Erin Costello

Hi! My name is Erin. I’m a neurodivergent, queer, disabled, California-based therapist and proud NeuroQueer clinician. I believe therapy should be a place where you can show up as your whole self—not somewhere you have to edit, minimize, or explain away the parts of you that make you different. My approach is warm, collaborative, strengths-based, and deeply affirming of LGBTQIA+ identities, neurodivergence, and the many ways people experience themselves and the world. I hold a master’s degree in Mental Health Counseling from California State University, Fullerton and have clinical experience providing therapy to children, adolescents, and adults. I especially enjoy working with clients navigating identity, relationships, trauma, or major life transitions. My clinical interests include LGBTQIA+ and queer-affirming therapy, transgender and gender-diverse identities, gender and sexuality exploration, neurodiversity-affirming therapy, PTSD and trauma, emotional regulation, anxiety, self-esteem, relationships, polyamory, kink, and the unique challenges that can arise during adolescence and emerging adulthood. My work is grounded in trauma-informed, culturally responsive, strengths-based, and affirming care. I believe therapy works best as a collaboration: you are the expert on your own life, and my role is to bring clinical knowledge, curiosity, perspective, and support to the process. I have experience working with transgender and gender-diverse clients at various stages of transition and am knowledgeable about the social, emotional, and practical aspects of gender-affirming care. I support clients exploring their gender identity, preparing for social or medical transition, navigating relationships and family dynamics, and processing the changes that can accompany transition. When clinically appropriate and with sufficient knowledge of a client’s history and needs, I can also provide letters of support for gender-affirming care, including procedures such as top surgery. My goal is to make therapy a supportive part of the transition process, not another place where you feel you have to prove or defend who you are. I recognize that LGBTQIA+ and neurodivergent people may face additional stress from stigma, rejection, discrimination, masking, family dynamics, and pressure to conform. Rather than treating these identities as problems to be fixed, I help clients better understand themselves, develop strategies that work for them, and navigate environments that may not always be designed with them in mind. I particularly enjoy working with people who have spent much of their lives feeling “too much,” “too sensitive,” “too different,” or like they are doing life “wrong.” Therapy with me is not about becoming more palatable to a largely neurotypical and cisgender/heterosexual world; it’s about building confidence, connection, self-understanding, and practical tools while making space for the things that make you uniquely you. I also genuinely enjoy getting to know my clients’ interests, hobbies, fandoms, and hyperfixations. You never need to make yourself less enthusiastic, passionate, or “weird” for me to understand you. The things you love can tell us a lot about how your brain works, what brings you joy, and what helps you feel connected. Sometimes our interests even overlap, and there’s something pretty special about getting to share the excitement of a mutual hyperfixation with a client. Most importantly, I want my clients to feel like they can actually be themselves in the therapy room. You do not need to arrive with everything figured out, know exactly what label fits, or even know what you want therapy to look like yet. Whether you are exploring your identity, preparing for a gender transition, navigating relationships, understanding your neurodivergence, processing trauma, or simply feeling stuck, we can start exactly where you are. My goal is to create a therapeutic relationship where you feel respected, understood, and genuinely accepted, with room for meaningful work, self-discovery, and plenty of giggles along the way.