Abstract
The United States is mired in deep conflicts about what it means to nurture and protect children. Depending on geography, trans-affirming parents may face very different cultural stressors; from accusations of child abuse to demands for advocacy that go beyond the ordinary or typical stressors of raising a child. Parents who struggle with lack of information or ambivalence regarding their children’s gender and sexual identities can take on very polarized perspectives on how to best support their transgender child.
This course will utilize community psychology, family systems theory, and psychodynamic approaches to consider how affirmative clinicians can intervene and help parents reduce stress and make more mindful decisions for their children. Vignettes and facilitated conversation will be used to highlight transference and countertransference dynamics, intergenerational transmission of trauma, and earlier conflicts within the nuclear family system. During the course, clinicians will begin to collectively develop an affirmative community network of multidisciplinary providers to better support families and through questioning, coming out, and transitioning.
Learning Objectives:
By the end of this course, participants will learn to:
- Identify at least 3 ways in which intergenerational trauma and/or earlier family conflicts may complicate a parent’s ability to best support their transgender child.
- Discuss 3 ways in which parents of transgender children can effectively manage anxieties across the ecosystem and make grounded and thoughtful decisions about social and medical transition for their child.
- Discuss the importance of an affirmative community network of multidisciplinary providers to create pathways for families to better support their children’s gender and sexuality.
About the Presenter
Melissa Dellens (she/they) works with teens and young adults with intersectional identities as an associate marriage and family therapist in private practice. 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 and Level 1 of the Trauma Resiliency Model.
Price
$39 for licensed
$29 for licensed in non-profit organization (Use coupon code at checkout: ParentsNP)
$19 for pre-licensed (Use Coupon Code at checkout: ParentsPL)
This course is included in the annual and lifetime memberships.
Completion Requirements
Homestudy
You will need to take the post-test with at least a 75% score in order to receive your certificate for a homestudy course.
Additional Information
Instruction Level
This course is meant for an intermediate audience.
Therapists with extensive experience working with transgender and nonbinary clients will likely find this course basic.
Who should Attend
Psychologists, counselors, and marriage and family therapists and social workers.
Format
Recorded live webinar
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 the event date and “accommodation request” in the subject line at least 1 week ahead of time. 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.
Price
$39 for licensed
$29 for licensed in non-profit organization (Use coupon code at checkout: ParentsNP)
$19 for pre-licensed (Use Coupon Code at checkout: ParentsPL)
This course is included in the annual and lifetime memberships.
$39.00
