Transgender Therapists in El Cerrito, CA
Are you thinking about breaking a pattern that no longer serves you? Often feel like an outsider? Wanting to understand threads between past, present experiences, and possibilities ahead? Utilizing a variety of approaches, I can offer perspective and help you feel understood in order to create change in your life. I provide an affirming space for a lot of people who have had previously unsatisfactory experiences in therapy including LGBTQIA folks. I have extensive training beyond just getting licensed to practice therapy. Working with a clinically astute, sincere therapist can be life-changing.
Are you thinking about breaking a pattern that no longer serves you? Often feel like an outsider? Wanting to understand threads between past, present experiences, and possibilities ahead? Utilizing a variety of approaches, I can offer perspective and help you feel understood in order to create change in your life. I provide an affirming space for a lot of people who have had previously unsatisfactory experiences in therapy including LGBTQIA folks. I have extensive training beyond just getting licensed to practice therapy. Working with a clinically astute, sincere therapist can be life-changing.
Institutional and systemic oppression, intergenerational trauma, and interpersonal harms can leave us feeling battered and broken. Isolation, community degradation, and cut off from the body and the natural world can leave us unsupported and under-resourced. In my work I seek to help people regulate their nervous systems, overcome the shame of having been harmed, and re/connect with a broader network of support. I'm passionate about accompanying people through their journey of identity development, whether that be gender, sexuality, neurodivergence, or whatever identity is emerging. I hope to help you step into your authentic self.
Institutional and systemic oppression, intergenerational trauma, and interpersonal harms can leave us feeling battered and broken. Isolation, community degradation, and cut off from the body and the natural world can leave us unsupported and under-resourced. In my work I seek to help people regulate their nervous systems, overcome the shame of having been harmed, and re/connect with a broader network of support. I'm passionate about accompanying people through their journey of identity development, whether that be gender, sexuality, neurodivergence, or whatever identity is emerging. I hope to help you step into your authentic self.
Christopher Patrick White
Clinical Social Work/Therapist, LCSW
Verified Verified
1 Endorsed
El Cerrito, CA 94530
My clients are often sensitive, intelligent, and creative people who face life transitions, self-doubt, anxiety, depression, and the challenges of liberating passion and creating meaning in life. Many struggle with the legacy of significant trauma.
Through acceptance, loving encouragement, and providing a container for self-exploration, I help clients to find a more encompassing love for self and other, develop strength and firmness of character, and tap into the well of their vitality, creativity, and joy.
My clients are often sensitive, intelligent, and creative people who face life transitions, self-doubt, anxiety, depression, and the challenges of liberating passion and creating meaning in life. Many struggle with the legacy of significant trauma.
Through acceptance, loving encouragement, and providing a container for self-exploration, I help clients to find a more encompassing love for self and other, develop strength and firmness of character, and tap into the well of their vitality, creativity, and joy.
Conflicts in our relationships, parenting hurdles, stress, loneliness, grief, and old emotional wounds can block us from fully enjoying our lives and our loves. With warmth and humor, I actively guide and support clients to reach their therapeutic goals. As a certified Emotionally Focused Therapist I am highly skilled at assisting couples to identify the patten of communication that keeps them stuck, explore its roots, normalize it, and transform it so that each person can reach for the other in a new, more heartfelt way.
Conflicts in our relationships, parenting hurdles, stress, loneliness, grief, and old emotional wounds can block us from fully enjoying our lives and our loves. With warmth and humor, I actively guide and support clients to reach their therapeutic goals. As a certified Emotionally Focused Therapist I am highly skilled at assisting couples to identify the patten of communication that keeps them stuck, explore its roots, normalize it, and transform it so that each person can reach for the other in a new, more heartfelt way.
Catherine MacGillivray
Marriage & Family Therapist, PhD, LMFT
Verified Verified
El Cerrito, CA 94530
You may be an artist. You may be an academic. You may be an activist. I have been all three of these, and I speak their languages: of creativity, intellectual enlivenment, and social justice. And right now, in this time of upheaval and unrest, you may be hurting--feeling lost, adrift, burned out, under- or over-stimulated, or simply sad. I am here to connect with you. To listen compassionately. To make space for you to better hear yourself, and to encourage linkages, mentalizations, and trauma metabolizations that will allow you to better listen to the rhythms of your body and use your own mind. I offer you my mind in this pursuit.
You may be an artist. You may be an academic. You may be an activist. I have been all three of these, and I speak their languages: of creativity, intellectual enlivenment, and social justice. And right now, in this time of upheaval and unrest, you may be hurting--feeling lost, adrift, burned out, under- or over-stimulated, or simply sad. I am here to connect with you. To listen compassionately. To make space for you to better hear yourself, and to encourage linkages, mentalizations, and trauma metabolizations that will allow you to better listen to the rhythms of your body and use your own mind. I offer you my mind in this pursuit.
Heather Burns
Clinical Social Work/Therapist, LCSW
Verified Verified
5 Endorsed
El Cerrito, CA 94530
It's hard to go it alone with painful feelings of confusion, guilt, sadness, anxiety or despair. I help you access and unravel internal knots related to work or school performance, conflictual relationships, gender and sexuality, addictive behaviors, struggles with self-care and body image, or a family history troubled by dysfunction, divorce, addiction, mental illness, abuse, unresolved conflict or estrangement from loved ones.
It's hard to go it alone with painful feelings of confusion, guilt, sadness, anxiety or despair. I help you access and unravel internal knots related to work or school performance, conflictual relationships, gender and sexuality, addictive behaviors, struggles with self-care and body image, or a family history troubled by dysfunction, divorce, addiction, mental illness, abuse, unresolved conflict or estrangement from loved ones.
Moushumi Sen
Clinical Social Work/Therapist, Moushumi Sen, LCSW
Verified Verified
El Cerrito, CA 94530
Are you hoping to find some clarity around resolving a conflict? Having a hard time making a choice in which direction to go? Is it hard to figure out why you are feeling the way you do? As a South Asian, I recall growing up in the San Francisco Bay Area as an immigrant. The experience channeled how I deliver compassion and guidance around navigating situations where we learn about self acceptance no matter where you are from and no matter what phase of life you are in. I am especially passionate about racial identity issues (both ethic and cultural), women's issues, grief/loss, and trauma.
Are you hoping to find some clarity around resolving a conflict? Having a hard time making a choice in which direction to go? Is it hard to figure out why you are feeling the way you do? As a South Asian, I recall growing up in the San Francisco Bay Area as an immigrant. The experience channeled how I deliver compassion and guidance around navigating situations where we learn about self acceptance no matter where you are from and no matter what phase of life you are in. I am especially passionate about racial identity issues (both ethic and cultural), women's issues, grief/loss, and trauma.
Krisztina Dihen
Marriage & Family Therapist, MS , LMFT
Verified Verified
1 Endorsed
El Cerrito, CA 94530
I am glad you’re here and I look forward to working with you. My experience extends to individuals, couples, teens and young adults with a wide array of needs and presentations. Using an approach that is rooted in ethics and accountability my therapy focuses on skills that help finds ways to manage life, relationships, transitions or just being with yourself. I help facilitate growth through curiosity within and outside oneself. I am pulled towards cultures and stories and the meaning and relevance of these personal elements in the lives of those I work with.
I am glad you’re here and I look forward to working with you. My experience extends to individuals, couples, teens and young adults with a wide array of needs and presentations. Using an approach that is rooted in ethics and accountability my therapy focuses on skills that help finds ways to manage life, relationships, transitions or just being with yourself. I help facilitate growth through curiosity within and outside oneself. I am pulled towards cultures and stories and the meaning and relevance of these personal elements in the lives of those I work with.
Deepa Ranganathan
Clinical Social Work/Therapist, LCSW
Verified Verified
El Cerrito, CA 94530 (Online Only)
By the time people start therapy, they've often tried nearly everything to solve their problems on their own. I respect the hard work you may have already done -- and your courage in seeking more support. Therapy can help you free up the "stuck" places in your life. My approach is warm, open-minded, active, and empathic. My goals are to help you find more satisfaction in your work and relationships, feel more self-confidence and vitality, and live a happy, meaningful life. My priority is always to respect the pace and direction that is right for you.
By the time people start therapy, they've often tried nearly everything to solve their problems on their own. I respect the hard work you may have already done -- and your courage in seeking more support. Therapy can help you free up the "stuck" places in your life. My approach is warm, open-minded, active, and empathic. My goals are to help you find more satisfaction in your work and relationships, feel more self-confidence and vitality, and live a happy, meaningful life. My priority is always to respect the pace and direction that is right for you.
Kathryn Buys
Marriage & Family Therapist, MFT, ACSP
Verified Verified
1 Endorsed
El Cerrito, CA 94530
If you are a woman ready for more happiness, more peace, & a greater sense of choice, I am here to guide you on your way. Your depression, anxiety, or relationship challenges may be signals that something greater is around the corner. If they persist, though, it’s a good time to find someone who can re-orient you so that you’re on the path of a joyful life, a life of intention, a life where empowerment and “yes!” are within reach. I work with women who feel even just a slight spark of knowing that this path might be available. We may start with mindfulness & how to cope with the effects of trauma and depression so you can thrive.
If you are a woman ready for more happiness, more peace, & a greater sense of choice, I am here to guide you on your way. Your depression, anxiety, or relationship challenges may be signals that something greater is around the corner. If they persist, though, it’s a good time to find someone who can re-orient you so that you’re on the path of a joyful life, a life of intention, a life where empowerment and “yes!” are within reach. I work with women who feel even just a slight spark of knowing that this path might be available. We may start with mindfulness & how to cope with the effects of trauma and depression so you can thrive.
Red Karpman
Marriage & Family Therapist, LMFT
Verified Verified
1 Endorsed
El Cerrito, CA 94530 (Online Only)
Sometimes amazing things can grow under pressure. Living with stigma - related to a mind that works differently, a body that's unruly or "too much," or a sexuality that doesn't fit behind a white picket fence - asks us to be creative and fierce. The wisdom that can grow here is astounding. But the burden of stigma is heavy, and sometimes it grips us in painful positions. Whether you're feeling exhausted, sick of yourself, or just don't know quite how to relate to other people, therapy with me can help.
Sometimes amazing things can grow under pressure. Living with stigma - related to a mind that works differently, a body that's unruly or "too much," or a sexuality that doesn't fit behind a white picket fence - asks us to be creative and fierce. The wisdom that can grow here is astounding. But the burden of stigma is heavy, and sometimes it grips us in painful positions. Whether you're feeling exhausted, sick of yourself, or just don't know quite how to relate to other people, therapy with me can help.
Welcome! Note: email is the best way reach me. Finding a therapist is daunting. The relationship tends to be the most consistent factor in whether therapy is successful, so I encourage you to trust your intuition. I work with adults (not couples) and adolescents over 14 on a variety of issues, including achieving greater mood stability, identity issues, improved relationships and sexuality, and recovery from trauma. I have experience working effectively with people who identify as trans, genderqueer, and those with diverse lifestyles. I also offer ketamine-assisted psychotherapy in collaboration w/Journey Clinical.
Welcome! Note: email is the best way reach me. Finding a therapist is daunting. The relationship tends to be the most consistent factor in whether therapy is successful, so I encourage you to trust your intuition. I work with adults (not couples) and adolescents over 14 on a variety of issues, including achieving greater mood stability, identity issues, improved relationships and sexuality, and recovery from trauma. I have experience working effectively with people who identify as trans, genderqueer, and those with diverse lifestyles. I also offer ketamine-assisted psychotherapy in collaboration w/Journey Clinical.
Welcome! If you are a parent, or an adult struggling with depression, anxiety or memories of painful events, I can help you. I can help you with difficult child behaviors. If your child is angry, if they are fighting in school, or has learning difficulties, I can help you. For many years, I have been investing all my professional skills and my heart into helping wonderful children and families to heal. Please, tell me about your relationship with yourself, and with the world. Please, tell me how I can support and nurture you.
Welcome! If you are a parent, or an adult struggling with depression, anxiety or memories of painful events, I can help you. I can help you with difficult child behaviors. If your child is angry, if they are fighting in school, or has learning difficulties, I can help you. For many years, I have been investing all my professional skills and my heart into helping wonderful children and families to heal. Please, tell me about your relationship with yourself, and with the world. Please, tell me how I can support and nurture you.
Stress and trauma can take many forms. Sometimes we survive an event such as a car accident, wildfire, assault, or military-related event. Or we may notice chronic struggles with trusting others and ourselves, and feeling stressed and unsatisfied in our relationships. The experience of trauma can significantly impact how we change or grow in each present moment, how we connect and separate from others, and how we experiment, take risks, and resource our creativity. Let's co-create a therapy relationship that works to support the development of loving relationships with self and others.
Stress and trauma can take many forms. Sometimes we survive an event such as a car accident, wildfire, assault, or military-related event. Or we may notice chronic struggles with trusting others and ourselves, and feeling stressed and unsatisfied in our relationships. The experience of trauma can significantly impact how we change or grow in each present moment, how we connect and separate from others, and how we experiment, take risks, and resource our creativity. Let's co-create a therapy relationship that works to support the development of loving relationships with self and others.
Phyllis Rothblatt
Marriage & Family Therapist, MA, LMFT
Verified Verified
El Cerrito, CA 94530 (Online Only)
As a therapist for over thirty years, the focus of my work is helping people to create and sustain healthy relationships, and to learn how to thrive in their lives. I listen carefully to the nuances of what you say and don't say, and help you to become more aware of your unconscious beliefs and the energy that you hold in your body that may be an obstacle to your creating the life and relationships that you yearn for. Together, we take the journey of understanding and resolving what is in your way, so that you can discover new pathways to live your life with more joy, ease and connection.
As a therapist for over thirty years, the focus of my work is helping people to create and sustain healthy relationships, and to learn how to thrive in their lives. I listen carefully to the nuances of what you say and don't say, and help you to become more aware of your unconscious beliefs and the energy that you hold in your body that may be an obstacle to your creating the life and relationships that you yearn for. Together, we take the journey of understanding and resolving what is in your way, so that you can discover new pathways to live your life with more joy, ease and connection.
When we foster a space of compassion and curiosity we have more room to gain a deeper understanding of ourselves, our boundaries and our desires. By creating this intentional space, we can increase opportunities for choice in our lives. Using a combination of relational, psychodynamic and mindfulness techniques I will help you to understand your own emotional landscape, so you can feel better equipped to manage stressful moments in life and have more capacity for joy and meaning. I specialize in working with the LGBTQI population and also with couples of all constellations.
When we foster a space of compassion and curiosity we have more room to gain a deeper understanding of ourselves, our boundaries and our desires. By creating this intentional space, we can increase opportunities for choice in our lives. Using a combination of relational, psychodynamic and mindfulness techniques I will help you to understand your own emotional landscape, so you can feel better equipped to manage stressful moments in life and have more capacity for joy and meaning. I specialize in working with the LGBTQI population and also with couples of all constellations.
Shawnee Cuzzillo
Psychologist, PhD
Verified Verified
9 Endorsed
El Cerrito, CA 94530
Waitlist for new clients
You may be suffering from inexplicable sadness or anxiety, or problems focusing. You might feel blocked in achieving your creative or work goals and want to figure out what is getting in your way. You might be having health problems and need help sorting out how what is truly out of your control or what might be stress related. I have specialized training in psychodynamic psychotherapy which allows me to listen with special attention to unconscious processes. I am also a graduate of the Psychoanalytic Couples Psychotherapy Group and help many couples navigate difficult patches in their relationships.
You may be suffering from inexplicable sadness or anxiety, or problems focusing. You might feel blocked in achieving your creative or work goals and want to figure out what is getting in your way. You might be having health problems and need help sorting out how what is truly out of your control or what might be stress related. I have specialized training in psychodynamic psychotherapy which allows me to listen with special attention to unconscious processes. I am also a graduate of the Psychoanalytic Couples Psychotherapy Group and help many couples navigate difficult patches in their relationships.
Jessica Osmond
Clinical Social Work/Therapist, LCSW
Verified Verified
1 Endorsed
El Cerrito, CA 94530
Welcome! I am a licensed therapist with 13 years of experience providing mental health services to adults and adolescents. My style is compassionate, trauma-informed, and grounded in principles of anti-oppression and harm reduction. Whether you are struggling with new symptoms or a previous diagnosis has become more difficult to manage, I offer a warm and welcoming environment in which to explore ways to improve your life.
Welcome! I am a licensed therapist with 13 years of experience providing mental health services to adults and adolescents. My style is compassionate, trauma-informed, and grounded in principles of anti-oppression and harm reduction. Whether you are struggling with new symptoms or a previous diagnosis has become more difficult to manage, I offer a warm and welcoming environment in which to explore ways to improve your life.
As a psychodynamic therapist, I listen on many levels for what is troubling you and connect any potential patterns I am hearing to effect long-term change and healing. I may point to things that stand out to me, but might otherwise pass you by. You already have a keen sense of awareness—our work will help you further connect with yourself and dynamics and triggers that are more elusive. Through a trauma-informed lens, I will work with you to ground in your experience, identify what is happening for you in a difficult moment, and explore ways to create more space and comfort within yourself, and satisfaction in your relationships.
As a psychodynamic therapist, I listen on many levels for what is troubling you and connect any potential patterns I am hearing to effect long-term change and healing. I may point to things that stand out to me, but might otherwise pass you by. You already have a keen sense of awareness—our work will help you further connect with yourself and dynamics and triggers that are more elusive. Through a trauma-informed lens, I will work with you to ground in your experience, identify what is happening for you in a difficult moment, and explore ways to create more space and comfort within yourself, and satisfaction in your relationships.
Kara Swedlow
Marriage & Family Therapist, PhD, MFT
Verified Verified
12 Endorsed
El Cerrito, CA 94530 (Online Only)
My work is integrative, blending depth psychology with studies in attachment, neuroscience, and relational and developmental psychology. I am influenced by analytic traditions which contain a focus on trauma, and studies in contemporary neuroscience, which show how our brains process our affective (emotional) experience, particularly in the context of relationship.
In addition to discussing your current and historical life experiences in our sessions, we may incorporate your dreams and somatic (body) mindfulness practices, such as exploring body sensations and their emotional counterparts.
My work is integrative, blending depth psychology with studies in attachment, neuroscience, and relational and developmental psychology. I am influenced by analytic traditions which contain a focus on trauma, and studies in contemporary neuroscience, which show how our brains process our affective (emotional) experience, particularly in the context of relationship.
In addition to discussing your current and historical life experiences in our sessions, we may incorporate your dreams and somatic (body) mindfulness practices, such as exploring body sensations and their emotional counterparts.
See more therapy options for El Cerrito
Nearby Transgender Therapists Searches for El Cerrito
- Albany
- Belvedere Tiburon
- Berkeley
- Emeryville
- Kensington
- Lafayette
- Oakland
- Orinda
- Piedmont
- Richmond
- San Pablo
- Tiburon
Transgender Therapists
As a gender-diverse individual, why might I want to see a therapist who is also gender diverse?
A trans or gender-diverse client may want to see a therapist who is also trans or gender diverse because the client may feel safer sharing their experiences and more confident that the therapist will understand, validate, and support them. But trans or gender-diverse clients can also benefit from therapy with cisgender therapists; this is a personal decision based on the connection between the client and the therapist, and if that connection is strong, therapy will be successful.
What if I cannot find a therapist who shares my gender identity?
Therapy can still be effective if a therapist does not share a client’s gender identity; a large body of research indicates that the most important factor in successful therapy is the therapeutic alliance. A therapist can also be interviewed for sensitivity and competence on gender identity and expression to ensure they possess appropriate knowledge and skills. Many therapists have excellent training and extensive experience working with gender-diverse clients, and that expertise can be invaluable despite a therapist not sharing the same firsthand experiences.
How can I recognize a good therapist for working with gender-diverse clients?
An experienced therapist should be able to help clients explore their gender identity and expression, alleviate discomfort related to their gender identity, treat mental health challenges and trauma, address existing relationships and communication with family members and loved ones, and determine the next steps pertaining to nonmedical or medical gender-affirming interventions. To recognize a good therapist, clients can ask about these topics and explore their comfort and connection with the clinician.
How might I inquire about a therapist’s experience working with transgender clients?
Clients should feel comfortable asking therapists directly about their experience working with transgender or gender-diverse clientele. For example, clients may ask about the therapist’s training and education with regard to gender identity, how many trans clients they’ve worked with in the past, and what sorts of matters were discussed. You may wish to inquire how a therapist specifically supports the needs of transgender clients or clients questioning their gender identity. A good clinician who is nonetheless not the right fit for you is often happy to make referrals to others based on the concerns you articulate in a preliminary conversation.