I still remember when Fifty Shades of Grey was released. Not because of the book itself, but because of the conversations that followed. People began calling my office, almost sheepishly, admitting they had read it and were surprised by what it awakened in them. Many described feeling both curious and confused. Some felt excited. Others felt guilty. Almost all of them wondered the same thing: "What does this mean about me?"

Finding a therapist is hard enough. Wondering whether you'll have to explain, defend, or hide parts of who you are can make it even harder. For many LGBTQIA+ people living in rural Colorado, that uncertainty—not the search itself—is the biggest barrier to reaching out.

From the very beginning of opening my practice, I knew my North Star would be one simple phrase: When you don't fit the mold. I've identified with those words for as long as I can remember. As much as we celebrate diversity, we're still wired to seek people who are most like us. Similarity feels safe. Difference can feel uncertain—even threatening. And sometimes the hardest differences to accept aren't the ones we see in other people. They're the ones we discover within ourse