Linda Stone Fish • Friday Afternoon
Most of our assumptions about working with families of adolescents fail to address issues of their sexual orientation. Yet many young people in therapy aren’t sure of their sexual identity, don’t know how to figure it out, and are afraid to discuss it with their parents. It’s vital, therefore, that therapists know how to create a refuge in family sessions in which young clients can safely explore their sexual orientation, and where their families can learn to accept and nurture the young person. In this workshop, you’ll learn a four-stage model for working with this population in a gay-affirmative way that enhances trust and intimacy within the family. You’ll leave with a greater understanding of how the difficult process of helping children sort out their sexual identities can become a gift to the entire family.
Linda Stone Fish, M.S.W., Ph.D., the David B. Falk Endowed Professor of Marriage and Family Therapy at Syracuse University, is the author of Nurturing Queer Youth: Family Therapy Transformed.
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