As a member of the LGBTQ+ community and a therapist with specialized training in Queer issues, I understand the difficulties we face - the struggles and mental health stressors that surround coming out, seeking and developing healthy relationships, and living in a world that isn't always welcome.

I offer trauma-informed care to address the impact of minority stress, family rejection, religious trauma and abuse, homophobia and systemic oppression. Your identity, pronouns, and relationships are respected from day one. Whether you're questioning, newly out, or decades into your journey, we'll work at your pace in confidential telehealth sessions from anywhere in Louisiana.

Substance Use & Mental Health

Bars and clubs are key players in Queer culture, and offer great community and connection. But our population faces significantly higher rates of risky substance use and addiction - often as a way to cope with the effects of coming out, rejection, and trauma. What starts as numbing the pain of discrimination or hiding your identity can become its own source of shame and isolation.

If the bar scene is spinning you into chaos instead of anchoring you in community, we can address both the underlying trauma and the patterns of use, helping you develop healthier coping strategies without losing your connection to the culture.

Discrimination Within Our Community

Racism, transphobia, biphobia, and other forms of discrimination are still a big problem in queer spaces, just as they are in the wider population. When the spaces that are supposed to be safe havens become sources of rejection or marginalization, the pain cuts especially deep. Being excluded from gay bars, dating apps, or community events because of your race, gender identity, body type, or other aspects of who you are further compounds the isolation of societal rejection.

The hurt is particularly sharp when discrimination comes from people who should know what it feels like to be othered. Counseling can help work through this pain and the complex feelings of being marginalized within your own community.

LGBTQ+ Relationship Challenges

Our relationships face additional pressures that straight couples never have to navigate. Coming out to family together, deciding how open to be at work or in public, dealing with different comfort levels around disclosure - these conversations don't have roadmaps. There's also the constant assessment of physical safety around public displays of affection and the real dangers of being attacked for simply existing as a couple. Add in the difficulties of dating within smaller communities, navigating chosen family dynamics, or figuring out relationship structures that work for you, and it can feel overwhelming.

Many people also enter relationships without having seen healthy examples of queer love growing up. Therapy can help you learn to communicate more effectively, set boundaries, and build the authentic, loving relationships you want - whatever that looks like for you.

Want to talk?

Email me at Lisa@LeMasterCounselingServices.org

OR call 504-208-1993 to schedule a consultation call

All identities welcome. All stories honored. All journeys supported.