If the way you talk about sex, your body, or your relationship feels like something you've learned to keep quiet, you're not the only one who's felt that way. I'm Dr. Jennifer Sampson, and I'm one of a small number of AASECT Certified Sex Therapist Supervisors in the Pacific Northwest, which means I've spent years training other clinicians in this work as well as doing it myself.

My clinical focus is sex and intimacy: desire differences between partners, sexual shame carried from earlier relationships or upbringing, and the unspoken rules a relationship builds around sex without anyone ever actually naming them out loud. I work with relationships in whatever structure they actually take, married partners, dating couples, and people in non-monogamous or polyamorous relationships, not a one-size version of what a relationship is supposed to look like. I also work with individuals and with LGBTQIA+ clients who are looking for a therapist who doesn't need their identity or relationship structure explained before the real work can start. Reproductive health and fertility come up in my work at times, though they aren't the center of what I focus on day to day.

I hold a PhD in Family Social Science, and I'm an AAMFT Approved Supervisor in addition to my AASECT credentials, which means the clinical training behind this work runs deep, but the room itself stays plain-spoken. I'm also a co-founder of Northwest Relationships, and these days a good portion of my time goes toward training the next generation of therapists and supervisors here, not only toward seeing clients myself.

A first session with me isn't a test and it isn't an interview. It's a conversation about what's actually going on, what you've already tried, and what you're hoping is different this time. You don't need the clinical vocabulary, or a justification for your relationship structure, that part is my job, not yours.

I'm a good fit for someone in Tacoma or anywhere in Washington state looking for a sex therapist with AASECT-level training, or anyone, married, dating, or non-monogamous, who wants a systemic, relational lens on intimacy rather than a framework built only around two people. Because of my supervision and practice-leadership responsibilities, my own client caseload is limited, so if timing matters to you, ask about current availability when you reach out.

If you're ready to take that step, you can request a session or start an intake form directly, or reach out with a question first if you're not sure this is the right fit yet. Either way, you won't be asked to summarize your whole history before we've even met, that's what the first session is for.