THERAPY WITH STEPHANIE BAIN
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Hi! I'm Stephanie, an Oakland-based psychotherapist. I received my master's in Counseling Psychology from Pacifica Graduate Institute and completed my clinical training at Pacific Center for Human Growth, the oldest LGBTQIA+ center in the Bay Area. Sharing skills and knowledge with psychotherapy clients is one of my greatest joys!

I am direct, warm, and engaging. I will challenge and encourage you. I work psychodynamically (insight-based talk therapy) using a social justice lens, integrating mindfulness and cognitive and behavioral-based modalities when useful, and add a healthy dose of humor when appropriate. Learn more about how I work here. 

A large portion of my practice is dedicated to partners work. I'm passionate about getting couples out of frustrating loops of conflict and to be better able to see and feel seen and increase trust and intimacy. I work integratively, calling on multiple techniques and philosophies, to give space for what's most important and to be the most effective therapist for you. 


After many years working in nonprofits and activism, I came to my role as a psychotherapist after experiencing the transformative impact of talk therapy and mindfulness practices on my own sensitive nervous system. I feel honored to be able to facilitate that process for others and find my work deeply fulfilling and meaningful. I enjoy reading, learning, dancing, imaging different futures, traveling, and spending time with friends.
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Specialties
  • Complex Trauma (C-PTSD)
  • Queer identity exploration 
  • White racial identity exploration and antiracism work 
  • Issues specific to sex workers (using The Sex Worker Affirmative Therapy Model)
  • Boundary setting 
  • Depression, anxiety, and emotional overwhelm
  • Highly sensitive people
  • Personality disorders
  • Self esteem and identity
  • Sexual abuse and trauma 
  • Suicidal ideation and self-harm
  • Existential and spiritual questions 
  • Queer, poly, monogamous, and kinky couples 
  • Non-traditional families 
  • Attachment types 
  • Self-regulation and co-regulation 
  • Relationship challenges and conflict
  • Intergenerational trauma
  • Communication skills​​
Inclusive + Affirming? 

Yes! I enthusiastically welcome activists, LGBTQIA+, poly + kinky folks, artists + dreamers, highly sensitive + emotionally intense types, people who experience marginalization, and general misfits.
♡​

It is also important to me to bring humility and accountability to my role as a therapist in sharing my intersections of privilege and marginalization. I am of European ancestry, descended from settlers living on colonized land. I'm a queer, able-bodied, city-living, millennial raised in a working class family.
 I'm dedicated to equity in my relationships and fighting for it systematically.​
Professional Affiliations

CAMFT (California Association of Marriage and Family Therapists)

Gaylesta: The Psychotherapist Association for Gender & Sexual Diversity

Bay Area Open Minds


Additional Training Highlights

Dialectical Behavior Therapy Professional  Training: An Advanced Online Skills Training for Adapting Dialectical Behavior Therapy for Everyday Clinical Needs with Dr. Lane Peterson

Emotionally Focused Therapy: Attachment-Based Interventions for Couples in Crisis with Dr. Sue Johnson

Climate Psychology in Therapeutic Practices with Dr. Barbara Easterlin

Helping Couples and Families Heal Trauma Using Internal Family Systems with Dr. Richard Schwartz

Multi-generational Trauma: Healing the Past to Heal the Present in Couples Therapy with Terry Real, LICSW

The Human and Archetypal Child and the Psychotherapy of Early Trauma with Dr. Donald Kalsched


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​Stephanie Bain (she/her/hers)
 
Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, LMFT #137288
 stephaniebaintherapy@gmail.com | 1-510-545-9329
445 Bellevue Ave, #6B, Oakland, 94610
Proud Member of TherapyDen
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