Transgender Experiences Across the Lifespan: Constructs, Considerations, and Clinical Applications

The cultural narrative surrounding gender is changing. More and more, the vocabulary we use to define our experience is changing, becoming more nuanced and creating more space for gender non-conforming individuals to be seen. Over the course of this workshop, we will explore the power of social constructs to shape our understanding of self and of identity. We will examine the four constructs of sex, gender, presentation, and orientation in detail and take the time to process and become familiar with the complex interactions between these ideas. Then we will move on to explore the experience of trans people across the life course, focusing on childhood and adolescence, adult transition, and the non-binary experience, before breaking into process groups to discuss case studies and answer clinical questions. This seminar will be an interactive exploration of how sex and gender impact our clients and ourselves as clinicians.