““Dr. Downs has already changed the public discourse on gay culture and helped shape the identity of an entire generation of gay men.””
Alan Downs, Ph.D.
Dr. Downs is a clinical psychologist and the bestselling author of seven books. His work is acclaimed internationally and has been published in over 27 languages. He is a sought-after conference speaker, workshop leader, and frequent media commentator on the psychology of gay men. He has more than 25 years of experience in working with individuals from all walks of life, and is currently in private practice in Palm Springs, California. Currently, he consults with individuals and couples via the internet from around the world. In addition to his expertise in working with gay men, he is an intensively trained Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) therapist who has worked with individuals as well as therapists who are seeking to learn the mindfulness, emotion regulation and distress tolerance skills which are so effectively taught within the DBT therapeutic framework. Most recently, Dr. Downs has been quoted in Vogue, The Guardian, and The New York Times.
“I’ve worked as a corporate executive, been the CEO of two mental health/addictions treatment centers, authored seven books, and worked for more than 20 years as a clinical psychologist. I’ve lived life to the fullest, marched in the gay pride parades, and had the joy of working with gay men from all over the world. All these experiences, from falling in love with a man to burying dear friends who died from AIDS have been my teachers. And it is those teachers—even the ones who were difficult and unwanted—that allow me to understand and humbly embrace the private worlds of my clients.”
His professional accomplishments include:
author of the bestselling The Velvet Rage: Overcoming the Pain of Growing Up Gay in a Straight Man's World
author of six other award-winning books, including Beyond the Looking Glass: Overcoming the Seductive Culture of Corporate Narcissism (winner of The Canadian Management Association Book of the Year)
intensively trained Dialectical Behavior Therapist (DBT)
as seen on The Oprah Winfrey Show, The Today Show, Good Morning America, NBC Nightly News, CBS Sunday Morning, and many othersinterviewed by The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The New Yorker, San Francisco Chronicle, NPR's Morning Edition, Fortune, Newsweek, Out Magazine, The Advocate, The Village Voice, and many others
invited by the Clinton Administration to speak at the Senate Democratic Caucus
former CEO, Michael's House Treatment Center
former executive, Hewlett Packard Corporation
former adjunct faculty at University of San Francisco, San Francisco State, and The New School for Social Research