What’s the Harm in Affirming?

Anyone studying therapy is inundated with messaging about the supposed virtues of “gender affirming care.” But what about the other side of the story? Where can therapists go to learn about the drawbacks of this model, and the unique needs of those who have been harmed by it?

School psychologist and Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist Tim Crosby asked me to present on gender issues to his graduate trainees, who are studying to become therapists. This is raw, unedited footage of my conversation with Tim and his students. They asked excellent questions: what’s the harm in affirming? Shouldn’t we respect a client’s autonomy? How could entire licensing boards be so wrong about such an important issue? In the process, I elucidated the problems with medicalization and how it implicates our role as therapists; why children cannot consent to puberty blockers; and how we might do a better job at providing psychoeducation to families as to the true risks and benefits of these fad “treatments.”

It was my honor to provide this training. I am glad to see therapists acting ethically by trying to learn as much as they can about important, impactful issues. If you would like me to provide a training to your students or organization, get in touch: hello at sometherapist dot com.

This video can be found exclusively on my YouTube channel and won’t be broadcast to You Must Be Some Kind of Therapist podcast on audio platforms. Make sure you’ve subscribed to my YouTube channel so you don’t miss a beat!