Title:Treating Anxiety and Depression in Gender Diverse Populations
Recorded on June 3, 2020
Featuring: Lauren Wadsworth, PhD

Dr. Lauren P. Wadsworth’s clinical practice and research primarily focus on transdiagnostic features of anxiety disorders, with additional specialties treating anxiety in LGBTQ+ populations and providing ERP for OCD.

Dr. Wadsworth’s clinical interests include providing evidenced based treatments (primarily CBT, ERP, and Acceptance-based strategies) to individuals with anxiety and depressive disorders in outpatient settings. Dr. Wadsworth’s clinical and research work are both largely informed by a commitment to continuously striving to increase her cultural humility as a clinician and researcher.

Webinar Description

Gender diverse children, teens, and adults are becoming increasingly comfortable coming out and expressing their gender identities. As clinicians we need to meet this social change with an increase in our cultural humility and competency working with individuals who identify as gender minorities/gender diverse/rising gender identities. We must become more practiced with the vocabulary surrounding gender identity and increase our comfort discussing the social impacts of expressing a stigmatized identity. Gender diverse individuals face unique stressors, paired with increased risk for developing anxiety and depression. This webinar will discuss population specific components of anxiety and depression development (e.g. role of stigma, coming out), and will provide tangible ways to provide more accurate and affirming research, and/or more culturally informed therapy.

Learning Objectives

At the end of this session, participants will be able to…                                                              1.      Describe adjustments to demographic/intake forms used in their research/ clinical work that would make forms more affirming and accurate for sexual and gender minorities

2.      Create more culturally informed case conceptualizations for sexual and gender minority patients

3.      Summarize how to aid patients in identifying and managing stigma using cognitive restructuring