Therapy Is Political — And That Matters
For a long time, I believed that keeping my political beliefs out of the therapy room was the most ethical choice. I thought neutrality was a form of respect, a way to make sure sessions stayed focused entirely on my clients. After all, therapy is about you, not me. That’s still true — but here’s what’s also true: your life, your safety, and your well-being are shaped every day by political realities. Pretending otherwise doesn’t make those forces go away.
The idea that therapy is “apolitical” is a myth. It’s a privilege to even think that mental health could be separate from politics. For many of my clients — people from marginalized communities, people living with financial insecurity, people impacted by discrimination and systemic inequality — political decisions aren’t abstract debates on TV. They’re lived experiences.
How Politics Shapes Mental Health
Political policies determine whether someone can afford medication, whether they can access healthcare, whether they can marry the person they love, whether they can live in safety, and whether their rights will still be intact tomorrow.
When funding for mental health services is cut, when social programs are slashed, when reproductive rights are stripped away, when identities are criminalized — the impact is immediate. I see it in the anxiety that spikes after a new law is passed. I see it in the grief when a safety net disappears. I see it in the exhaustion of people who have to fight every single day just to exist.
And I don’t just see it in my clients — I live it too. I’ve been directly affected by many of the same systems and decisions that harm the people I work with. Cuts to services, threats to personal rights, and the constant background noise of political instability don’t just live in the therapy room — they spill into my own life.
I understand, not just as a clinician, but as a fellow human being navigating the same world you are.
Holding Space — And Naming the Harm
In those moments, my role is not to stay silent. My role is to hold space for my clients and reaffirm to them that what they are experiencing is unfair, cruel, and wrong. I will never pathologize someone’s distress over injustice, nor will I suggest that they simply “accept” systemic harm as a fact of life. I see it, I name it, and I stand with them in it.
Why Clients Ask Me About My Politics
Over the past few years, something has shifted. More and more often, clients have been asking me directly:
"Just to double check… you don’t support Trump, right?"
At first, I hesitated. But I’ve learned that for many clients, this isn’t a casual question — it’s a safety check. It’s their way of asking, Are you someone I can trust with the parts of me that the world is trying to erase?
Now, I answer without hesitation: I am in direct opposition to virtually everything he stands for and everything his policies represent. Almost without exception, that honesty has strengthened the therapeutic relationship. Clients tell me they feel more at ease, more understood, and more able to share openly once they know I’m not quietly aligned with the very forces that are making their lives harder.
Safety in therapy comes from knowing your therapist sees and believes your lived reality.
I’m Not the Therapist for Everyone — And That’s Okay
The minority of people who would disagree with my stance are unlikely to become my clients in the first place. They may not be seeking therapy at all, may not realize they could benefit from it, or may simply not end up in my office. And that’s okay. My goal is not to be the therapist for everyone. My goal is to be the therapist who offers a safe, affirming, and empowering space for the people who need it most.
Therapy Can’t Ignore the World Outside
When we say “therapy is political,” we’re not saying that every session is a debate about policy or that my clients need to share my political beliefs to work with me. What I’m saying is that mental health is deeply connected to social context.
For example:
When a client fears losing gender-affirming care, that’s not abstract politics — it’s a direct threat to their life.
When housing policies make it impossible to find safe shelter, that’s a mental health crisis.
When reproductive rights are stripped away, it creates trauma, uncertainty, and fear that ripple through entire communities.
As a therapist, I can’t separate these realities from the work we do together. And I won’t.
Why I Take a Stand
Taking a stand doesn’t mean I push my clients to vote a certain way or adopt my beliefs. It means I’m transparent about the fact that I will always be in opposition to policies and systems that cause harm, especially to marginalized communities. It means I will name injustice when I see it. And it means I will never ask you to “leave politics at the door” when those “politics” are actually your lived experience.
The Truth About Therapy and Politics
Therapy has always been political. Every decision about who gets care, how care is delivered, what’s considered “healthy,” and which struggles are taken seriously is shaped by politics. Pretending otherwise just means we’re ignoring the water we’re all swimming in.
So if you’ve been wondering where I stand — here it is: I stand with you. I stand against leaders and systems that dehumanize you, erase your rights, and endanger your safety. And I believe that naming that truth out loud can be part of the healing process.
Because when you walk into my office (or log into a session), I want you to know that you are safe to bring all of yourself — your anger, your grief, your exhaustion, your joy, your hope, and yes, your politics. In here, they’re not separate from your mental health. They’re part of it. And they always will be.
