Online LGBTQ+ & Queer Couples Therapy in San Francisco
We have queer-identified therapists who provide affirming, knowledgeable couples therapy for LGBTQ+ relationships throughout California.
Therapy with your relationship in mind.
LGBTQ+ couples face additional barriers to wellness and it’s important that your therapist is not just accepting, but well-versed in the landscape of queer culture. This means you can get right to the work (without having to educate first).
You might be dealing with things like:
Relationship models that don’t fit the cis/het norm.
The heteronormative relationship script doesn’t apply to you, which is liberating–but it also means you might be building something without elder support, modeling or guidance. Questions about roles, division of labor, whose career takes priority, whether to have kids and how–all of this requires intentional conversation (for any couple). We get what it means to take a queer-centered approach.
Internalized oppression that sneaks up on you.
Growing up in a homophobic and transphobic world leaves marks. Sometimes those messages show up in your relationship in ways you don't expect–shame about desire, difficulty with vulnerability, fears about being "too much" or "not enough."
The weight of minority stress.
Whether it's overt discrimination, microaggressions, or just the constant low-level awareness that you have to think about your safety–it's exhausting. And, it affects your relationship with each other and the world.
Feeling isolated or misunderstood.
Your friends and family might be well-meaning, but they don't always get it. And finding community can be hard, especially if you're not in a major city or you don't fit neatly into existing LGBTQ+ spaces.
Family dynamics that are... complicated.
Maybe your families are supportive, maybe they're not, maybe it's somewhere in between. You might be navigating chosen family versus family of origin, dealing with rejection or conditional acceptance, or managing the grief of not having the family support you deserve.
If any of this resonates, you're not alone–and you don't have to keep carrying it by yourself.
Queer couples tend to have:
High levels of respect for individual differences. Queer couples tend to view differences as an asset not a deficit. This enhances empathy and attunement, supporting communication and long term commitment.
More equal partnerships. Freedom from gender roles and egalitarian values in queer couples creates more balance around labor, decision-making, finances and relationship maintenance.
Deep intimacy and emotional connection. Queer relationships often prioritize emotional intimacy in ways that feel intentional and authentic.
Strong commitment. Being together despite external pressures means your commitment is chosen, not just default.
Robust community support. Chosen family and queer community provides incredibly satisfying social support.
We're here to help you navigate the challenges and also build on the incredible strengths you already bring to the table.
Our Approach to Queer Couples Therapy
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We have queer-identified therapists.
We bring both professional training and lived experience to our work. You won't have to explain or educate about your identity, or navigate assumptions that don't fit your relationship. We understand because we're part of the community.
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We use evidence-based methods tailored to your relationship.
Our approach is grounded in the Gottman Method and Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT), but we adapt everything for the realities of queer relationships. We understand that not everything in traditional couples therapy translates, and we adjust accordingly.
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We address minority stress and its impact.
We know that relationship struggles aren't happening in a vacuum. We help you understand how external oppression, discrimination, and minority stress show up in your relationship dynamics–and how to protect your connection from those external forces.
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We honor your relationship structure.
Whether you're monogamous, open, polyamorous, or something else entirely, we work with the relationship you have. We don't impose heteronormative or mononormative assumptions about what your relationship "should" look like.
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We understand intersectionality.
Your queerness intersects with your culture, ethnicity, class, ability, body size, immigration status, and other identities. We don't treat LGBTQ+ as a monolith–we aim to see you in your full complexity.
What We Help With
We work with queer couples on a wide range of issues, including:
Communication breakdowns and conflict patterns
Navigating coming out, transition, or shifts in identity within the relationship
Family dynamics and chosen family challenges
Internalized homophobia, transphobia, or biphobia
Managing minority stress and its impact on your relationship
Trust and betrayal (including relationship agreements and boundaries)
Sexual intimacy and desire discrepancies
Navigating open or polyamorous relationship structures
Life transitions (marriage, having children, moving, career changes)
Grief and loss (including community-specific losses and and the impacts of C-PTSD)
Building or rebuilding emotional connection and intimacy
In most ways, queer couples therapy is just couples therapy. We'll help you understand your patterns, communicate better, and build the relationship you want. But we'll do it in a way that prioritizes queering your home life and affirming your relationships.
What to Expect in Queer Couples Therapy
The first session: We'll spend time getting to know you, your relationship and what you're hoping to get out of therapy. We'll also talk about how your identities and experiences as LGBTQ+ people show up in your relationship.
Ongoing sessions: We typically meet weekly or biweekly. We'll work on communication skills, explore the emotions underneath your conflicts, and help you build practices that strengthen your connection. We'll also address how external stressors (discrimination, family dynamics, minority stress) impact your relationship.
Our Committment: We're here to support you in building the relationship you deserve. We work hard at providing an affirming space for queer folks from all walks of life.
Why choose Rising Relationship Center?
We're part of the community.
Our queer therapists bring lived experience and deep knowledge of LGBTQ+ culture, challenges, and strengths.
We offer representative care.
You deserve to see yourself reflected in your therapist. Our queer-identified therapists are here to provide that.
Our practice is 100% online throughout California.
Whether you're in the Bay Area or elsewhere in California, you can access affirming, knowledgeable therapy from wherever feels safe and comfortable for you.
We’re based in San Francisco.
We understand the specific landscape of queer life in the Bay Area–the incredible community, the visibility, and also the unique pressures of living in an expensive, rapidly changing city.
Ready to Get Started?
Let's talk about what's going on and how we can help.
FAQs
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For complete and up-to-date details about fees, insurance, sliding scale availability, and your right to receive a Good Faith Estimate, please visit our FAQ page.
TLDR: Our session fees range from $175-$235 depending on the length of your appointment and which therapist you see. We also reserve a portion of our practice for sliding scale or reduced fee structures.
We are out-of-network providers and do not accept insurance directly. However, we provide monthly superbills that clients can submit to their insurance for out-of-network reimbursement. You can also use Health Care Spending Account funds to pay for services.
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We provide all of our services exclusively online through a secure therapy platform. This means you can access our specialized couples and relationship therapy from anywhere in California, whether you're in San Francisco, across the Bay Area, or elsewhere in the state.
Online therapy offers flexibility, convenience, and the comfort of participating from your own space, while still providing the same high-quality care as in-person sessions.
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Yes. Our queer-identified therapists bring both professional training and lived experience to our work with LGBTQ+ couples.
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Yup. Relationship struggles are just relationship struggles. But even when the issues aren't specifically about your identities, having a therapist who understands the context of your lives makes a difference.
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Absolutely. We work with people of all genders and understand the specific dynamics that can come up around gender and transition within relationships.
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We've got you covered. We also offer specialized therapy for open, non-monogamous, and polyamorous relationships. Learn more on our ENM therapy page.
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Yes! Check out our Premarital Counseling page for more information about how we support couples preparing for marriage or commitment.