Malachi Gillihan, a Trauma Specialist based in Berkeley, offers dedicated trauma recovery support for men who have experienced sexual trauma. The support is available through in-person sessions in Berkeley and virtual sessions for clients nationwide and internationally. It serves a group that has had limited access to targeted resources.
Men who experience sexual trauma often find few resources designed with their experience in mind. Cultural expectations and stigma can leave many feeling that they should stay silent or that their experience doesn’t qualify as trauma or abuse, and programs created specifically for male survivors remain uncommon. That gap is the reason behind this dedicated area of the practice.
The support is offered in individual and group formats. Individual sessions provide one-on-one attention at a pace set by the client. Group work includes The Octave, a new, evidence-based group approach created for men with histories of sexual trauma. This dedicated area for male survivors sits within a broader practice that works with survivors of many kinds of trauma, so men can enter through the door that fits their situation.
Gillihan draws on an integrative model that brings together Western psychological understanding and Eastern contemplative practices. Sessions may involve talk-based work alongside somatic and mind-body approaches, mindfulness, and psychoeducation, with the mix shaped around the individual rather than a fixed script. As a survivor-practitioner, Gillihan brings lived experience alongside his professional training, and he structures the work to keep pacing and a sense of safety at the center.
Prospective clients can begin with an initial conversation to determine whether the support is a fit. The practice does not require men to arrive with language for their experience or a full account of their history to start.
"Men who have lived through sexual trauma are often told, in ways spoken and unspoken, that what happened to them does not count," said Malachi Gillihan, Trauma Specialist. "I wanted to create a space where the truth of their experience and struggle can be taken for granted. Having walked a version of this path myself, I know recovery is possible and that it does not have to be hopeless or alone. There is room for connection, and even for some lightness, along the way."
Gillihan holds a Master of Arts in East-West Psychology and a certification as a Spiritual Counselor from the California Institute of Integral Studies. He is currently a PhD candidate at the same institution, where his doctoral research examines group-based support for male survivors of sexual trauma. He also serves as Co-Chair of the Complex Trauma Special Interest Group within the International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies.
Sessions are available in-person in Berkeley and virtually for clients across the country and abroad. Virtual sessions extend support to men outside the Berkeley area, including areas where resources for male survivors are limited. The practice operates on a private-pay basis, with sliding-scale options for group sessions and superbills for clients seeking out-of-network reimbursement from their insurance providers.
"Being in a room with other survivors shifts something for a lot of men," said Gillihan. "A man hears someone else describe a history close to his own, and the sense that he is the only one starts to loosen. My part is to keep the space steady and unhurried so that can happen at its own pace."
About Malachi Gillihan
Malachi Gillihan is a Trauma Specialist in Berkeley, California, serving the East Bay and clients nationally and internationally through in-person and virtual sessions. The practice provides individual and group trauma recovery support, including work with survivors of sexual trauma, complex trauma, and the intersection of trauma and addiction, along with couples and family sessions, workshops, and trainings for healing professionals.
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For more information about Malachi Gillihan - Trauma Specialist, contact the company here:
Malachi Gillihan - Trauma Specialist
Malachi Gillihan
707-599-9469
contact@malachigillihan.com
2915 Martin Luther King Jr Way, Berkeley, CA, 94703, United States
