Gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, and queer individuals share the vast majority of issues that bring straight-identified clients to therapy, but many clients seek my services as someone who appreciates the uniqueness of an LGBTQ person's journey and utilizes a gay-affirmative treatment approach.
In my experience, clients benefit from an affirmative therapeutic environment that encourages acceptance of their sexuality and explores the impact of growing up in a society rife with covert and overt homophobia. Individuals and couples come to me seeking support for a range of issues.
I enjoy helping LGBTQ clients:
Therapy for Gay Men
I work extensively with gay men at different stages of adult life. Some come to therapy with concerns about relationships, intimacy, identity, or sexuality. Others are dealing with anxiety, depression, career pressures, family relationships, or a significant transition. Sometimes being gay is central to what brings someone to therapy; sometimes it is simply one part of a much larger story.
The questions that bring someone to therapy can change over the course of life. Dating and intimacy may raise different concerns than a long-term partnership. Questions about identity may take on new meanings as relationships, family, career, and other aspects of life evolve. Therapy can provide an opportunity to consider these experiences in the context of your particular history and relationships.
A place to explore what matters to you
Being gay may be an important part of how you understand yourself, but it does not have a single meaning or significance for everyone. I try to understand how your experiences have shaped you rather than beginning with assumptions about what being gay should mean.
Our work may involve relationships and intimacy, sexuality and identity, family and coming out, self-image, loneliness, career, or questions about the direction you want your life to take. It may also involve concerns that have little to do with being gay.
A psychodynamic and relational approach
My approach is psychodynamic and relational. We can explore not only the concerns that bring you to therapy, but also the experiences, relationships, and expectations that influence how you understand yourself and connect with others.
The goal is to develop a deeper understanding of your particular patterns and experiences, and to consider whether there are ways of relating to yourself and others that you would like to change.
Contact me to schedule a consultation.
I'd be happy to find time to connect with you about working together. I offer a brief telephone consultation to get a sense of what brings you to therapy and to discuss how I can be helpful.
CHRISTOPHER NARDOZZI, JD, LCSW