At CARE Counseling, Inc., we believe therapy should be a place where all of you is welcome—your identity, your relationships, your history, your hopes, and your truth.

Queer and LGBTQ+ individuals deserve therapy that affirms their full humanity—not just tolerates or analyzes it. Our LGBTQ+ and queer-affirming therapy model is not an add-on—it’s a foundational, intentional, and ongoing commitment to equity, affirmation, and liberation.

Whether you are questioning, coming out, exploring gender identity, healing from trauma, or simply seeking support in a queer-competent space, we are here for you.

What Is LGBTQ+ and Queer-Affirming Therapy?

Affirming therapy centers the experiences, needs, and strengths of LGBTQIA2S+ individuals and communities. It’s grounded in the belief that:

• Your identity is not a pathology.

• Your story is valid—even if it’s still unfolding.

• You deserve a space where you don’t have to explain, defend, or minimize yourself.

Our model emphasizes:

• Cultural competence and humility (not assumptions or tokenism)

• Trauma-informed care, particularly for minority stress, family rejection, and systemic harm

• Intersectionality, recognizing how race, disability, class, religion, and more shape identity

• Empowerment and consent, especially in navigating medical, relational, and social transitions

• Celebration of queerness as resilience, creativity, and authenticity

The Science and Psychology Behind Affirming Care

Research shows that LGBTQ+ individuals experience higher rates of anxiety, depression, PTSD, and suicidality—not because of their identity, but because of stigma, discrimination, and systemic exclusion.

Affirming therapy reduces these risks by:

• Buffering minority stress through relational safety

• Enhancing self-esteem, identity integration, and belonging

• Supporting clients through coming out, gender exploration, transitions, and chosen family dynamics

• Addressing trauma from conversion attempts, religious or cultural rejection, and medical gatekeeping

• Validating fluidity and complexity—not forcing binaries or assumptions

Therapists at CARE Counseling, Inc. are trained in evidence-based models including narrative therapy, IFS, somatic trauma work, and relational-cultural theory, all adapted through a queer-affirming lens.

Common Topics in LGBTQ+ and Queer Therapy

Clients may seek therapy for many reasons, including:

• Exploring sexual orientation or gender identity

• Navigating coming out to family, partners, or faith communities

• Managing trauma from rejection, bullying, or violence

• Building resilience in the face of systemic oppression

• Gender-affirming medical care navigation

• Processing religious, racial, or cultural conflicts with identity

• Creating healthier relationships and boundaries

• Cultivating joy, connection, and community in queer life

Our work centers the whole person—not just the problem.

Our Model at CARE Counseling, Inc.

Our LGBTQ+ and queer therapy framework includes:

• Affirmation-first: We affirm identity before exploring distress. There’s no need to justify your existence.

• Trauma-informed: We understand how trauma lives in the nervous system, especially for those repeatedly invalidated.

• Intersectional: We respect the complexity of navigating multiple identities, including race, disability, class, and culture.

• Relational: We value chosen family, polyamory, non-binary partnerships, and diverse expressions of love and community.

• Clinically grounded: We combine up-to-date research with real-world compassion and lived experience.

You Deserve Therapy That Sees You

Too many LGBTQ+ clients have been harmed by therapists who didn’t “get it.” At CARE Counseling, Inc., we are committed to doing better.

We are:

• Anti-oppressive

• Trauma-aware

• Body-positive

• Justice-rooted

• Curious, not assuming

• Always learning and listening

Your therapy should be a place of belonging, not scrutiny.

Let’s Begin Together

Whether you're just beginning to explore who you are or you're seeking space to grow deeper into your truth, CARE Counseling, Inc. offers a welcoming, informed, and affirming space.

You are not too much. You are not too confusing. You are not alone.