The Harm Reduction Therapy Center

Focusing on safer, realistic change, the Harm Reduction Therapy Center (HRTC) provides mental health and substance use care without requiring abstinence. Its San Francisco programs primarily reach people experiencing homelessness, trauma, co-occurring mental health concerns, and barriers to traditional treatment. Care extends beyond the therapy office through youth services with Homeless Youth Alliance and mobile “clinics without walls,” which bring therapists, harm reduction supplies, food, medical care, and connections to social services directly into the community.

Individualized Paths to Safer Change

HRTC uses harm reduction therapy to help clients identify realistic goals, whether they want to stop using substances, reduce their use, or make it safer. Individual and group therapy address substance use alongside concerns such as trauma, anxiety, and depression. For office-based private therapy, HRTC refers clients to the California Association of Harm Reduction Therapists (CAHRT), a separate network that grew from HRTC’s former private practice. Its independent therapists draw from approaches such as motivational interviewing, dialectical behavior therapy, eye movement desensitization and reprocessing, and trauma-informed therapy.

Accessible Care Regardless of Income

HRTC provides its community-based mental health and substance use treatment at no cost, helping people receive care even when they cannot afford traditional services. Its work is supported through public funding, grants, and donations, including partnerships with the San Francisco Department of Public Health.