On this episode, Caroline and Honey sit down with Grace O’Connor, a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, to explore her personal and professional journey as a trans woman navigating healing, identity, and mental health advocacy. Growing up in a working-class, Catholic neighborhood on the South Side of Chicago during the 1960s and 70s, Grace shares the deep sense of isolation and fear she experienced while concealing her identity.
Grace discusses how decades of internalized transphobia, trauma, and addiction eventually led her to seek therapy in 2005, a transformative step that launched both her healing and her career. She opens up about surviving clergy abuse, confronting depression and substance use, and coming out first as gay in 1999 before embracing her trans identity in 2015.
The episode also explores current challenges facing the trans community, including the rollback of healthcare access and the emotional toll of political hostility. (Recorded before SCOTUS decision in Tennessee on trans healthcare ban for youth) Grace emphasizes the importance of community-based mental health, decolonized approaches to care, and sustainable strategies for resilience.
Grace O’Connor (she/her) is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, specializing in working with Trans and Non-binary communities. She is the Vice-President of Gender Wellness of Los Angeles and brings over three decades of experience in 12-step recovery and LGBTQ+ mental health. After struggling with internalized transphobia and growing up without cultural mirrors for her identity, Grace transitioned later in life and has emerged more grounded, joyful, and aligned than ever. Her therapeutic approach integrates somatic work, mindfulness, IFS, and a decolonized, anti-oppressive lens that deeply affirms trans and non-binary experiences. Grace earned her Master’s in Clinical Psychology from Antioch University Los Angeles, trained at the Colors LGBTQ Youth Counseling Center, and is a proud member of CAMFT and WPATH. Today, she uses her lived experience as a trans woman and seasoned clinician to build deep bonds of trust and healing with her clients.
Gender Wellness of Los Angeles | Transgender & Nonbinary Therapy
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About the Podcast
The Trans Narrative Podcast is a storytelling platform centering trans voices through authentic dialogue and lived experiences. With over 130 episodes across four seasons and listeners in 69 countries, the show creates space for guests to share their journeys, insights, and work—on their own terms.
“Make it real to me” written by Athena Promachus, covered by Boy Bowser
The Trans Narrative was created, and produced by Caroline Penny, powered by Spotify for podcasters
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