8 Highly Recommended San Francisco LGBTQ+ Affirming Therapists
A Space Where You Don’t Have to Explain Yourself
You deserve therapy that sees your whole self, not just as someone to “accept,” but as someone to celebrate. LGBTQIA-affirming therapy means creating a space where your identity, relationships, and lived experiences are met with deep respect and care.
At Stillpoint Therapy Collective, we offer therapy that’s not just tolerant, it’s rooted in understanding, affirmation, support, and care.
We are committed to affirming, trauma-informed care that honors the impact of living in a cisnormative, heteronormative, and often unsafe world. Most of our therapists are part of the LGBTQIA+ community and have experience supporting LGBTQIA+ individuals and couples.
Therapy That’s Truly Affirming
Jump to a therapist
By identity:
Queer therapists: Ellen Ottman, Bayley Azevedo, Amy Toig, Callista Cox, Kara Sunwell
Lesbian therapists: Ellen Ottman, Amy Toig
Gay therapists: Ellen Ottman, Amy Toig
Non-binary & genderqueer therapists: Callista Cox
By focus area:
Best for trauma, PTSD, and complex PTSD: Ellen Ottman
Best for disability and caregiver burnout: Callista Cox
Best for couples and relationships: Bayley Azevedo
Best for chronic illness and chronic pain: Amy Toig
Best for creatives and entrepreneurs: Kara Sunwell
Best for perfectionism and imposter syndrome: Annie Patyk
Best for anxiety and life transitions: Amber Godwin
Best for somatic therapy: David de Lancellotti
Meet our San Francisco LGBTQIA+ affirming therapists
Ellen Ottman, LMFT
As a queer-identified therapist with over ten years of experience and the founder of one of San Francisco's most affirming therapy collectives, Ellen brings expertise in advanced trauma modalities, including sensorimotor psychotherapy, Brainspotting, and ketamine-assisted therapy.
Her lived experience as a queer woman, combined with her specialized training, makes her uniquely qualified to understand how minoritized stress, discrimination, and identity-based trauma show up in the body.
If you've tried talk therapy without lasting relief or feel disconnected from your body after years of pushing through, Ellen's body-based, deeply affirming approach offers a different pathway to healing that centers queer resilience and authentic connection.
Bayley Azevedo, AMFT
As a queer woman who specializes in working with LGBTQIA+ individuals and couples, Bayley offers what many queer relationships desperately need: a therapist who truly gets the unique dynamics of queer intimacy and the impact of minoritized stress on partnerships.
Her psychodynamic, trauma-informed, and sex-positive approach means you won't waste sessions explaining your relationship structure or defending your identity. Instead, you'll dive directly into communication patterns, repair work, and rebuilding intimacy after conflict or betrayal.
Unlike generic couples therapy practices, Bayley creates a rare space where LGBTQIA+ couples can work through sexual trauma, boundary challenges, and desire discrepancies with a therapist who celebrates rather than tolerates who you are.
Amy Toig, AMFT
Amy stands out as one of the few therapists in San Francisco offering truly integrated care for LGBTQIA+ clients navigating both identity and chronic illness or chronic pain—two intersecting experiences that mainstream healthcare often fails to address together.
Her training in somatic therapy and mindfulness, combined with her commitment to queer and gender-affirming care, means she understands how chronic conditions impact not just your body but your sense of self, relationships, and ability to live authentically.
Amy also offers ecotherapy (nature-immersed sessions) in San Francisco, along with options for ketamine-assisted psychotherapy, making her a valuable resource for folks whose needs land outside of the traditional psychotherapy mold.
Kara Sunwell, AMFT
If you're a creative, entrepreneur, or highly sensitive LGBTQIA+ person who's felt too "much" or too "different" for traditional therapy, Kara's approach offers something truly distinctive in the San Francisco area.
She integrates methods like Hakmoi (a technique that uses mindfulness and somatics), ecotherapy, creative arts, and depth psychology within a multicultural, trauma-informed framework, making her uniquely equipped to work with neurodivergent and queer clients exploring unconventional paths.
What sets Kara apart is her genuine commitment to community mental health and collective healing rather than individual pathologizing. Therapy with her creates space for artists, big-dream entrepreneurs, and LGBTQIA+ individuals navigating eco-grief, creative blocks, and the challenge of building a life that honors your authentic self rather than conforming to heteronormative, neurotypical expectations.
Annie Patyk, AMFT
Annie’s strength is her direct, no-BS approach to perfectionism and imposter syndrome that doesn't coddle but also doesn't shame. Her East Coast candor, combined with deep compassion and humor, makes her especially effective with queer women and young adults who are exhausted from high achievement, chronic self-criticism, and the relentless pressure to prove themselves in both straight and queer spaces.
Using internal family systems and somatic therapy, Annie helps clients identify the "never good enough" narratives that often stem from growing up different, and replace them with values-driven action and genuine self-trust.
If you're tired of therapists who tell you to "be kind to yourself" without giving you actual tools to break the perfectionism cycle, Annie's practical, research-backed approach delivers real results.
Callista Cox, AMFT
Callista provides something critically needed in San Francisco's LGBTQIA+ community: specialized, affirming care for disabled, chronically ill, neurodivergent, and gender-diverse clients who are often marginalized even within queer spaces.
With specific training through the TransYouth Care Symposium, they provide gender-affirming care letters efficiently (often within one week), and their expertise with vision-impaired, blind, and disabled communities means they understand accessibility needs and the compounded stress of navigating multiple marginalized identities.
Callista's commitment to shared decision-making and their use of trauma-informed approaches makes them one of the few therapists in the area who can effectively support both individual healing and complex family/caregiver dynamics while honoring the lived experience of multiply-marginalized LGBTQIA+ folks.
Amber Godwin, AMFT
Amber's unusually diverse background—a PhD in applied mathematics, tech industry experience, and health coaching experience for underserved communities—combined with her ongoing training in Somatic Experiencing, positions her as an ideal therapist for LGBTQI+ professionals in San Francisco navigating anxiety, stress, and major life transitions.
Her experience spans both high-pressure corporate environments and community health settings, giving her unique insight into the specific challenges queer folks face in professional spaces while also understanding broader systemic barriers.
What makes Amber stand out is her ability to blend nervous system regulation work with practical coping strategies for real-world stressors, all delivered with warmth and cultural humility. For LGBTQIA+ clients in tech, healthcare, or creative fields seeking a therapist who understands both professional pressure and identity-based stress, Amber’s likely a great fit.
David de Lancellotti, APCC
David brings essential representation as a gay therapist specializing in Somatic Experiencing—one of the most effective body-based approaches for trauma and nervous system dysregulation—making him a critical resource for LGBTQIA+ adults in San Francisco seeking embodied healing from a provider who shares lived experience.
His training as a Somatic Experiencing practitioner, combined with his warm, grounded presence, creates a uniquely safe container for queer and trans clients navigating trauma, chronic stress, and disconnection from their bodies.
For LGBTQIA+ individuals who've experienced the hypervigilance, shutdown, or dissociation that often comes from living in a world that doesn't affirm your identity, David's precise nervous system work helps you move from survival mode to aliveness, offering pathways to regulation and embodiment that go beyond traditional talk therapy.
LGBTQ+-identified clinicians: Many of our therapists are queer, lesbian, gay, non-binary, genderqueer, and/or transgender themselves, bringing authentic understanding to the work.
Diverse team and modalities: Our clinicians are trained in somatic therapy, Brainspotting, ketamine-assisted therapy, DBT, IFS, Somatic Experiencing, and more.
Specialized support: We offer couples/relationship therapy, gender-affirming care letters, chronic illness support, and nature-based sessions.
What sets our practice apart from other queer-affirming therapy providers in San Francisco
Our practice goes beyond “acceptance” and offers a deeply affirming space rooted in lived experience and specialized training. Here's what makes Stillpoint Therapy Collective different:
In-person and virtual options: Hybrid availability means you can access care in the way that works best for you.
Sliding scale commitment: We reserve low-fee spots based on need and work collaboratively to make therapy accessible.
Neurodivergent- and disability-affirming: We welcome and celebrate clients of all abilities, backgrounds, and identities.
Whether you're seeking trauma healing, relationship support, or a deeper connection to yourself, you'll find a therapist here who gets it.
What to expect from the therapy process
Step 1: Free consultation
You'll start with a complimentary call to discuss what's bringing you to therapy, explore fit with your therapist, and clarify logistics like scheduling, fees, and format (in-person or virtual).
Step 2: First session
Your first full session is a space to share your story, clarify goals, and begin building trust. Your therapist will introduce their approach, review consent and options, and collaborate with you to create a plan that feels safe and aligned.
Step 3: Building connection & awareness
Over the next several sessions, you'll deepen the therapeutic relationship while exploring patterns, sensations, emotions, and beliefs. This is where you start to understand how past experiences shape present challenges and practice new ways of responding.
Step 4: Integration & growth
As you build tools and insight, therapy becomes a space to practice vulnerability, explore your boundaries, and strengthen self-trust. You'll translate what happens in session into real life, showing up more authentically in relationships, work, and daily choices.
Frequently Asked Questions About LGBTQ Therapy
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It means your identities are respected, celebrated, and understood. We approach therapy from a queer-affirming, anti-oppressive lens, so you don’t have to educate your therapist about who you are.
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While all therapy should be affirming, many clients have had harmful or invalidating experiences with providers. Affirming therapy centers your lived experience and creates a safe space to explore relationships, identity, and mental health without judgment.
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Yes. We offer affirming support for queer and trans couples, polyamorous relationships, and families navigating transitions around gender or sexuality.
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That’s welcome here. You don’t need to be “certain” to belong. Therapy can be a space to explore, experiment, and move at your own pace.
Start working with an LGBTQ+-affirming therapist in San Francisco today
You Deserve Support That Gets You
Whether you're exploring identity, seeking healing, or simply wanting a therapist who gets it, we're here for you. Without assumptions, without judgment, and with real care.