Jack Drescher

Judith M. Glassgold

Go beyond traditional approaches to therapy, research, and teaching Psychotherapy works toward change, but has traditionally focused solely on the individual. Today it is understood that discrimination and other adverse social conditions adversely affect the mental health of minority groups. Activism and LGBT Psychology takes note of the influence of social factors and offers examples of how mental health professionals can use their professional skills to empower the LGBT community. Respected leaders in the field of psychotherapy describe theoretical, clinical, community interventions, and personal approaches to changing attitudes toward LGBT people and within LGBT communities. Prejudice against a minority has an undeniable impact on mental health treatment. Recognizing and understanding this dynamic, Activism and LGBT Psychology reveals strategies to lessen societal discrimination, work for positive change, and reinforce LGBT-affirmative mental health practices. This valuable guide shows how to integrate the mental health professional’s unique skills into activism for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender issues. Topics in Activism and LGBT Psychology include: integrating activism into clinical practice theoretical alternatives for clinical practice mental health issues as the consequences of social injustice strategies for using liberation psychology in psychotherapy with LGBT clients practical strategies to bring an integrated clinical approach which encourages client empowerment and self-definition how research can be social activism providing training and support to make educational professionals agents of change personal accounts of integrating professional work with an activist role and more! Activism and LGBT Psychology is a positive, insightful guide for change that is valuable for community psychiatrists, psychologists, sociologists, educators, students, and professionals in the mental health field.

Activism and LGBT Psychology

Michael Schroeder

Ariel Shidlo

Hear the other side of the story on sexual conversion therapy! In their fervor to “fix” homosexuals, practitioners of sexual conversion therapies have often overlooked or completely dismissed the possible psychological and social side effects of such treatments. Sexual Conversion Therapy: Ethical, Clinical, and Research Perspectives works to counterbalance the clinical and ethical omissions of overzealous therapists who have focused on efficacy and outcome at the expense of their patients’self-esteem. Sexual Conversion Therapy features first-person accounts of patients and clinicians, including psychotherapists who themselves have undergone treatments ranging from psychoanalysis to religious faith healing to aversion behavior conditioning and even electroshock therapy. In addition to examining the history and ethics of conversion therapy, the book presents empirical data on current practice and recovery processes for survivors of failed conversion attempts. Sexual Conversion Therapy presents current perspectives on the harmful impact of sexual orientation interventions, including: “Cures: A Gay Man?s Odyssey” “Becoming Gay” “A Psychologist?s Journey Through the Ex-Gay Movement” “Therapeutic Antidotes: Gay and Bisexual Men Recover from Conversion Therapies” “I?m Your Handyman: A History of Reparative Therapies” Nearly 30 years after the American Psychiatric Association removed homosexuality from the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, a small but dedicated group of mental health practitioners continues to diagnose and treat homosexuality as a mental illness. Sexual Conversion Therapy is an essential alternative to the bulk of published material that champions treatments that produce a handful of heterosexuals “cured” of their “illness,” while inflicting emotional and psychological damage on countless gay and lesbian patients who failed to convert.

Ethical, Clinical and Research Perspectives

Sexual Conversion Therapy

Elizabeth Peel

Victoria Clarke

Gain insight into crucial British mental health approaches for LGB individuals There is very little collaborative literature between LGB-affirmative psychologists and psychotherapists in the United States and the United Kingdom. British Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Psychologies: Theory, Research, and Practice may well be a crucial beginning step in building dialogue between these two countries on important LGB psychotherapy developments. Leading authorities comprehensively examine the latest studies and effective therapies for LGB individuals in the United Kingdom. Practitioners will discover an extensive survey of the most current developments to supplement their own work, while educators and students will find diverse expert perspectives on which to consider and broaden their own viewpoints. This unique book offers an informative introduction to British psychosocial perspectives on theory, research, and practice. British Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Psychologies provides a critical exploration of the recent history of LGB psychology and psychotherapy in the United Kingdom, focusing on key publications and outlining the current terrain. Other chapters are organized into two thematic sections. The first section explores theoretical frameworks in United Kingdom therapeutic practice, while the second section examines sexual minority identities and their needs for support and community. Topics in British Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Psychologies include: similarities and differences between LGBT psychology and psychotherapy in the United States and United Kingdom gay affirmative therapy (GAT) as a positive framework existential-phenomenological approach to psychotherapy core issues in the anxiety about whether or not to “come out” object relations theory exploring homo-negativity in the therapeutic process aspects of psychotherapy that lesbians and gay men find helpful research into how the mainstreaming of lesbian and gay culture has affected the lives of LGB individuals a study into LGB youth issues difficulties of gay men with learning disabilities—with suggestions on how to offer the best psychological service a study on gay athletes’ experiences of coming out in a heterosexist world British Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Psychologies takes a needed step toward sharing valuable psychosocial perspectives between countries. This useful, enlightening text is perfect for educators, students, psychologists, psychotherapists, and counselors working in the field of sexuality.

Theory, Research, and Practice

British Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Psychologies

Ann D'Ercole

What does it mean to be member of a gay/lesbian couple or family? The contributors to Uncoupling Convention: Psychoanalytic Approaches to Same-Sex Couples and Families address this question by drawing on two cultural movements of the twentieth century: psychoanalysis and the gay/lesbian civil rights movement. Taken together, these traditions provide a framework for understanding, and providing psychotherapeutic assistance to, gay and lesbian patients who present with troubled relationships. The contributors to this volume espouse a clinical focus that supplants the heterosexual perspectives of traditional psychoanalysis with new narratives about family life. Drawing on cultural, feminist, gay/lesbian, and queer studies, they illustrate how concepts of gender and sexuality are routinely informed by unproven heterosexist assumptions - both conscious and unconscious. By examining the changing developmental needs and family dynamics of gay and lesbian families, the contributors broaden our very understanding of what a family is. They illustrate how contrasting cultural constructions of homosexuality and family life play out in same-sex couples. They delineate the multiple realities of gender subjectivity, both in children and in their gay parents. They ponder how technology is shaping reproductive experiences, as lesbians become part of the biomedical system. And they explore recurrent themes of feeling different and ashamed, including the shameful secrecy surrounding same-sex couples' financial matters. In uncoupling conventions, the contributors are effectively coupling post-Freudian psychoanalysis with the insights of queer theory and the critical edge of contemporary cultural studies. The result is a framework for addressing the relational and family-related challenges of gay and lesbian patients that ranges far beyond traditional approaches and will benefit analytic, couples, and family therapists alike.

Psychoanalytic Approaches to Same-Sex Couples and Families

Uncoupling Convention

Joseph P. Merlino

Interviews and first-hand accounts of an historic decision that affected the mental health profession—and American society and culture Through the personal accounts of those who were there, American Psychiatry and Homosexuality: An Oral History examines the 1973 decision by the American Psychiatric Association (APA) to remove homosexuality from its diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (DSM). This unique book includes candid one-on-one interviews with key mental health professionals who played a role in the APA’s decision, those who helped organize gay, lesbian, and bisexual psychiatrists after the decision, and others who have made significant contributions in this area within the mental health field. American Psychiatry and Homosexuality presents an insider’s view of how homosexuality was removed from the DSM, the gradual organization of gay and lesbian psychiatrists within the APA, and the eventual formation of the APA-allied Association of Gay & Lesbian Psychiatrists (AGLP). The book profiles 17 individuals, both straight and gay, who made important contributions to organized psychiatry and the mental health needs of lesbian and gay patients, and illustrates the role that gay and lesbian psychiatrists would later play in the mental health field when they no longer had to hide their identities. Individuals profiled in American Psychiatry and Homosexuality include: Dr. John Fryer, who disguised his identity to speak before the APA’s annual meeting in 1972 on the discrimination gay psychiatrists faced in their own profession Dr. Charles Silverstein, who saw the diagnosis of homosexuality as a means of social control Dr. Lawrence Hartmann, who helped reform the APA and later served as its President in 1991-92 Dr. Robert J. Campbell, who helped persuade the APA’s Nomenclature Committee to hear scientific data presented by gay activists Dr. Judd Marmor, an early psychoanalytic critic of theories that pathologized homosexuality Dr. Robert Spitzer, who chaired the APA’s Nomenclature Committee Dr. Frank Rundle, who helped organize the first meeting of what would become the APA Caucus of Gay, Lesbian and Bisexual Psychiatrists Dr. David Kessler, AGLP President from 1980-82 Dr. Nanette Gartrell, a pioneer of feminist issues within the APA Dr. Stuart Nichols, President of the AGLP in 1983-84 and a founding member of the Gay and Lesbian Psychiatrists of New York (GLPNY) Dr. Emery Hetrick, a founding member of both AGLP and GLPNY Dr. Bertram Schaffner, who was instrumental in providing group psychotherapy for physicians with AIDS Dr. Martha Kirkpatrick, a long-time leader in psychiatry and psychoanalysis, both as a woman and an “out” lesbian Dr. Richard Isay, the first openly gay psychoanalyst in the American Psychoanalytic Association Dr. Richard Pillard, best known for studying the incidence of homosexuality in families of twins Dr. Edward Hanin, former Speaker of the APA Assembly Dr. Ralph Roughton, the first openly gay Training and Supervising Psychoanalyst to be recognized within the American and International Psychoanalytic Associations American Psychiatry and Homosexuality presents the personal, behind-the-scenes accounts of a major historical event in psychiatry and medicine and of a decision that has affected society and culture ever since. This is an essential resource for mental health educators, supervisors, and professionals; historians; and LGBT readers in general.

An Oral History

American Psychiatry and Homosexuality

Do the conventional insights of depth psychology have anything to offer the gay patient? Can contemporary psychoanalytic theory be used to make sense of gay identities in ways that are helpful rather than hurtful, respectful rather than retraumatizing? In Psychoanalytic Therapy and the Gay Man Jack Drescher addresses these very questions as he outlines a therapeutic approach to issues of sexual identity that is informed by traditional therapeutic goals (such as psychological integration and more authentic living) while still respecting, even honoring, variations in sexual orientation. Drescher's exploration of the subjectivities of gay men in psychoanalytic psychotherapy is more than a long-overdue corrective to the inadequate and often pathologizing tomes of traditional psychoanalytic writers. It is a vitally human testament to the richly varied inner experiences of gay men. Drescher does not assume that sexual orientation is the entire or even major focus of intensive psychotherapy. But he does argue, passionately and convincingly, that issues of sexual identity - which encompass a spectrum of possibilities for any gay man - must be addressed in an atmosphere of honest encounter that allows not only for exploration of conflict and dissociation but also for restitutive confirmation of the patient's right to be himself. Through its abundance of first-person testimony from both clinical and literary sources, Psychoanalytic Therapy and the Gay Man provides the reader with an unforgettable grasp of what it is like to discover that one is gay in our society and then to find the courage and humanity to live with that knowledge. Any mental health professional - regardless of his or her sexual orientation - who wishes to deal therapeutically with gay men will find Drescher's work indispensable. But it will also be compelling reading for anyone seeking psychological insight into gay men's lives and concerns.

Psychoanalytic Therapy and the Gay Man

Kenneth J Zucker

Defenders and critics of the controversial Spitzer study analyze its methodologies and findings In 2001, Robert L. Spitzer, MD, presented his study on sexual conversion therapy with its controversial findings that some homosexuals can change their sexual orientation. The resulting media sensation and political firestorm enraged the study’s critics and emboldened its supporters. Ex-Gay Research: Analyzing the Spitzer Study and Its Relation to Science, Religion, Politics, and Culture presents leading experts examining Spitzer’s research methodology and findings to discern whether the study itself deserves deeper consideration or outright dismissal. Every facet of the study is reviewed to discuss the positive or negative aspects of the results, its significance in political and social terms, and the implications for the future. Dr. Spitzer himself was an instrumental figure in the American Psychiatric Association's decision in 1973 to remove homosexuality as a mental illness listing from the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual-III. His later study that states that in some individuals, homosexuality may be more fluid than previously thought stirred controversy in the psychiatric community and society at large. His study is presented here to allow the reader to evaluate and consider it for themselves. Leading experts then voice their own pro or con views on the methodology and findings. Ex-Gay Research: Analyzing the Spitzer Study and Its Relation to Science, Religion, Politics, and Culture fearlessly illustrates the sometimes fuzzy boundary between science and politics, courageously spotlighting the culture wars now dividing our society. Ex-Gay Research: Analyzing the Spitzer Study and Its Relation to Science, Religion, Politics, and Culture discusses: the ex-gay movement the nature of scientific inquiry the relationship between science and politics the results of sexual conversion therapies gay and lesbian rights Ex-Gay Research: Analyzing the Spitzer Study and Its Relation to Science, Religion, Politics, and Culture is essential reading for sex researchers, mental health professionals, pastoral counselors, political activists, and any person asking if one can truly “change” his or her homosexuality.

Analyzing the Spitzer Study and Its Relation to Science, Religion, Politics, and Culture

Ex-Gay Research

Ubaldo Leli

Gain an in-depth understanding of the issues, concerns, and problems faced by transgender individuals Transgender Subjectivities is a comprehensive guide for understanding the issues and concerns of the emerging transgender phenomenon. As transgender individuals become more “out” in society, the need to understand their concerns, the problems they face, and the resources available to them becomes rapidly more acute. This book offers a diverse yet coherent view of this ever-expanding field. It provides an overview of transsexual manifestations designed to expose therapists as well as the general public to this actively expanding field. In Transgender Subjectivities, experts in transgender studies examine historical, theoretical, clinical, and subjective aspects of the transgender experience. The contributors include some of the most respected and experienced clinicians and scholars in the field, such as Aaron H. Devor and Anne A. Lawrence, as well as several cutting-edge contemporary theorists, and a number of eloquent transsexual writers—including Dallas Denny and Griffin Hansbury—giving this book a wide and varied perspective. Topics addressed in Transgender Subjectivities include: the origin of the “transsexual phenomenon” issues of guilt in the process of self-acceptance of gender nonconformity personal accounts of individuals who have coped with the experience of transgenderism the impact of transsexual transition on the children and partners of transitioning individuals the various manifestations of—and responses to—transsexuality resource and psychotherapeutic guidelines for specialists as well as non-specialists and much more! Featuring a variety of voices from case studies and theoretical analyses to personal experiences and reflections, Transgender Subjectivities renders a difficult and expansive subject comprehensible to the novice, while a

A Clinician's Guide

Transgender Subjectivities

Ronald Hellman

Take your knowledge of the mental health issues that affect LGBT people to the next level! The Handbook of LGBT Issues in Community Mental Health provides reliable, up-to-date information on clinical issues, administrative practices, and health concerns related to the provision of public sector mental health services to LGBT people. The handbook presents clinical case material and describes various current clinical programs, with details about how they were developed and fostered, as well as their unique role in the provision of mental health services to this population. Contributors share their experiences developing two of the largest public LGBT programs in the United States and offer practical strategies for developing LGBT mental health programming in any community. This single source brings together mental health clinicians, administrators, and advocates whose work involves public sector issues that concern the LGBT community. These seasoned experts provide in-depth information for those who need to know about the current state of mental health care in public psychiatry for LGBT individuals. The book also explores the professional and popular literature on the subject, providing a broad overview of the issues in this expanding clinical area. The Handbook of LGBT Issues in Community Mental Health contains five chapters that target policy, administrative, and programmatic issues, providing a neglected perspective for clinicians, program developers, administrators, advocates, and funders. In addition, you’ll find: two case studies that vividly demonstrate the relevance of culturally appropriate services and highlight the reasons why services in this area are so sorely needed a psychiatrist’s recollections of the changes he faced while working in a homophobic environment within the Veterans Administration system fascinating interviews with Francis Lu and Barbara Warren that probe the thoughts, experience, and opinions of these leaders in the development of public sector mental health programs for LGBT people an examination of the role of gender identity in the treatment of a male-to-female transgender person with major mental illness In the Handbook of LGBT Issues in Community Mental Health, you’ll also find practical, how-they-did-it information that shows: how LGBT organizations in New York State organized to gain public funding for mental health and other human services, and how a new advocacy strategy that consolidated LGBT human service organizations into a statewide network was pioneered in that state how mental health care for sexual minority teens was incorporated into the medical clinic setting at a major metropolitan hospital how a culturally sensitive program for LGBT people with major mental illness was developed in New York State’s largest community mental health center how a small, volunteer community health agency developed into a multi-million dollar facility that provides comprehensive health care to New York City’s LGBT community

Handbook of LGBT Issues in Community Mental Health

Erica Schoenberg

Examine gay and lesbian psychoanalysis from a variety of perspectives! Psychotherapy with Gay Men and Lesbians: Contemporary Dynamic Approaches presents case histories of psychotherapy sessions with gay and lesbian patients, focusing on today's psychoanalytical approaches. Dedicated to enhancing the emotional, psychological, and psychiatric treatment of gay men, lesbians, and bisexuals, the book features prominent analysts with a wide range of clinical and theoretical approaches. The foremost experts in the therapeutic field address issues affecting gay and lesbian patients from psychoanalytic perspectives that respect the patients' sexual identities. Psychotherapy with Gay Men and Lesbians reflects the significant clinical and theoretical changes therapists face in dealing with issues of gender and sexuality. New ways of thinking coexist with traditional theory as paradigm shifts in psychotherapy and psychoanalysis affect the treatment of gay, lesbian, and bisexual patients. This book provides a forum to address those changes through clinical papers and discussions. Psychotherapy with Gay Men and Lesbians includes discussion of case reports that deal with: gay therapists treating gay patients countertransferential enactments of sex and gender in treatment rethinking the meanings of homosexuality psychotherapeutic treatment of gay male patients with AIDS and much more! Psychotherapy with Gay Men and Lesbians is an essential forum for the exchange of clinical information on gay and lesbian psychotherapy. The book is a valuable resource for psychiatrists, psychologists, social work therapists, psychoanalysts, and anyone interested in today's psychoanalytic approaches to homosexuality.

Contemporary Dynamic Approaches

Psychotherapy with Gay Men and Lesbians

Petros Levounis

Mary E. Barber

The LGBT Casebook provides a general overview and roadmap for clinicians new to treating LGBT individuals, and it deepens and updates knowledge for those already seeing these patients in their practices.

Jack Drescher

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