counseling for men
san francisco, ca
stephen manning
PhD MFT
an ally for the male soul:
gay, straight or unlabeled
About Me
I become a licensed therapist in mid-life, after decades of varied life and work experience. I have faced my own character, limits and problems, failures and accomplishments. This gives me a natural respect for the men I work with. For over 20 years now I have shared, with men of all kinds, the skills, learning and wisdom that have come from my own male soul's journey
I have worked in management, in education and in pastoral care. Being licensed as a Marriage and Family Therapist has allowed me to distill my life history into another vocational form: as a counselor for men and an ally to the male soul.
I was Executive Director of the CG Jung Institute of San Francisco for thirteen years. As a chief of staff in other community nonprofits, I have served people coping with substance abuse and with HIV.
I have taught grad and undergrad university students, high school, and adult ed. I also did a brief stint delivering furniture! During my years as a priest in the order of Dominican friars, I was a pastor, teacher and counselor.
I am a comfortably gay man, "out" and at home with myself for a long time; it's part of who I am, but not the only thing I am. To work with other men, regardless of whether they are gay or straight (or unlabeled), is an honor for me.
CLINICAL ORIENTATION: The chief inspiration for my work comes from Carl Jung and the many Jungian clinicians who have taken their lead from him. I have also benefited from the insights of evolutionary psychology, congruence therapy, solution focused therapy and interpersonal psychology. For couples work, the contributions of the Goffman approach.
CREDENTIALS I am licensed by the State of California Board of Behavioral Sciences to practice as a Marriage and Family Therapist (License #37350). Licensing as an MFT required a graduate degree in psychology from a state-approved school, 3000 hours of supervised clinical experience, and passing both a written and an oral examination. For each biennial renewal of this license, at least 36 hours of continuing education courses are required , always including a course in ethics.
EDUCATION In order to become licensed I gained an MA in psychology from the Pacifica Graduate Institute in Santa Barbara. My PhD is in theology & religious studies from the University of Toronto. At St Michael's College there I also gained an MDiv in pastoral care as well as another MA in theology. My BA is from Columbia University in New York City. I have studied in New York, Rome, Toronto and California.
TRAINING For my years of supervised clinical training I worked with: individual adults at Bay Area Psychotherapy Services; people experiencing grief and bereavement at the California Pacific Medical Center; men with HIV at the UCSF AIDS Health Project; minority and immigrant children (11-14) at the Ben Franklin Middle School and the University of San Francisco Child and Family Counseling Center; sex offenders, transgendered people & victims of trauma at the City of San Francisco's forensic clinic, The Center for Special Problems
TEACHING EXPERIENCE As an assistant professor at Sonoma State University I taught graduate courses in psychological theory and in psychopathology. At the SF Jung Institute I taught the assessment and treatment of HIV-related issues, as well as the treatment of gay men by heterosexual therapists.