LGBT therapists in Long Beach, CA

Welcome to Bright House Therapy, LLC. My name is Virginia Sanchez, I am a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist with several years of experience working in LGBTQIA+, Grief & Loss, Bipolar, Trauma, ADHD, and Autism. I have worked in several different settings; supporting families involved with the Department of Children Services, assisting creating and following through with routines for adults with special needs, developed and ran LGBTQIA+ groups for parents of LGBTQIA+ youth, and provided support to Veterans through the Veteran Crisis Line.

Some things you've been carrying for so long they've started to feel like part of who you are. I work with adolescents, adults, and older adults who are navigating trauma, grief, loss, and the weight of experiences that don't just go away on their own. People of all ages, ethnic backgrounds, socioeconomic situations, gender expressions, and sexual orientations find a real home in my practice, including folks within the LGBTQIA+ community. Clients often tell me they feel genuinely heard in a way they haven't before.

I am a California-licensed Marriage and Family Therapist with over a decade of experience providing specialized, confidential telehealth. My practice is built to support ambitious individuals—including busy professionals and dedicated college students—navigating high-pressure environments, life transitions, and relationship challenges.

Because your schedule is already packed with work or demanding coursework, I offer dedicated session times outside standard hours, including early mornings and weekends. Whether you are dealing with academic/professional burnout, family-of-origin issues, or deep emotional blocks, I provide a warm, inclusive space to unburden those patterns. I practice fluidly in English, Spanish, and Spanglish, honoring your unique cultural or bicultural lived experience.

Mental health has long been treated as the forgotten side of healthcare — and for me, that's exactly why it matters so much. As a Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner serving clients across California through telehealth and in-person care, I specialize in helping people navigate depression, anxiety, and ADD/ADHD. I believe that when mental health struggles go unaddressed, everything else in life suffers — and that healing is not only possible, it's necessary. When I'm not supporting my clients, you'll find me out in nature, getting lost in a good movie, or discovering new music — small reminders of the joy and balance I encourage my clients to find for themselves.

My path to becoming a therapist has been shaped by a deep belief in people's capacity for growth, healing, and resilience. I earned my Master's Degree in Social Work from the University of New Hampshire, and have worked with many diverse populations - from individuals with severe and persistent mental illness, trauma, anxiety, depression, disordered eating, and couples. I have worked with CBT, DBT, ACT, and CPT approaches as well as completing advanced training in both ABFT & EMDR.

I subscribe to cognitive behavioral therapy, emphasizing the rational behavioral therapy modality. I hold a doctorate (EdD) in counseling and educational psychology from the University of San Francisco, where I also earned my Master's in Marriage and Family Therapy. I earned a Master's in Divinity from the Franciscan School of Theology at the Graduate Theological Union. I have been practicing since 1987 and am a seasoned therapist.

So you’ve known for a while that you needed to talk to a therapist, but you’re not sure who will actually get you. Glad you found me. Maybe you’ve held it together so well that even you started believing your struggles weren’t “that bad.” You’ve learned to go it alone, carry all the responsibility, and push through. For a while, it worked: you checked the boxes, hit the milestones, got the bag. But now you’re exhausted, overthinking, and wondering why a life that looks fine on paper still feels so hard and empty. This is the point where you don’t need another cardigan-wrapped therapist who’s going to nod and let you fill the silence. You need someone who will get to the heart of things quickly, challenge you when it matters, and give you something you might not have right now: a soft place to land.

Hello, my name is Ryan. I treat adults using psychodynamic psychotherapy. This is ideal for clients who are willing to be introspective about their problems and are okay with being confronted in a direct way. This type of therapy can be hard but provides the basis for deep and meaningful work.

I’m a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and Marriage and Family Therapist with more than 25 years of experience helping individuals navigate trauma, identity exploration, relationship challenges, and life transitions. I’ve worked in community mental health, school systems, and private practice, and I’m deeply committed to providing culturally affirming care that honors the full complexity of who you are.