Gay Men's Counseling Alliance
Jonathan Merker MA LMHC LPC
Counseling for gay individuals, couples, and groups
About.
Gay Men's Counseling Alliance, GMCA, is a psychotherapy practice specifically tailored to the needs of gay men and couples. The mission of GMCA is to help gay men and couples throughout Colorado, New Jersey, New York, and Washington State create and maintain healthy loving relationships.
Founded in 2017 by Jonathan Merker MA LMHC LPC, GMCA gives access to gay men who may not have the ability to engage with a licensed therapist because of geographic challenges. GMCA was online before the Covid-19 Pandemic and is thus experienced at providing relational psychotherapy over video calls. GMCA's HIPAA compliant, safe, and secure online video conferencing service turns any room, anywhere into a private face-to-face counseling session.
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In 2021 GMCA expanded to include in-person psychotherapy sessions in New York City.
WHAT IS ONLINE COUNSELING?
Online, secure, face-to-face counseling for gay men is just a click away.
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GMCA's HIPAA compliant, online video conferencing service can be accessed anywhere, anytime on your desktop computer, laptop, tablet or phone turning any room into a one-on-one, face-to-face counseling session.
Private, secure and confidential, it’s everything you want your session to be without a visit to an office.
PRACTICE AREAS
Gay Men’s Counseling Alliance is a psychotherapy practice by Jonathan Merker with the mission to help gay men create meaningful, satisfying, and healthy relationships. Jonathan is a relational psychoanalytical psychotherapist who can help gay men work through a number of both universal and gay-specific issues. Jonathan is an expert at treating gay male childhood sexual abuse and gay male "conversion therapy" abuse. He practices a relational narrative model to work through past trauma that allows the therapy relationship to heal what was once wounded. Whether your abuse was physical or spiritual/emotional, Gay Men's Counseling Alliance can help you recover and heal.
In addition to his specialty in childhood sexual abuseJonathan's therapy style can help with a variety of mental health and social issues. Many individuals come to GMCA to figure out why they can't make a relationship last, or can't seem to find the right guy. Many couples come to strengthen their communication, intimacy, and resolve conflict in order to create a stronger future.
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Your first session is completely free so you can get to know me and decide together if you are a good fit for therapy.
INDIVIDUAL COUNSELING
Individual counseling at GMCA is narrative and relational, which means Jonathan spends time truly understanding your story. The more we understand about you, your history, and present patterns, the more we're able to change your relational patterns into ones that work.
Jonathan's primary focus as a therapist is on healing childhood sexual abuse, but there are a variety of reasons that gay men may need therapy. Jonathan also works with issues such as body image, sexuality, depression, family conflict, coming out, trauma, and bereavement.
COUPLES ANALYSIS
Couples analysis at GMCA is different than other couples counseling. The purpose of couples analysis is not to solve crises or help partners work through whether or not to stay together. Couples Counseling at GMCA is for gay male couples who wish to deepen their personal and collective understanding and healing through their relationship.
Couples will be asked to reflect and share the variety of stories and influences that affect their daily relatedness and the relationship that has been created. With observation, curiosity, and a non-judgmental space, couples are able to understand who they are individually, how that affects the co-created relationship, and provides agency to make changes or deepen intimacy and connection.
GROUP COUNSELING
GMCA offers in-person psychotherapy groups in the Chelsea neighborhood of Manhattan. These groups are specifically for gay men so that we can grow and heal together as a community. Current group offerings are listed below. Please fill out the contact form below if you are interested in a group.
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Survivors of Childhood Sexual Abuse
Begins Autumn '22 on Monday afternoons
This group is for gay men who experienced childhood (0-18) sexual abuse. We will collectively read the same chapter in a book to discuss how being gay affects our experience of abuse, then learn how to listen and be listened to in stories of deep wounding. Through the sharing and listening we will heal and recover.
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Survivors of 'Conversion Therapy'
Begins Autumn '22 on Monday evenings
This group is for gay men who were a part of any program designed to change, alter, or suppress one's sexual orientation. The symptoms of these groups can often look like the symptoms of childhood sexual abuse. As a group we will explore the beliefs and stories that were created from these violent beliefs, and through sharing our stories we will affirm and celebrate our homoaffectivity and homosexuality.
CONTACT
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Jonathan Merker, MA LMHC LPC
Gay Men's Counseling Alliance
206-707-9188
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Please fill out this form to schedule a free consultation or with any questions you would like answered. Please note that Gay Men's Counseling Alliance is licensed in CO, NJ, NY, and WA, and cannot offer counseling in any other jurisdiction. GMCA is currently only accepting new in-person clients in NYC.
