It’s not easy to find a therapist who understands you and what you bring into the therapeutic space. To find a therapist that really “gets it”—who really gets you.

Your skin color, race, and cultural background don’t define you, but they sure can shape your experiences, how you relate to others, and the way you are seen or heard by others.

Your racial and cultural experiences are valid—not cultural baggage that should get pushed away or be left unaddressed. Your racial and cultural identities need to be seen and heard.

It is not your job to educate your therapist about your racial or cultural experiences and what it is like to navigate this society in your body and your skin.

Your experiences are yours and yours alone. They don’t need to fit into any boxes or be compared to those of others that look like you or share a similar racial/cultural identity.

Your behaviours and emotions shouldn’t be unnecessarily pathologized. Your therapy sessions shouldn’t be laced with micro-aggressions. You shouldn’t have to worry about whether your therapist’s unnamed prejudices are seeping into their view of your mental health.

Your voice deserves to be heard, and you deserve easy access to high-quality, inclusive, culturally competent care.

Seeking counseling or therapy can be a vulnerable process. Getting the right kind of help can be an intimidating task. Finding a therapist should not have to feel like a gamble.

Our goal is to make the process simpler and safer for you.

We see not just you, but all of you. We understand the ways you may be balancing pressure from society, work, and family—the ways your different identities may intersect and at times, pull you in different directions. For many of us, social categorizations such as race, class, gender, and sexuality create overlapping and interdependent systems of disadvantage and discrimination. Your sexuality, gender identity, and racial identity may interact to create a unique entity with a distinct story that deserves to be heard.

We welcome folx who identity as POC, QTPOC, or BIPOC and provide a supportive and safe space for you to engage authentically and do your therapeutic work.

All identities in all bodies deserve access to quality, inclusive, and culturally responsive care.  

While all of our therapists are trained in multicultural counseling and practice from an intersectional feminist perspective, we know that a therapist’s individual identity or background is important, too. We encourage you to ask whatever questions of our therapists that you need to help make your decision. In our therapeutic spaces, we welcome and support conversations around race, class, power, privilege, and systemic oppression. 

You are welcome to contact us via email or the form below to set up no cost 30-minute consultation or to discuss ways in which we can support you. If a Whole Valley therapist is not the best fit, we will offer referrals to other affirming providers.