Portland Therapy Center
Gillian Callahan

Gillian Callahan (she/her)

Licensed Professional Counselor

LPC, MA

I'm a licensed therapist specializing in PTSD, LGBTQIA+, Psychedelic Integration and Reproductive Trauma.

Client Status

accepting clients

Contact

5036608089

3419 Northeast Sandy Boulevard

Portland, OR 97232

Email Website

At a Glance

Me

Rate: $100-$130

Provides free initial consultation

Practicing Since: 2008

Services

  • Individual
  • Family
  • Relationship
  • Teen

Insurances Accepted

My Ideal Client

My clients are people who have decided that they want to feel different, that the way their lives are currently operating isn't how they want it to be. This might be due to unhealed trauma, shame, anxiety, depression or anything that makes us not feel okay. The way we cope with difficult things as we grow up works, for a given value of "work"; but eventually the costs of those coping strategies begin to outweigh the benefits and they stop working. That's when folks come to therapy.

My Approach to Helping

My work is largely influenced by our constantly evolving understanding of neurobiology and central nervous system functioning. I'm also currently working toward certifications in psychedelic assisted therapy modalities. Trauma triggers, anxiety and anger are elevated physical responses that can be met and addressed in the body, where they're happening, so that we can find other ways to think and act on those difficult emotions. Language is a vital way in which we make sense of our experience, but when language is inaccessible ("I don't know how to talk about this") or played out ("I've talked about my trauma a million times but it never seems to get better"), the body gives us information and wisdom about what we need to heal. I utilize curiosity, empathy, humor and compassion to help people feel comfortable and safe, and then we listen to what the body has to tell us.

My Personal Beliefs and Interests

I am a proud member of the queer community. I am passionate about racial justice and understand that my privilege and blind spots as a white cis woman require constant checking, learning and humility. I believe that patriarchy is harmful to all genders and that healing the wounds of toxic masculinity is a path to true connection and happiness for all genders. I often bring my dogs to work with me to help people relax and regulate when they're struggling in session, and also because dogs are awesome. I'm an avid learner of history and often find myself bringing the lessons of the past into my work. I'm also a big giant sci-fi and fantasy nerd and have been known to use allegories from early 80's young adult fantasy movies, Tolkien, Dr. Who and Star Trek, among other things, as teaching tools.

Techniques I Use

Issues I Treat

Specialties

  • PTSD External link

    As a survivor myself, I've spent a lifetime studying the effects of trauma on the body and the brain. I specialize in helping people understand the ways trauma impacts their lives, their relationships and their futures. Using somatic mindfulness, psychoeducation and empathetic support I teach people how to work with, rather than against, their trauma affected brains and find true safety and happiness.

  • LGBTQ Issues External link

    Our sexuality and gender can be the source of our greatest joy and our greatest pain. I want to help people accept themselves, find connection with supportive community and celebrate the magic of queerness in all its gorgeous forms.

  • Infertility External link

    Infertility and pregnancy loss are just two of many reproductive experiences that don’t follow the socially supported narrative. For folks not represented in that narrative the pain is isolating and demoralizing. The het/cis-normative imperative that says our bodies don’t matter unless we reproduce, in biologically prescribed gender-role-confirming ways, reduces our value to lines on a pregnancy test. I work to provide the help I needed and couldn't find when I was going through it myself.

Contact Gillian

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