Stephen Gundlach (he/him)

As a starting point I am always approaching therapy relationally. I'm seeking first to get to know my client. Who are you? What has your life been like? What key experiences have shaped you? From there we will discern together what approaches might work best for you. We may start in the mind at the cognitive layer and then move to the emotions, the heart, and body awareness.

I received my MA in Counseling Psychology at the California Institute of Integral Studies. There I learned a variety of approaches from the psychoanalytic tradition, relational therapy, spiritually oriented and transpersonal therapy, somatic therapy, and the best of CBT, DBT, and more technical modalities.

Much of therapy is learning what is really us and worth building on and what we were handed that doesn't really belong to us and is important to let go of. of my clinical training was with families experiencing very high levels of distress. From this I learned the ways that our families of origin and roles we occupy in our families impact us almost more than anything else in our lives.

Anxiety can feel like being on guard, always on, worrying, and unable to relax. We may be constantly second guessing ourselves and questioning others motives and intentions. It can make us feel stuck and frozen. I work with anxiety from both a cognitive and somatic approach. This means together we understand the anxious thoughts and the story lines attached to them but we also look at the ways our bodies react. By focusing attention on the reaction of our bodies we are able to relax.

Many of my clients are LGBTQ+ identified people who are seeking support in affirming their identity, navigating their relationships, family, or religious environments, or LGBTQ couples seeking counseling. As a gay man myself I share many of the same experiences as my clients.

Many of my clients are gay and bi-sexual men who are seeking support in affirming their identity, navigating their relationships and family, or couples seeking counseling. I have a particular specialty working with LGBTQ+ people navigating religious environments.

As a former minister turned psychotherapist I've walked through change myself. My practice is grounded in psychological and clinical insight. For some, spiritual perspective enhances therapy. Some are desiring to process damaging/limiting aspects of their religious or spiritual background with someone who understands these environments.