Gender Diversity & Resilience

The Gender Diversity & Resilience Program has examined our values, philosophies, and approaches as a program.

• If you are transgender, nonbinary, gender exploring, or gender expansive, we believe you. You are the expert in your lived experience.
• Our goal is for you to be the safest, healthiest you you can be, and we operate from a trauma-informed and harm reduction philosophy.
• Your race and ethnicity directly inform your gender identity and expression. We want all of you to be present with us.
• We believe in the healing power of families.
• We believe that problems exist between people and systems rather than within people. We understand that problems can exist between you and the systems around you and your family (including concerns around transphobia, racism, classism, ableism, homophobia, sexism, justice system, immigration system, and more)
• We serve clients of all cultures. We are committed to serving you within your cultural context. We are committed to empowering our clients to transition within their cultural context, and not enforcing western, colonialist, capitalist & classist, white, queer, or feminist norms.
• Your health is a right, not a privilege.

CGC’s Gender, Diversity & Resilience program serves transgender, nonbinary and gender expansive youth through age 18 and their caregivers. Through a tailored combination of group, individual, and family therapy, as well as case management, psychiatry, and gender affirming medical care, our multidisciplinary team meets teens and families where they are in their gender journey. Feeling safe and accepted is only the first step.  The GDR Program recognizes the importance of positive, celebratory identity development as essential for mental health and aims to create a space that addresses both the challenges and joys of the gender exploration. This program provides mental health and medical services in collaboration with trans affirming and knowledgeable providers from across the state. The program consists of:

• Mental Health Care & Psychiatric Medication Management
  • Individualized treatment plan including group, individual, and family therapy
  • Psychiatric evaluations and medication management
  • Parent guidance sessions
  • Collaborative and client-centered psychiatric medication management
  • Comprehensive evaluation for access to medical services including gender affirming care and assessment including mood disorders, trauma, suicidal ideation/self-harm, ADHD and autism
  • Currently we are offering three therapeutic groups: 
    • Teens ages 11-14
    • Teens ages 15-18
    • Caregiver support space
• Medical Care
  • Gender affirming primary care for individuals of all ages
  • Individually tailored and informed consent based gender affirming medical care, including puberty blockers and gender affirming hormones. The affirming care is tailored to each person and their goals. 
  • Lab work, as well as care coordinator for labs around the state
  • Safe injection training
  • Safe binding, packing and tucking training
  • Referrals and pre and post-operative services for gender-affirming surgeries
  • Reproductive health and referrals
  • Testing and treatment for sexually transmitted infections
• Case Management
  • Comprehensive Care Coordination between outside providers, schools and community resources
  • Connection to community resources and referrals
  • Community outreach and education

Program clinicians engage in ongoing continuing education with experts of lived and clinical experience and participate in monthly case consultation with trans health leaders at Fenway Health. In addition, our team values personal reflection on the way gender identity intersects with other identities we hold and regularly examines how our own privilege and implicit biases impact client care. Meet the GDR team! 

The Child Guidance Center, through the Community Health Center Inc., is a Federally Qualified Health Center, providing care to all clients regardless of ability to pay. For more information please click here. We accept most major insurance carriers and HUSKY.

To request a new client appointment, please call 203-324-6127 or email [email protected]

Furthermore, our team works to bring awareness to the challenges of gender expansive youth through trainings with school systems and community partners. For any collaboration, training requests, and general inquiries, please contact Renee, LCSW at 203-324-6127 or email [email protected]

CGC has partnered with Center for Key Populations at the Community Health Center Inc,. For LGB-focused and Transgender Health care for those above age 18, please contact Stephanie at 860-347-6971 X 3911. Click here to visit CHC’s Center for Key Populations.

Reaching us after hours: If your child experiences a mental health crisis and requires immediate help after hours, you can call 211 to access services from our Mobile Crisis team. For routine matters and questions about appointments, please leave a voice message at (203) 324-6127, and someone will return your call as soon as possible, typically by the next business day.

We are pleased to announce we have formed an alliance with Community Health Center, Inc. (CHC). CHC is providing billing, administration and other services; clinical services are provided by CGC. If you have questions about this alliance, please let us know.