Jovan Rivera-Lovato (they/them)

Whether with friends, romantic partners, or other loved ones, relationships matter. I might support you in thinking about how controlling images, sexual scripts, and other social factors influence how you relate to others. We may discuss things that you do to try and stay connected with people that, in reality, keep you at a distance. I may even ask you to think about our relationship, as therapist and client, as a site of creative struggle to form new patterns for better relationships.

Family relationships can be extremely difficult to navigate, and I have the most experience working with folks around this concern. I might ask you questions about your upbringing and how your relationship with your parents, siblings, aunties and uncles, cousins, play cousins, and other loved ones have changed over time. We might talk about controlling images, relational images, psychological development, coming out, or Post Traumatic Slave Syndrome if it's helpful.

Gender, sex, and sexuality are all closely related, and I'm happy to discuss all of the above in whatever way feels most helpful. We might discuss your changing thoughts and feelings about your own identity, body, and relationships. If you'd like to talk about how thoughts and emotions impact how you give and receive pleasure, I'd be happy to! Again, I might search for how sexual scripts, controlling images, and relational images effect you. I am pursuing an AASECT certification in Sex Therapy.

DBT is excellent for anyone who is "sensitive" and experiences emotions intensely. In practicing DBT, I try to support folks who are experiencing chronic disconnection and condemned isolation to be more mindful of their own thoughts, feelings, and bodily sensations. In building greater insight, we can start to see how disconnections and violations live in our bodies, develop coping strategies for intense emotions, and start to form new patterns of relating.

Sex Therapy can be helpful in addressing a wide range and gender, sex, and sexuality related concerns. My approach to sex therapy is very similar to my approach working with relationships in general. I might ask you to think about social roles, sexual scripts, and other social factors that influence your identity, how you feel about your body, and how you give and receive pleasure. I am pursuing an AASECT certification as a Sex Therapist.

I am a Relational-Cultural Therapist, meaning that I believe both you and I have developed within a culture that had deprived all of us of fully growth-fostering relationships. Nonetheless, we are coming together to try to create something different, something that runs counter to the damaging efforts of the larger society. Both of us are engaged in a creative act of healing and empowerment. It is a part of a larger effort of trying to understand deeply how our surrounding condition affects us.

Relationships with partners, friends, family, and other loved ones are central in all of our lives. We might talk about how to be as authentic and genuine as possible in your relationships, things you do to stay connection to people that actually keep you at a distance, setting boundaries, letting folks in, or the social pressures you feel to be in particular relationships.

Sex, sexuality, desire, attraction and pleasure are all part of what makes us human. They are also closely related to gender, homophobia, racism, and ableism. Together we might talk about how you learned about sex, bodies, and pleasure and from whom. We could also discuss sexual scripts or stereotypes that impact how you think about sexuality. This can be an awkward subject to talk about, so please know that I am happy to work through the discomfort together!