How to Find a LGBTQ+ Therapist in Minneapolis, MN
Finding a new therapist can be a task! Add on the fact that you’re looking for a LGBTQ+ therapist and the search becomes even more daunting. Instead of having to rely on Google searches, here are several ways to find your next LGBTQ+ therapist in Minneapolis:
LGBTQ+ Therapy Directories
MN LGBTQ+ Therapists’ Network
A LGBTQ+ specific directory is a great place to find a queer therapist. If you are looking for a LGBTQ+ therapist in Minneapolis or throughout Minnesota, you can use the MN LGBTQ+ Therapists’ Network directory. One of the features I love about this directory is that it allows you to filter by therapist identity. For example, if you specifically want to work with a bi+ therapist or a nonbinary therapist, you can filter for that in the directory. You can also filter by the age and LGBTQ+ identities that the therapist is specialized to work with (labeled as ‘Populations’). This setting helps you filter for whether you are looking for a therapist who works with children, teens, or adults. All in all, it is a great local directory that offers some LGBTQ+ specific filters that you won’t find with other online directories.
General Therapy Directories
Therapy Den and Mental Health Match are national directories, but they are not LGBTQ+ specific.
With these directories you can search for a LGBTQ+ therapist in Minneapolis or Minnesota by selecting your desired location and LGBTQ+ related search filters. Therapy Den offers an advanced search option where you can filter for ‘Therapist is part of the LGBTQ community.’ You can also filter by therapist gender on Therapy Den; with the options of Woman, Man, Trans/Non-binary, and Gender Fluid.
Like Therapy Den, Mental Health Match begins your search by having you set your location. What can be nice about Mental Health Match compared to other directories is that it leads you through a series of questions about what you are looking for. Then it generates a list of therapists in order of the best to the least best match for you. This helps cut down on feeling overwhelmed by search results and prioritizes therapist-client fit when generating search results for you. One of the questions you’ll be asked when using Mental Health Match is ‘Are any of these traits important to you?’ This is where you can select whether your therapist’s gender (with options of: Female, Male, Nonbinary, Transgender Female, and Transgender Male) or sexual orientation (with options of: Asexual, Bisexual, Gay, Heterosexual, Lesbian, and Queer) are factors you want to be considered in your matching process.
Personal Recommendations
Asking your friends can be a great way to find a LGBTQ+ therapist. They might recommend a therapist they worked with in the past, or they might have a friend, or friend of a friend, who recommends a particular therapist. Your personal network is much more vast than you realize, so asking around might give you leads you wouldn’t have found otherwise. Plus, recommendations from friends means the therapist has been personally vetted by someone you trust.
If you don’t want to ask your close friends, you can ask other LGBTQ-affirming or queer professionals you know. Do you have a LGBTQ-affirming primary care provider? Odds are they have referrals for some local therapists they can offer you. What about asking your queer yoga teacher, hairdresser, or esthetician? They might have some helpful recommendations to share. Are you part of any LGBTQ+ organizations at work or at school? These organizations may also have a list of LGBTQ+ therapists they recommend. Ask yourself “Where do I interact with fellow queer people?” and those are the people you can ask for a therapy referral.
Crowdsourcing is another way to snag some personal recommendations. You can post to your social media asking folks to name LGBTQ+ therapists they recommend. Another option is to search through local LGBTQ+ facebook groups (such as Queer Exchange MPLS/St. Paul) or discord servers for past posts about LGBTQ+ therapists.
How Do I Verify A Therapist’s License?
Once you’ve found a therapist you’re interested in working with, it’s important to verify their license. While we enter into therapy hoping for the best, the reality is that some clients are harmed by their therapist or people misrepresenting themselves as therapists.
By looking up a therapist’s license you can confirm that their qualifications are real. For example, do they have a license to practice therapy issued by the state? Or are offering therapy as an unregulated service? You can also see if there has been any past disciplinary action taken against them.
Is the therapist licensed and accountable to a licensing board? If they are pre-licensed, did they tell you who their supervisor is? These are important pieces of information so that you can know who to reach out do about grievances, if necessary.
Here are links to Look Up a Minnesota licensed therapist, based on their specific license:
Licensed Psychologist (LP): MN Board of Psychology
Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker (LICSW): MN Board of Social Work
Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT): MN Board of Marriage and Family Therapy
Licensed Professional (Clinical) Counselor (LPC/LPCC) & Licensed Alcohol and Drug Counselor (LADC): MN Board of Behavioral Health and Therapy
Ready to find your next LGBTQ+ therapist? Use the resources I mentioned above to help find them or reach out to me to start therapy. I am a bi/queer therapist in Minneapolis offering online therapy throughout the state of Minnesota.
I wish you all the best in your therapy journey!