt by another human being.
8 Years Experience