Chelsea Johnson (she/her) is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT) with over 15 years of clinical experience specializing in LGBTQIA+ mental health, relationships, gender-affirming care, and systemic therapy. Based in North Carolina, she is also a Qualified Supervisor who provides clinical supervision and mentorship to associate-level therapists and holds additional LMFT licensure in Massachusetts and Vermont. Chelsea earned her Master’s in Marriage and Family Therapy from Syracuse University and completed a 45-hour clinical supervision certificate at UNC Greensboro. She also holds a Bachelor's degree in Psychology with a minor in Family Studies from James Madison University.
 

Today, Chelsea's work is especially focused on LGBTQIA+ adults and partnerships navigating identity development, attachment, neurodivergence, and relationships. She has particular expertise working with mixed-neurotype partnerships, late-diagnosed ADHD and autism in adulthood, gender identity and sexuality exploration, coming out later in life, and individuals seeking to understand how family-of-origin experiences continue to shape their relationships, sense of self, and emotional well-being. Many of the adults Chelsea works with are millennials who were diagnosed with ADHD or autism later in life and are re-examining their identities, relationships, and life stories through an entirely new lens. Chelsea also works extensively with LGBTQIA+ partnerships, including monogamous, polyamorous, ethically non-monogamous, and other consensually structured relationships. Many of Chelsea's clients have spent years, or even decades, adapting to survive before finally asking themselves, "Who am I underneath all of this?"

Over the past 15 years, Chelsea has intentionally built advanced expertise in LGBTQIA+ mental health, attachment theory, systemic therapy, and liberation psychology. She has completed more than 100 hours of specialized postgraduate training, including Yale’s intensive in LGBTQ-Affirmative Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Emotionally Focused Couples Therapy, Internal Family Systems, and the Gottman Method. Chelsea is also a certified Prepare/Enrich™ Facilitator, offering evidence-based, non-denominational premarital assessment and counseling for interested partnerships. Chelsea is an active member of the World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH), follows their standards of care in her practice, and is a Clinical Fellow with the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy (AAMFT).

Chelsea is the Founder and Clinical Director of Horizons Therapy for Liberation (formerly Horizons Marriage & Family Therapy), founded in 2019 with the vision of creating a trusted community resource for LGBTQIA+ mental health in North Carolina. As a lesbian-identified clinician, Chelsea is passionate about creating affirming, inclusive therapeutic spaces for individuals, relationships of all kinds, and families. Her work centers queer and trans* experiences, non-traditional relationship structures, and complex family systems—offering skilled, affirming care for those too often marginalized or misunderstood in therapy spaces. Chelsea approaches therapy through a liberation psychology lens, recognizing that emotional well-being is shaped not only by individual experiences but also by relationships, families, culture, and the systems in which we live.

Chelsea is known for being an active, expressive, and authentic therapist. She won’t sit quietly behind a clipboard - she’ll meet you with honesty, insight, and a willingness to roll up her sleeves alongside you. Chelsea isn't afraid to curse and laugh with you in session. She believes the strongest therapy happens when people feel deeply challenged and deeply accepted at the same time. Her style is dynamic and relational, informed by years of experience helping clients untangle their attachment wounds, reclaim their stories, and move toward meaningful change. She integrates systemic therapy, IFS/parts work, narrative therapy, and EFT to tailor each session to her clients' goals. Rather than offering quick answers, Chelsea helps clients recognize the patterns that have quietly shaped their lives for years, creating lasting change instead of temporary relief. Clients often come to Chelsea after years of feeling like pieces of their story never quite fit together. Therapy becomes a place to connect those pieces with greater clarity, self-compassion, and intention.

Chelsea's commitment to LGBTQIA+ mental health extends beyond the therapy room. In addition to founding Horizons Therapy for Liberation, in 2023 Chelsea launched the podcast How to Survive the Apocalypse: A Queer Person’s Guide to Living in America, bringing conversations about queer mental health, identity, and resilience to a broader audience. In addition to her psychotherapy work, Chelsea has extensive experience writing gender-affirming care support letters in accordance with WPATH Standards of Care, always adhering to the most current best practices and standards.

Chelsea believes therapy should do more than reduce symptoms; it should help people understand the stories they've inherited, recognize the patterns they've developed to survive, and build relationships that feel secure, authentic, and deeply aligned with who they are. Whether you're navigating a major identity shift, healing from childhood experiences, or trying to create healthier relationships, Chelsea brings curiosity, depth, humor, and genuine partnership to the work.