Walt Odets, Ph.D.
Gay Psychologist and Author
With a private psychology practice, I provide individual therapy and couples counseling for gay men at my Berkeley, San Francisco East Bay, office. I have written extensively about the psychological and social issues of gay men and gay communities, including a broad range of emotional issues, the nature of gay relationships, early-life trauma, HIV prevention, and the psychological aftermath of the early AIDS epidemic.
I have practiced psychology in the Bay Area since 1987. During this time, I have authored two books, and have also consulted for the Shanti Project of San Francisco; served on the AIDS Task Force of the Gay and Lesbian Medical Association (GLMA); consulted for the Gay Men’s Health Crisis (GMHC) in New York City; served as a clinical supervisor for the psychotherapy intern program at Berkeley’s Pacific Center; and served as a member of the United States Congress, Office of Technology Assessment evaluation workshop on AIDS prevention.
I received a B.A. in Philosophy from Wesleyan University (1969); and an M.A. in psychology (1983), and a Ph.D. in clinical psychology (1989), both from San Francisco’s Professional School of Psychology. I am a California licensed psychologist, PSY-12715.
I conduct my private practice at my Berkeley office, in the San Francisco East Bay. About three-quarters of my practice is devoted to individual therapy with gay men and counseling for gay couples. The remainder of my therapy hours are devoted to women, the parents of gay men, and others.
My theoretical approaches to therapy and counseling vary with the client, the issues at hand, and our mutual objectives for the work. I am theoretically eclectic, drawing on psychodynamic, developmental, humanistic, narrative, client-centered, and family-systems theory.
For additional discussion on therapy and counseling, please see the Psychotherapy page on this site. If you would like to discuss possibly working together, you can contact me directly by phone or email.
I have authored two books, the most recent, Out of the Shadows: Reimagining Gay Men’s Lives, published by Farrar, Straus and Giroux and Penguin Random House (U.K.) in June, 2019. My earlier book, In the Shadow of the Epidemic: Being HIV-Negative in the Age of AIDS was published by Duke University Press in 1995, and is still in print. I have also contributed chapters to seven anthologies about gay men. A full book listing may be found on the Books page on this site. Complete text for some of the sections of In the Shadow is available.
The Articles page includes links to pieces I have written on a variety of subjects, including gay male psychological issues and development; gay male communities; gay male relationships; psychotherapy and couples counseling with gay men; and AIDS prevention. A list of articles is provided on the Articles page, and the full text is available for many of them.
The Talks page provides an overview of oral presentations on a range of subjects, including psychotherapy and couples counseling with gay men; the psychological dynamics of gay male relationships; substance use and abuse; new models for HIV-prevention; and the politics of AIDS in gay communities. A list of talks is provided on the Talks page, and the full text is available for many of them.
Copyright 1989-2024 Walt Whitman Odets