Contact Me: 971.218.2698 ajb.thereiamcounseling@proton.me
Hello and welcome!
My name is AJ Buckley (they/them), owner and founding therapist of There I Am Counseling. I am a queer, trans-masc non-binary person with several flavors of neurodivergence mixed in. In 2024, I graduated from Antioch University with a master’s in Clinical Mental Health Counseling as well as certificates in trauma counseling and gender-affirming clinical practice. I spent the last ten + years serving as an Episcopal priest and advocating for gender-diverse and queer inclusion in the church. My undergraduate work was in conservation biology, so I am a human with many informed perspectives – and a total nerd.
As a therapist, my focus is on providing compassionate, client-centered, trauma-informed care. It matters to me that my clients feel seen, heard, and understood. An important aspect of my understanding of compassion is that I meet people where they’re at. As such, I use the modality that is best suited for each individual or family in any given situation, including providing gender-affirming care for people of all ages. I love to involve arts, games, music, and interactive activities in sessions. I am passionate about serving the queer, trans, and gender-non-conforming communities, the neurodivergent community, and those with religious trauma. My goal is to provide a brave space where people can explore who they are, and who they wish to become.
A little backstory about me: I came out as trans as a thirty-something, seven years ago, and for me it’s been this experience of coming back to myself. I can now glimpse the AJ that was there all along. Through trauma, my fullness had become tarnished like brass, making it hard to see. I remember the first time I looked into the mirror after receiving top surgery in August of 2019, and tears welled up in my eyes as I exclaimed “There I Am!” (hence the name There I Am Counseling). I delight in being that mirror for others in the community, in helping others unbury their fullness in order to live into that same fullness and joy.
In my free time, you can find me coloring, playing old-school video games like Donkey Kong and Mario or playing board games, baking, weaving, snuggling my doggo and bunnies, and camping/hiking/gardening (really, anyway I can be outside). I love animals, especially dinosaurs, dragons, and ducks. I love learning weird little facts about whatever a client’s special interest may be.
