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Queer Mental Health Professionals Supporting LGBTQ* Health & Wellness

Queer Mental Health Professionals Supporting LGBTQ* Health & Wellness

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  • Christopher Shillington, MA, CCC, RP
  • Dr. Greg Mendelson, Psy.D., C.Psych.
  • Leslie Kirsh, MEd, RP
  • Carly Boyce, MSW, RSW
  • Jay Walker, MA, RP (Qualifying)
  • Tracey Jastinder Mann, MSW, RSW
  • Kathryn Bargis MSc, RP
  • Saadia Khan, B.A. Candidate
  • Dr. Allison Reeves, PhD. C.Psych

Allison Goes to the Movies

31 Oct, 2016  in Uncategorized by Christopher Shillington

moonlight

“I saw this on Saturday. A beautiful, sad and poignant film. Highly recommend.” – Allison Reeves
This is a helpful review:
The Guardian -Moonlight review – Devastating drama is vital portrait of black gay masculinity in America
Official Movie Trailer – Trailer

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"Chronic pain never meant the end of my sensuality, but its expansion into queerer, stranger, and more complicated modes. Alongside the forced expansion of my pain tolerance, I found a deep well of gratitude for my body’s capacity to feel. Without chronic pain, I may have never found that fresh water." ... See MoreSee Less

Chronic Pain Made My Sex Life Better, Not Worse

www.vice.com

In my ongoing recovery, I've cultivated a strong sense of entitlement to finding pleasure in my body.
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Two-Spirit, Cree Physician Revolutionizes Trans Care ... See MoreSee Less

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art via @micahbazant & @fwdtogether ——- Today on #TDoR we remember and celebrate the resilience of our trans siblings, and we defend our trans family. ❤️ ... See MoreSee Less

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Image description (9 pictures, alternating text and stick-figure comic):

Picture 1:

The Unspoken Complexity of "Self-Care" by Deanna Zandt

Self-care is thrown around a lot as a magic bullet to solve all of your problems. If you'd only take a second to treat yourself, you'd e fine!

But what does self-care really mean?

First, I think there's a difference between self-care and self-soothing. Self-soothing might look something like this, for example:

Picture 2:

Self-Soothing

Activities that provide distraction and/or comfort in difficult times

TV Bingeing, Bubble Bath, Fancy Beverages, Singing Loudly, Massage, Fresh Flowers, Time off from Home responsibilities & childcare, cuddling, exercise [each item accompanied with a drawing to demonstrate]

Picture 3:

Such delightful things!

But they may not actually get at stabilizing you, or creating opportunities for you to move forward.

That's where self-care can come in:

Picture 4:

Self-Care

Activities that help you find meaning, that support your growth & groundedness

Going to therapy, napping, eating well for your body, meditating, taking ownership of your finances, getting medical care, exercise, saying YES and NO when you really mean it, yoga, setting & keeping boundaries [each item accompanied with a drawing]

Picture 5:

Ah yes, now we're getting somewhere. (That "finances" one may or may not be borne out of my own traumatic experiences with money, btw.)

Still, it takes a LOT to be able to even do self-care, since the systems and cultural norms in which we currently live can feel impossible to navigate on our own.

That's why it's important to have workarounds:

Picture 6:

Community Care

Workarounds for systems that don't inherently support care (ie, capitalism!)

Childcare education collectives, dignified, supportive healthcare orgs, worker-owned coops, intimate relationships outside of tradition, romantic couplehood norms, credit unions, freecycle & buy nothing groups, co-housing, skill sharing & mutual aid [drawings accompanying each item]

Picture 7:

Taking one step further back, it's also important to recognize that workarounds and harm-reduction are also only one part of the solution. We also need to fundamentally overhaul (or tear down and rebuild entirely) the systems in which we live, so that we can be further enabled to work on the other kinds of care that we need.

Picture 8:

Structural Care

Systems that support community care, self-care AND self-soothing

Comprehensive universal healthcare, environmental protection, child-&eldercare for all, living wage, efficient public transportation, identity freedom, paid family leave, ahem: CAPITALISM [drawings accompanying each item, the word "capitalism" is on fire]

Picture 9:

No single person can do all the kinds of care that are needed all the time; we each can play a role in supporting each other in different ways, though. Now, go forth and care for each other-- and yourself.

Self-soothing, self-care, community care, structural care ... See MoreSee Less

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Contact Us

Our Therapists

  • Christopher Shillington, MA, CCC, RP
  • Dr. Greg Mendelson, Psy.D., C.Psych.
  • Leslie Kirsh, MEd, RP
  • Carly Boyce, MSW, RSW
  • Jay Walker, MA, RP (Qualifying)
  • Tracey Jastinder Mann, MSW, RSW
  • Kathryn Bargis MSc, RP
  • Saadia Khan, B.A. Candidate
  • Dr. Allison Reeves, PhD. C.Psych

· © 2016 Headshots by Jason Mortlock Umbrella Mental Health Network · Designed by boyFriday ·

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