Kevin Pacifico Gonzaga, PhD

I am a psychologist who focuses on helping you to clarify your values, navigate your next steps, and build relationships that sustain you, through every storm and into a brighter tomorrow.

I was born and raised in Modesto, California, in the state's Central Valley, a region shaped by rich cultural diversity alongside significant economic challenges. I am of Dutch and Filipino heritage, and grew up navigating a multicultural identity. I have later lived in in British Columbia, Southern California, North Dakota, Massachusetts, Kentucky, and now Maine. These experiences have deepened my appreciation for the many ways culture, community, and life circumstances shape how we experience hardship, resilience, and belonging.

I earned my PhD in Counseling Psychology from the University of Louisville, where my dissertation examined the ways our relationships and communities influence our ability to recover from adversity. My clinical work is primarily grounded in Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), an evidence-based approach that helps people build psychological flexibility so they can live more fully in accordance with their values, even when life is painful or uncertain. In addition to ACT, I draw from Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT), exposure-based treatments, and mindfulness-based interventions. I tailor these approaches to each client's unique goals, circumstances, and needs.

I enjoy working with adults from diverse backgrounds, including veterans, BIPOC clients, LGBTQ+ clients, individuals in consensually non-monogamous relationships, and those seeking a sex-positive and kink-affirming therapist. I commonly work with concerns including trauma, anxiety, depression, grief, chronic pain, relationship changes, divorce, career transitions, and other major life adjustments.

At the heart of my work is the belief that hardship and tragedy are inevitable parts of being human, but they do not have to define our lives. Healing does not mean erasing pain; it means learning to carry it differently while building a life guided by meaning, connection, and purpose.