Much of our focus in providing gender care is on gender dysphoria. While this is a clear need in our work we have noticed that much less attention is paid to helping clients tap into gender euphoria as a means of coping, affirmation, and resiliency building. The power of community and queer joy has also suffered through the pandemic and loss of physical communal spaces. We would like to draw attention to the important therapeutic benefits of drawing from these resources.

Learning Objectives:
At the end of this presentation, participants will be able to:

1. Define and give three examples of gender euphoria and micro-affirmations 

2. Describe two ways that increasing experiences of gender euphoria and micro-affirmations can improve mental health

3. Name two ways to support clients in increasing gender euphoria.

Denise Crooks, MPH, LICSW (she/her/hers) is a therapist within Lifespan's Psychiatry department with a focus on providing care to members of the LGBTQ+, kink, and consensually non-monogamous communities. She is also Co-Director of the LGBTQ+ Health and Advocacy Scholarly Concentration at Alpert Medical School. In addition, Denise enjoys advocating for legislative change to improve the lives of LGBTQ+ Rhode Islanders. 

Allie Scheer, LICSW (they/them) is a clinical social worker with strong interests in gender care, trauma, and social justice. They began their career in NY but have been living and working in RI for the past 6 years. They started with Thundermist as a clinician on the Trans Health Team and currently oversee the Behavioral Health department at the West Warwick location.

• References:
  Ashley Austin, Ryan Papciak & Lindsay Lovins (2022) Gender euphoria: a grounded theory exploration of experiencing gender affirmation

• Duran, A., & Coloma, R. S. (2023). "Chapter 10 Queer Joy as an Affective Incitement to Queer and Trans Studies in Education". In Bridging the Rainbow Gap.

• Hendricks, M. L., & Testa, R. J. (2012). A conceptual framework for clinical work with transgender and gender nonconforming clients: An adaptation of the Minority Stress Model.

• Jacobsen, Kai, Devor, Aaron. 2022. "Moving from Gender Dysphoria to Gender Euphoria: Trans Experiences of Positive Gender-Related Emotions."

• Reagan Patrick Mitchell (2022) The Art of Ridicule: Black Queer Joy in the Face of the Fatigues

• Testa, R. J., Habarth, J., Peta, J., Balsam, K., & Bockting, W. (2015). Development of the Gender Minority Stress and Resilience Measure.

• Will J. Beischel, Stéphanie E. M. Gauvin & Sari M. van Anders (2022) “A little shiny gender breakthrough”: Community understandings of gender euphoria.