Gender and Sexual Diversity Therapy
Although a person’s sexual or romantic orientation or gender identity may not be a source of distress, people who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender/gender variant, queer, questioning, asexual or any other orientation or gender identity may find that the social stigma of living as a minority is a source of stress or anxiety. Finding a qualified mental health professional who has experience, training and familiarity with the challenges members of the LGBTQI+ community often face can be critical to successful therapy outcomes.
I have extensive experience in working with Gender and Sexual Diversity and have trained in both the UK and Sweden in working in this area. I work with individuals and those in same sex and non-traditional relationships.
Despite rapidly growing cultural acceptance of diverse sexual and romantic orientations and gender identifications, oppression, discrimination and marginalization of LGBTQ people persists. Coping with discrimination, minority stress and oppression, coming out to one’s family, and sorting out an “authentic” sense of self in the face of social expectations and pressures can lead to higher levels of depression anxiety, substance use, and other mental health concerns for LGBTQ people. Working with a therapist who is both aware of and trained in working with these issues and understands the social context from which they stem is very important in bringing about change that leads to a satisfying and fulfilling life.
As a counsellor and psychotherapist working with gender and sexual diversity clients I follow the Irish Psychological Society Guidelines for Good Practice Working with Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual Clients and the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy's guidelines, competencies and recommendations for working with LGBT clients and the Association for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Issues in Counseling (ALGBTIC) Competencies for Counseling with Transgender Clients.
I have extensive experience in working with Gender and Sexual Diversity and have trained in both the UK and Sweden in working in this area. I work with individuals and those in same sex and non-traditional relationships.
Despite rapidly growing cultural acceptance of diverse sexual and romantic orientations and gender identifications, oppression, discrimination and marginalization of LGBTQ people persists. Coping with discrimination, minority stress and oppression, coming out to one’s family, and sorting out an “authentic” sense of self in the face of social expectations and pressures can lead to higher levels of depression anxiety, substance use, and other mental health concerns for LGBTQ people. Working with a therapist who is both aware of and trained in working with these issues and understands the social context from which they stem is very important in bringing about change that leads to a satisfying and fulfilling life.
As a counsellor and psychotherapist working with gender and sexual diversity clients I follow the Irish Psychological Society Guidelines for Good Practice Working with Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual Clients and the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy's guidelines, competencies and recommendations for working with LGBT clients and the Association for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Issues in Counseling (ALGBTIC) Competencies for Counseling with Transgender Clients.
| gender_and_sexual_diversity_therapy.pdf |
| gender_and_sexuality_diversity__gsd__respecting_difference_dominic_davies_meg_john_barker.pdf |
| bacp_on_counselling_lgbt.pdf |
| aca_competencies_for_counseling_with_transgender_clients.pdf |
| psi_guidelines_for_good_practice_with_lgb_clients_(final)_(1).pdf |
| kink_aware_therapy_guidelines.pdf |