Depression in LGBTQIA+ Clients: Causes & Treatment
Presented by Cadyn Cathers, PsyD, MBA
July 11, 2025
10am-1:15pm PST
1 – 15 minute break
3 CEs
Price:
$39 for licensed
$35 for licensed in non-profit organization (Use coupon code at checkout: depressionNP)
$25 for pre-licensed (Use Coupon Code at checkout: depressionPL)
This course is included in the annual and lifetime memberships.
Course Description:
“Is it minority stress, psychological dynamics, medical, or substance-induced?” should be one of the first questions that an affirmative therapists ask themselves when working with a depressed client. According to the NIH in 2021, an estimated 21 million adults in the US have had at least one major depressive episode. Depression within LGBTQIA+ people is prevalent with some estimates as high as 50%. However, depressive signs and symptoms can often be overlooked and assumed to be related to minority stressors. Many medical conditions, including but not limited to, hypothyroidism, diabetes, cancer, and HIV, can mimic depression. Common medications and drugs, such as nicotine, alcohol, anticonvulsants, and corticosteroids, can create depressive symptoms. Environmental toxicants have depressogenic effects and more commonly impact BIPOC. Diets low in fruits and vegetables and high in red and/or processed meats, refined grains, sweets, and high-fat dairy are also associated with a higher risk of depression.
Treatment of these various depressions, whether psychological, caused by a medical condition, or by a substance, requires different approaches in order to be effective. This course will be an overview of clues that mental health professionals properly assess whether or not depressive symptoms are psychological and support LGBTQIA+ clients to build effective treatment teams to navigate care. We will also cover major classes of antidepressant and mood stabilizing psychotropic medications and their side effects to help therapists collaborate with psychiatrists more effectively.
Learning Objectives
By the end of this course, participants will be able to:
- Describe the differences between a typical and atypical depressive symptoms
- List at least 2 medications and 2 substances that have depressogenic effects
- Assess for when depressive symptoms may need a non-psychotherapeutic approach for appropriate treatment
- Describe the differences between at least 2 different classes of antidepressant medications
References:
Kavvalou, E., Michalopoulou, A., Vassilopoulou, E., et al. (2024). Association between exposure to environmental pollutants and risk of major depressive disorder in U.S. adults. JAMA Network Open, 7(2), e240275. https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2820702
Riera-Serra, P., Navarra-Ventura, G., Castro, A., Gili, M., Salazar-Cedillo, A., Ricci-Cabello, I., Roldán-Espínola, L., Coronado-Simsic, V., García-Toro, M., Gómez-Juanes, R., & Roca, M. (2024). Clinical predictors of suicidal ideation, suicide attempts and suicide death in depressive disorder: a systematic review and meta-analysis. European Archives of Psychiatry and Clinical Neuroscience, 274(7), 1543–1563. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00406-023-01716-5
Shi, R., Wang, Z., Yang, D., Hu, Y., Zhang, Z., Lan, D., Su, Y., & Wang, Y. (2024). Short-term and long-term efficacy of accelerated transcranial magnetic stimulation for depression: a systematic review and meta-analysis. BMC Psychiatry, 24(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12888-024-05545-1
Stojanovski, K., Poteski, D., & Raleva, M. (2017). Depression and social support among LGBT people: A systematic review. Psychiatry Research, 255, 424–431. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psychres.2017.05.020
Yin, J., Song, X., Wang, C., Lin, X., & Miao, M. (2023). Escitalopram versus other antidepressive agents for major depressive disorder: a systematic review and meta-analysis. BMC Psychiatry, 23(1), 876. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12888-023-05382-8
Price:
$39 for licensed
$35 for licensed in non-profit organization (Use coupon code at checkout: depressionNP)
$25 for pre-licensed (Use Coupon Code at checkout: depressionPL)
This course is included in the annual and lifetime memberships.
About the Presenter (Brief Bio)
Cadyn Cathers, PsyD, MBA (he/him/his) is a licensed clinical psychologist in California. He is a genderful, bisexual transgender man. He has a specialty in working with LGBTQIA+ communities, focused on psychoanalytic psychotherapy 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 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.
Additional Information
Instruction Level
This course is meant for an advanced audience, and assumes fundamentals of affirmative therapy.
Who should Attend
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.
$39.00
