About

Hi, I’m Nico (they/them)

I am a queer, nonbinary, mixed-race, therapist based in Portland, OR. Iʼm a registered CSWA and hold a Masters in Social Work from the University of Washington. Before becoming a therapist, I worked for nearly 20 years as a social justice organizer and campaigner.

It took me 20 years (and a training series by generative somatics) to learn that deep personal transformation is necessary if we hope that systemic change will take root.

My purpose as your therapist is to hold a wide open and non-judgmental space for you to bring your hurts, your anxieties, your fears, your longings, and your questions for us to explore them together. When we can continue to move towards the source of our fear and discomfort, we find that those experiences hold the secret to unlimited power and joy.

Who We Serve

I believe that marginalized people: BIPOC, first and second generation immigrants, trans people, queers, mixed race people, disabled people, deserve to experience joy, pleasure, connection, lineage, belonging, and dignity. My therapy practice is dedicated to supporting you in your journey towards this aliveness.

Activists, Organizers, and Change Makers

This is not all of who you are, but it is an important part. After 20 years as a full-time organizer, I transitioned to my role in mental health – supporting change makers and accompanying you on your healing journey.

As movement builders and front-lines change makers, your role is vital to our collective future, and your wellness matters. Many who choose your path have histories of trauma that inform their passion and drive. All who choose this path become stewards of our collective trauma.

In my work with you, I will support you to anchor in your history as a source of power, build internal and external resources to support you today, and deepen your sense of inner alignment and purpose.

QTBIPOC – Queer and Trans, Black Indigenous and People of Color

I live at the intersections of multiple racial, ethnic, gender, and sexuality identities. In the QTBIPOC community, each of our identities are unique and we often complicate and stand in between knowable categories.

I prioritize QTBIPOC in my practice because I know you are the most likely to experience culturally misaligned or even harmful care, and least likely to have access to adequate providers. I also work with QTBIPOC because it fills my cup to see us thrive, and to be part of your beautiful healing journey.

Mixed race, white-presenting people of culture are welcome, as are those who are questioning their sexuality or gender identity.

Services for Central Americans

Displacement and forced migration can be their own particular type of trauma. Whether because of economic or political reasons, or because of identity or violence faces at home, each migration story is heroic.

I provide services in English or Spanish, focused on supporting you to overcome current struggles and challenges, that are affecting your quality of life.

Your story and the survival choices you have made are inextricable from the time, place, and systems that we live in. I honor you for choosing to survive, and for moving towards your own healing. This is a legacy that you will hand down to future generations.

Deep healing and emotional maturity begin when you turn your attention inward. The ability to see yourself as you move through the ups and downs of life, without running away or suppressing your feelings, enhances your understanding of yourself.

– Yung Pueblo