Gay Affirmative Therapy for the Straight Clinician: The Essential Guide

Joe Kort

Overview—Contents—Excerpt

It has been over three decades since the American Psychiatric Association removed homosexuality as a category of deviant behavior from the DSM. Same-sex marriage is recognized in certain states, gay-straight alliances are springing up in high schools across the country, and major religious denominations are embracing gay clergy. Yet despite the sea change of attitudes toward homosexuality, many well-meaning straight therapists are still at a loss as to how to effectively counsel their gay and lesbian clients. This book will offer straight therapists the tools they need to counsel gay and lesbian clients effectively.

This book presents principles of gay affirmative therapy (GAT). GAT is not a specific system of doing therapy but rather a framework for clinicians to approach work with gay and lesbian clients. Some of the fundamental principles of GAT include: understanding and combating heterosexism; recognizing heterosexual privilege where it exists—institutionally, legally, and societally; and understanding and combating your own homophobia—and that of your clients. In general, GAT explores the trauma, shame, alienation, isolation, and neglect that occur to lesbians and gays as children.

This book also explains what GAT is not. GAT does not mean that therapists blame homophobia for everything and overlook mental and emotional problems. It does not de-emphasize emotional disorders and avoid examining any pathology. It does not explain and eradicate all the problems faced by gays and lesbians.

Does this seem confusing? Then you’re on the right track! As therapists, your responsibility is to be armed with all the up-to-date information. Knowing all the ways problems can arise, you can then assess with clients—and with their help—what applies and what doesn’t. This book provides concrete guidelines for getting to the heart of the matter with clients. It will help you examine your own imprinted heterosexism and develop comfortable, appreciative feelings about homosexuality so you can successfully work with gay clients. It will help you screen yourself for any covert homophobia and it will help you approach your work with gay and lesbian clients in a manner most likely to be successful.

Contents

1. Psychotherapy for Gays and Lesbians: A Brief History

2. What is Gay Affirmative Therapy?

3. Growing Up Gay and Lesbian

4. Covert Cultural Sexual Abuse

5. Post Traumatic Stress Disorder from Growing Up Gay/Lesbian

6. Stages of Coming Out

7. Gay and Lesbian Families of Origin

8. Developmental Insults

Excerpt

From Gay Affirmative Therapy for the Straight Clinician:

Most straight humanitarian therapists who say they are “gay-affirmative” mean that they are gay-positive and gay-friendly. They tell gay and lesbian clients things like, “I am open-minded” and “People are people.” Having understood the stigma attached to these clients, they are well-intentioned, kindly accepting and pro-gay—but it’s not enough. To be uninformed is a form of prejudice by omission.

Over the years, I’ve known well-meaning gay and lesbian colleagues and students who were themselves uninformed and unaware of the specific issues that gays and lesbians face. They’ve said they didn’t realize there were stages to coming out, or that there were differences between gay and straight couples.

Gay Affirmative Therapy does not in itself constitute a specific system of psychotherapy but rather provides a framework that informs psychotherapeutic work with gay patients.

Having a healing, affirmative stance in the therapy room helps relieve some of the distorted thinking that most clients bring in. But having an affirmative stance without being informed about the specific issues that gays and lesbians experience limits your clinical effectiveness.

GAT takes the position that there is nothing inherently wrong with being gay or lesbian. What’s wrong is what is done to gay men and lesbians by a homophobic, homo-ignorant society and heterosexist therapy. Living in a shame-based culture creates a variety of behavioral and psychological disorders. GAT focuses on repairing the harm done to these clients, helping them move from shame to pride.

About the Author

Joe Kort, MA, MSW, teaches gay and lesbian studies at Wayne State University’s School of Social Work, and since 1985 has had a private practice specializing in gay affirmative psychotherapy, mixed orientation marriages, sexual addiction, sexual abuse, and Imago Relationship Therapy. He provides trainings to straight clinicians about gay affirmative therapy around the country. He is the author of two books on gay male identity and relationships as well as numerous journal and magazine articles.

ISBN 10: 0-393-70497-1
ISBN 13: 978-0-393-70497-6
March 2008; 304 pages; hardcover