Presented by Melissa Dellens, MA, LMFT, TRM-1 & Cadyn Cathers, PsyD, MBA
Recorded Webinar
1 CE
Course Description
The personal is political, and the political is personal. Affirmative therapists working with LGBQIA+, TGNB, CNM/ENM, and kinky clients can struggle to manage big emotions when political threats impact the greater communities we serve. It can be even more challenging to hold space and make meaning of political anxieties when therapists hold similar identities and relate deeply to their client’s concerns. One way of tending to our own anxieties as affirmative therapists is to invest in our own advocacy practices outside the treatment room. This course will help affirmative therapists begin to build sustainable advocacy efforts as a part of their clinical practice.
Upon completion of this course, participants will be able to:
- Explain why advocacy is an important part of being an affirmative therapist
- Identify 3 ways affirmative therapists can engage in advocacy efforts.
About the Presenter
Melissa Dellens, MA, LMFT (she/they) works with teens and young adults with intersectional identities with Out Couch Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy, and is the Chief Operations Officer with the Affirmative Couch. They offer their understanding of collective trauma, community stressors, and political advocacy through publications and education. Melissa earned their Master of Arts in Psychology from Antioch University Los Angeles with an emphasis in Applied Community Psychology. They have completed the one year Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy Certificate at the Los Angeles Institute and Society for Psychoanalytic Studies (LAISPS) and Level 1 of the Trauma Resiliency Model. Melissa is an affiliate member ofLAISPS, and is active in the institute’s Diversity Affairs Committee.
Cadyn Cathers, PsyD, MBA (he/him/his) is a licensed clinical psychologist in California. He is a genderful, bisexual transgender man and a COVID long hauler since 2022. He has a specialty in working with LGBTQIA+ communities, focused on transgender and nonbinary adults, identity development, preparing for gender affirming surgery, and pre-verbal trauma. He is the founder and CEO of The Affirmative Couch, which offers online continuing education to other mental health professionals on working with sexuality and gender. Additionally, he has been teaching other mental health professionals for over a decade as faculty at Antioch University Los Angeles, Reiss-Davis Graduate School, Cal State Los Angeles, and others.
$12 for all participants
This course is included in the annual and lifetime memberships.
Additional Information
Instruction Level
This course is meant for an introductory audience.
Who should Attend
Affirmative Psychologists, counselors, and marriage and family therapists and social workers.
Format
Live, virtual presentation with the opportunity for interaction with the presenter. This course will be available as a recorded homestudy approximately two weeks after the event.
Zoom Link
You will receive a reminder email to register for your Zoom link after signing up for the course.
If you do not receive this email within 24 hours, please contact us.
Completion Requirements
Live Event
- To get CE credit for the live event, you need to be present for the entire course.
- You will be asked to sign in and out in the chat box in order to track attendance during breaks.
- We will email you your certificate of attendance within 48 hours of the course.
- This presentation will be recorded and available as a homestudy approximately two weeks after the live event.
- Your active participation will contribute and enhance the learning of participants that complete the recorded homestudy version.
Home Study
- You will need to take the post-test with at least a 80% score in order to receive your certificate for a home study course.
Financial Support
The Affirmative Couch pays course presenters for their teaching. There is no other financial support for this course.
Conflict of Interest
There is no reported conflict of interest or outside commercial support for this course.
Contact Information
For any inquiries related to subject matter, problem resolution, corrections, grievances, or anything else, please contact us.
Accommodations
The Affirmative Couch will work to accommodate reasonable accommodations requests. Requests can be emailed with “accommodation request” in the subject line. Requests will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis.
Continuing Education Approvals
The Affirmative Couch, LLC is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education for psychologists. The Affirmative Couch, LLC maintains responsibility for this program and its content.
$12 for all participants
This course is included in the annual and lifetime memberships.
| Module 1 | Recorded Webinar | |
|---|---|---|
| Unit 1 | Course Recording & Materials | |
| Unit 2 | Post Test | |
| Unit 3 | Post Course Survey |
