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Phoenix Mandel

 

Member profile details

First name
Phoenix
Last name
Mandel
Gender
Gender Queer
Member Picture
Office Phone
415-275-0107
Mailing County
Alameda County
 

License & Degree Information

Supervisor Name
David Khalili
Supervisor License Type
  • Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist
Supervisor License #
LMFT # 89087
Degree 1
  • M.S.
Degree 1 Institution
CSU East Bay
Degree 1 Year
2025
Certification 1
American Association of Sexuality Educators, Counselors, & Therapists Certified Sexuality Educator
Certification 1 Year
2021
Certification 2
Institute for Sexuality Education & Enlightenment Holistic Sex Educator
Certification 2 Year
2020
 

Directory Information

Office Location(s) - City
  • Oakland
  • San Francisco
Description (2950 characters max)
Therapy for the relationally brave.

I work with queer couples/ partners, polycules, caregivers, and solo seekers navigating the sticky, sacred terrain of connection — repairing ruptures, deepening trust, renegotiating agreements, increasing access to pleasure, and returning to resonance.

Many of my clients are LGBTQIA+, nonmonogamous, neurodivergent, kinky, or otherwise living outside the cultural script; often they’re looking for a therapist with lived experience, who doesn’t need a glossary to understand where they’re coming from. Some of these clients are unpacking gender stories written by other people. Some are preparing for or adjusting to medical transition. Others are grappling with the complex intersections of identity, fertility, and family-making — exploring paths to parenting, navigating caregiver burnout, or facing questions about what legacy, lineage, and chosen family mean in queer life.

I support people in asking the hard, beautiful questions: Who am I now? Who do I want to become? What feels most at home in my body? In my relationships? Whether we’re reworking attachment patterns, integrating trauma, or practicing new ways of relating, I bring curiosity, clarity, and care to the process.

My approach is warm, direct, collaborative, and adaptive. I use a blend of structural family therapy, Internal Family Systems (IFS), Emotion-Focused Therapy (EFT), somatic and mindfulness practices, harm reduction, narrative therapy, nature therapy, and psychoeducation. I attend closely to the body’s signals and the nervous system’s needs, especially in relational healing.

I bring nearly two decades of experience as a sexuality educator, intimacy coach, and group facilitator — so conversations about desire, power, grief, pleasure, embodiment, and boundaries aren’t just welcome, they’re central to the work.

Specialties
~ Gender exploration and transition support
~ Queer and trans/ gender expansive couples therapy
~ Fertility, family-building, and parenting/ caregiving stress
~ Ethical nonmonogamy and polyamory
~ BDSM, kink, and sex-positive therapy
~ Conflict, communication, and rupture/repair
~ Rebuilding trust after harm or infidelity
~ Sexuality, desire discrepancies, and intimacy
~ LGBTQIA+ identity and family-of-origin issues
~ Trauma-informed, body-aware relational healing
~ Neurodivergence in relationships (ADHD, autism)

About Me
I hold a Master’s in Counseling (MFT) from CSU East Bay and am a Certified Sexuality Educator through AASECT, where I previously chaired the Gender Diverse Special Interest Group. My background spans peer counseling, harm reduction, education, and community care in queer, trans, and nontraditional relationship spaces.

I’m queer, genderqueer, polyamorous, neurodivergent, and committed to therapy that honors complexity and prioritizes consent, liberation, and joy. I don’t believe healing is linear — it’s relational exploration, sometimes messy, and absolutely worth it.
 

Fees

Sliding Scale
Yes
Fee (range)
Individuals: $190/50 min Couples: $245/75 min
Credit Cards Accepted
Yes
 

Areas of Emphasis

Emphasis
  • Attachment issues
  • Couples/Premarital counseling
  • Gender identity
  • Kink +
  • LGBTQIA2S+
  • Life transitions
  • Parenting/step-parenting
  • Pregnancy - postnatal/abortion issues
  • Self esteem
  • Sex therapy
 

Theoretical Orientation

Orientation
  • Art / Movement / Psychodrama
  • Attachment Theory
  • Brief / Solution Focused
  • Emotional Focused Therapy (EFT)
  • Family Systems
  • Humanistic / Existential
  • Integration Theory
  • Narrative
  • Play Therapy
  • Relational
  • Somatic
 

Additional Language Spoken

Language
  • English
 

Therapy Groups Offered

Groups
  • Caregiver Support
  • Couples
  • Expressive Arts (writing-dancing-art-music-etc)
  • Gay/Lesbian/ Bisexual/Transgender
  • General -- Coed
  • Parenting
  • Post-Traumatic Stress
  • Relationships
  • Sexual Issues
  • Singles
  • New Item
Other Group
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East Bay Chapter, CA Association of Marriage and Family Therapists
P.O Box 6278 Albany, CA 94706
 510-692-9936
admin@ebcamft.org

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