Portland Therapy Center
Quinn Francis

Quinn Francis (they/them)

Professional Counselor Associate

MA, NCC

Supervisor: K. Hixson, PhD, LPC

Queer & trans folks deserve affirming care from a therapist who gets it! Our struggles, healing & liberation are interwoven.

Client Status

accepting clients

Contact

6118 SE Belmont Street

Portland, 97215

Email Website

At a Glance

Me

Rate: $100-$175

Provides free initial consultation

Practicing Since: 2022

Languages: English

Services

  • Individual

Insurances Accepted

  • OHP CareOregon/HealthShare

My Ideal Client

I work with queer & trans adults who feel disconnected from themselves or their communities because of depression, anxiety, trauma, and the ongoing oppression we face every day. I can help you make sense of your personal history, find strength in your identities and values, and cultivate a sense of purpose and commitment to the things that make life feel joyful and worth living.

My Approach to Helping

My approach as a counselor is warm and collaborative, focused on creating an authentic relationship where we can learn more about ourselves and practice ways we’d like to show up in the world. I aim for my work to be anti-racist and anti-colonial, affirming of diverse gender and sexual identities as well as relationship practices, sex positive, fat positive, and aligned with disability justice principles. As a justice-oriented therapist, I try to minimize unbalanced power dynamics by being transparent, seeking feedback from clients, and unlearning my own internalized oppressions. I utilize therapeutic approaches from person-centered and relational psychodynamic theories, nervous system regulation from somatic (body-based) therapy, and offer skills for emotion regulation and distress tolerance. I also bring attention to external power dynamics that may affect each client (familial, cultural, societal) as a way of identifying where we can have the most impact in our work together.

Why I Became a Therapist

I became a counselor because of the deeply healing relationships and transformation I’ve experienced in my own therapy. My respect for each client’s autonomy and intuition is also based on personal experience – I believe we all have an inherent ability to find balance and ease, and sometimes need a trusted guide to walk alongside us. Beyond our personal struggles, none of us are immune to the harmful impacts of oppression, capitalism, and climate change that we face today. We all benefit from having a dedicated space to turn toward ourselves and make new meaning of our experiences. As a queer and non-binary trans person, many of my counseling interests focus on clients with whom I share identities. My own experiences accessing care have shown me just how valuable it is to work with a counselor who has lived experience and deep integration within community.

Techniques I Use

Specialties

  • Somatic Therapy (Body Centered) External link

    Our bodies offer us so many clues as to what we're feeling, but many of us are disconnected from the signals we're receiving. Somatic therapy helps you tune into the wisdom of your body, cultivate increased presence with yourself, and even use movement as a way to release unwanted emotion and sensation.

  • Attachment Theory External link

    Attachment theory is a popular underpinning of many therapeutic theories and interventions - you may have even taken a quiz to find out what your attachment style is! I help clients to develop a secure attachment with themselves (aka self-esteem, knowing & liking yourself) which helps improve your relationships and your day to day experience of feeling satisfied with your life.

  • Relational  External link

    I practice relational psychodynamic therapy, which supports clients to investigate how current patterns and symptoms may be related to early life experiences. Sometimes those patterns even show up in therapy room between us, giving us opportunity to explore what's going on in the moment, and to collaborate ways to shift the narrative. Relational therapy also involves looking at the systems and external factors (e.g. racism or homophobia) that impact your wellbeing.

Issues I Treat

Specialties

  • LGBTQ Issues External link

    Whether gender identity or sexual orientation is what brings you to therapy or simply a part of your identity, you deserve to work with a provider who deeply understands your experience. In addition to wisdom gained from my own experiences as a queer & trans person, I have specialty training in helping clients explore their gender and sexuality, relationship styles, and diverse sexual practices

  • Coronavirus/COVID-19 External link

    The pandemic is not over! I support chronically ill, immunocompromised, and/or disabled clients to build strength and resilience towards enduring today's public health emergency. In addition to cultivating helpful coping tools, I offer a nurturing space to vent about how it feels like the world has left us behind. *I am currently building a waitlist for clients who would like to have in-person sessions in a safer environment that requires masks, air purifiers, and other mitigation efforts.

  • PTSD External link

    Many of my clients have experienced harm at some point in their lives, whether within their family or community while growing up or more recently within relationships or as they navigate the world as a person with an identity that is at odds with cultural norms. I help clients to make sense of their previous experiences, soothe wounds, and channel the wisdom they've gained into building the lives they dream of.

Contact Quinn

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