Intercultural & Interracial Relationships
Psychodynamic therapy for couples and individuals navigating cultural difference
A psychodynamic and relational approach to culture, identity and difference within intimate relationships
When love crosses cultures, differences can carry meanings far beyond the immediate disagreement. A conversation about family, religion, language, race or belonging may touch much older questions about loyalty, identity, acceptance or what it means to be loved.
In therapy, we can slow these moments down and become curious about both what is happening between you now and what the difference has come to represent for each of you. The aim is not to erase difference or decide whose way is right, but to make difference more possible to think about together. My approach to this work is informed by psychodynamic and relational thinking, alongside ongoing professional development in anti-oppressive practice.
In addition to my clinical practice, I have developed 'Seeing Me, Hearing Us: How to Have the Difficult Conversations About Race in Interracial and Intercultural Couples.' This workbook complements my focus on psychodynamic therapy, emphasizing how cultural difference is lived and negotiated within relationships. It offers a structured yet reflective way for partners to explore the unspoken, deepen mutual recognition, and create the emotional safety needed for honest conversations about race and belonging.
Working With Difference
Cultural difference does not in itself create relationship difficulties. Problems can arise when difference becomes difficult to speak about, emotionally unsafe to explore, or quickly interpreted as rejection, criticism or a lack of loyalty.
You may have different emotional languages, expectations around family and gender, experiences of race or belonging, religious traditions, or ideas about independence and togetherness. At times, one of you may feel unseen or required to adapt, while the other feels accused, misunderstood or frightened of saying the wrong thing.
Therapy creates a space in which we can become curious about these moments rather than rushing to decide who is right. We can look at what was intended, how something was experienced, what each of you needed the other to understand, and what makes certain differences particularly difficult to hold.
The aim is not sameness. It is to help you stay in relationship with difference without either person having to disappear within it.