Chelsea Johnson (she/her) is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist with over 13 years of specialized experience serving the LGBTQIA2S+ community. Based in North Carolina, she is also a Qualified Supervisor for Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselor Associates and holds additional LMFT licensure in Massachusetts and Vermont. Chelsea earned her Master’s in Marriage and Family Therapy from Syracuse University and completed a 45-hour clinical supervision certificate at UNC Greensboro. She also holds a Bachelor's degree in Psychology with a minor in Family Studies from James Madison University.

Chelsea brings deep clinical expertise to her work, with a strong foundation in systemic, attachment-based, and trauma-informed approaches. She has completed over 100 hours of advanced training specific to LGBTQIA2S+ mental health, including Yale’s intensive in LGBTQ-Affirmative Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Emotionally Focused Couples Therapy, and the Gottman Method. Chelsea is an active member of the World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH), follows their standards of care in her practice, and is a Clinical Fellow with the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy (AAMFT).

As a lesbian-identified clinician, Chelsea is passionate about creating affirming, inclusive therapeutic spaces for individuals, relationships of all kinds, and families. In 2019, she founded Horizons Marriage & Family Therapy with the mission of becoming a trusted community resource for LGBTQIA2S+ mental health. Her work centers queer and trans* experiences, non-traditional relationship structures, and complex family systems—offering skilled, affirming care for those too often marginalized or misunderstood in therapy spaces. Chelsea takes a non-hetero and non-cis-normative approach to treatment, tailoring goal development and skill-building to support her clients' unique needs. She works with LGBTQIA+ youth (ages 11+), adults, relationships, and families navigating relationship challenges, gender identity, neurodiverse partnerships, polyamory/ethical non-monogamy, and family dynamics around sexuality and identity.

Chelsea is known for being an active, expressive, and authentic therapist. She won’t sit quietly behind a clipboard—she’ll meet you with honesty, insight, and a willingness to roll up her sleeves alongside you. Chelsea isn't afraid to curse and laugh alongside you in session. Her style is dynamic and relational, informed by years of experience helping clients untangle their attachment wounds, reclaim their stories, and move toward meaningful change. She integrates systemic therapy, parts work, narrative therapy, and EFT to tailor each session to her clients' goals.

In 2023, Chelsea launched the podcast How to Survive the Apocalypse: A Queer Person’s Guide to Living in America, expanding her commitment to queer mental health beyond the therapy room and into the national conversation.

Above all, Chelsea is a skilled clinician who brings depth, warmth, and fierce advocacy to her work. Her clients know they can count on her to show up fully, hold complexity with care, and support them in creating lives that feel whole, empowered, and true.