Courtney Watson

Courtney (she/they) is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and AASECT Certified Sex Therapist. As the visionary owner of Doorway Therapeutic Services, a group therapy practice in Oakland, CA, Courtney focuses on addressing the mental health needs of Black, Indigenous & People of Color, Queer folks, Trans, Gender Non-conforming, Non-binary, and Two-Spirit individuals. She manages and leads a team of over 20 therapists, nurses, and physicians within her private practice.

Guided by the wisdom of her ancestors, Courtney integrates psychedelic-assisted therapy into her services, catering specifically to individuals with multiple marginalized identities and emphasizes the importance of BIPOC and Queer providers offering these services. Courtney’s extensive training from several renowned institutions equips her to provide psychedelic-assisted therapy using a variety of medicines.

Committed to exploring the profound impact of psychedelic medicines on marginalized communities, Courtney actively promotes the decolonization process for individuals from the global majority. She recognizes the current gaps in the field and believes in the urgent need to address the unique needs of Communities of Color and bridge this divide. She is currently blazing the trail as one of the few clinics of predominantly QTBIPOC providers offering Ketamine Assisted Therapy to the Queer and BIPOC community.

In her dedication to accessibility and equity, Courtney has founded Access to Doorways, a non-profit organization committed to subsidizing the cost of ketamine/psychedelic-assisted therapy for QTBIPOC clients (currently accepting donations for their first 100 recipients!). She has also created a directory facilitating connections between Queer and BIPOC clients and psychedelic therapists.

Courtney’s expertise, inclusive approach, and innovative initiatives have been shared in interviews and podcasts by Queering Psychedelics, The Lex Files Podcast, End Well Project, Altrd.tv, Osmind and Psychedelic Support. Her insight was also shared in the book Queering Psychedelics: From Oppression to Liberation in Psychedelic Medicine in the 4th chapter, A Consensual Discourse Dialogue. Courtney has presented workshops and speaking engagements at Synthesis, Psychedelics Today, Therapy and Wellness, Pacific Center, NYU and Alma Institute just in 2023!

When not seeing clients or in meetings for the businesses she leads, Courtney can be found watching Nickelodeon with her kids, working on her dissertation or making time for self-care with a well-deserved nap!