Until recently in many parts of Europe, and currently in the United States and Canada, the affirmative model of care is the primary practice in place for working with gender-nonconforming and gender-diverse youth and children. In this episode, Stella and Sasha put some intention into a deeper exploration of what affirmation therapy is exactly. They take time flushing out not just what it is but also facilitate consideration of what it means and what it achieves. Together they reflect on where the concept of affirming therapy came from, how it evolved into its current practice, when a clinician follows the affirmation model, how does that look in practice, and what are the implications?
Sasha and Stella also explore varying types of therapy, both similar to and in contrast to the fundamental premise of the affirmative approach, what they think about it, and does it actually offer any context for a comprehensive therapeutic process in the name of care?
Links:
Gender: A Wider Lens (YouTube Channel)
Live Stream Event from the Genspect Conference: The Bigger Picture
Friday, April 28, 2023 at 11am(PT) / 2pm(ET) / 7pm(IT)
https://www.youtube.com/@widerlenspod
*NEW* Sponsor – GETA
Gender Exploratory Therapy Association
https://www.genderexploratory.com/
GETA Workshop: Gender Trouble, Authoritarianism, and the Flight from Womanhood
Saturday, April 22, 2023 — 6 pm‒7:30 pm(ET)
https://www.genderexploratory.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/GETA-Ilene-Philipson-Flyer-April-2023-3-2.pdf
Sasha’s YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/@SashaLPC
Genspect Conference: The Bigger Picture
https://genspect1.telltix.com/events/genspect1/845845/r/genspect-banner
Stella’s Book: What Your Teen is Trying to Tell You
http://www.stellaomalley.com/whatyourteenistryingtotellyou
Stella on Benjamin Boyce w/ Eliza Mondegreen
The Dangerous Radicalization of Gender Rhetoric | with Stella O’Malley & Eliza Mondegreen
https://youtu.be/63-bfpx2yy0
Critical Therapy Antidote (CTA) book, Sasha & Stella contributing authors
Cynical Therapies: Perspectives on the Antitherapeutic Nature of Critical Social Justice
https://www.amazon.com/Cynical-Therapies-Perspectives-Antitherapeutic-Critical
Carl Rogers: Founder Of The Humanistic Approach To Psychology
https://www.simplypsychology.org/carl-rogers.html
APA Guidelines for Psychological Practice With Transgender and Gender Nonconforming People
https://www.apa.org/practice/guidelines/transgender.pdf
Embracing a Gender-Affirmative Model for Transgender Youth: A growing number of individuals disclosing their transgender identities underscores the need for competent care for this population
https://www.instapaper.com/read/1594740153
LGBT Affirmative Therapy: Tips for creating a more lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, & queer inclusive practice from the AAMFT Queer Affirmative Caucus
https://www.ndsu.edu/fileadmin/hdfs/documents/misc/Affirmative_therapy_handout.pdf
If you liked this episode, more episodes you might find interesting:
“Conversations about Medical Interventions & Gender”
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLngVCeAoK6vtz3WOn5z8WUM5PidraNGZU
“Top Episodes for Therapists Working with Gender-Questioning”
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLngVCeAoK6vv_wKkIthqg5VwlsgOalbGl
“GIDS at the Tavistock”
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLngVCeAoK6vs7WNSdGF6ynVS9cviXsh9s
“The Dutch Studies”
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLngVCeAoK6vudCwfy0R2Rvg_SH2QxBJTu
Please visit http://www.widerlenspod.com to explore more content, access additional resources, or join our listener community.
To learn more about our sponsors, visit:
GETA
ReIME
Genspect
Sasha Ayad: https://inspiredteentherapy.com/parent-coaching
Stella O’Malley: http://www.stellaomalley.com/parent-coaching
Extended Notes:
- The live stream in Killarney includes conversations about the mental, psychological, and sociological aspects of gender.
- Sasha and Stella are working on the final edits of their upcoming book.
- Sasha is updating her YouTube channel to include new content.
- Sasha and Stella discuss the affirmation model and offer their opinions about the process.
- Stella highlights the differences between the therapeutic process and therapeutic support.
- Common underlying assumptions of therapists in the affirmative model.
- How many therapists have a transphobic bias?
- Sasha discusses the topics that can make therapists uncomfortable.
- The resurgence of the positivity culture of the ’90s in therapy.
- Combining positive thinking, social justice, and advocacy piece was a perfect recipe for the affirmative therapy model.
- How does the affirmative model affect clinicians who don’t 100% believe in it?
- The culture of the affirmative model is totalizing.
Quotes:
“Affirming a person in the context of therapy is actually quite boilerplate.” — Sasha [17:42]
“There is a difference between therapeutic process and therapeutic support.” — Stella [29:00]
“This positive, affirming thought process was in counseling. We were very ripe for the picking.” — Stella [55:10]
“The philosophy of affirmative therapy, especially as it begins to incorporate a social justice perspective by definition, is totalizing. It reminds me of high-control groups.” — Sasha [1:00:49]
