Thoughts on searching for a GC therapist

[CeruleanBlu]

I’m looking into starting relationship therapy and feel it’s important that the person I work with is broadly aware of/ sympathetic to Gender Critical thinking.

It’s only minorly related to my reasons for seeking couples therapy but it is relevant in terms of a big and unsettling shift in my world view over the last few years. A new distrust in what I thought were fairly solid progressive individuals and institutions. A new understanding of the sheer scale of misogyny in our society and the lengths people (some friends too) are willing to go to uphold absurd dogma. Scales falling all over the place!

It’s definitely something that will come up in conversation and it feels important that the therapist will understand what I’m talking about and not just be silently thinking I’m an uninformed bigot.

I started researching couples therapists and realised that, for pretty obvious reasons, alignment with GC beliefs isn’t something anyone is likely to broadcast.

I’m not sure if I should find someone who I think I could work with and ask them directly. Would anyone even tell me?
Or do you just need to find someone you click with and trust in the process rather than need to know their personal beliefs?

I’d love to know if anyone has experience of finding a GC therapist or discussing their GC beliefs as a part of therapy. Or if there are any qualified therapists able to advise?

I know the focus of this post is on my personal dilemma but thought it’s also an interesting question to ask.

I suspect the vast majority of therapists know perfectly well what sex is. Same as the general population.

PM'ing you with details of one. She might be able to put you in touch with another one, more locally to you.

There are a lot of GC therapists out there. There have been massive disagreements about gender ideology on the counsellor forums I am a member of but sadly on the main one I am on they shut down any discussion of the issues.

If you remember the Meg John Barker fiasco a lot of counsellors were very vocal in their disapproval.

I don't know if I would directly ask a counsellor if they are GC. They should keep their personal beliefs out of the counselling room anyway.

Some sensible comments given above.

I would think it’s unlikely that any counsellor would be a) a genderist and b) make that known but I do understand the wish to work with someone that fits - the GC position (even if not ever made known) may influence that fit so no harm if you can find one that advertises/is known for being GC.

I’ll also DM you a link, might be a bit later.

Ooh, I would also love to have the details of any gc therapists too. I've been thinking of starting therapy for a while, (long overdue) but this is definitely something I want to discuss.

I am GC psychotherapist. My advice is to ask directly. Therapists will expect direct questions from potential clients, and good therapists will answer non-defensively. Or they will explain (again non-defensively) why they won't give you an answer.

I agree about asking directly as part of the ‘interview’ process. A decent therapist won’t immediately reveal their GC beliefs but will explore the importance of holding everyone’s views as OK.
In my anonymity on here, I’m prepared to reveal my Not OK prejudices and say that a therapist who is captured by gender ideology is likely to reveal their own beliefs in the interview context, thereby giving you a heads-up to run a mile.

Avoid all the ones with she/her etc in bio for a start (I see this increasingly).

I know a wonderful counsellor who is very sensible in every other way but attended training from gendered intelligence and has she/her in her bio and I wouldn’t go near her so in relation to this so it’s a bit of a minefield really.

Is there a way to phrase the question so that it isn't quite so blunt or reliant on 'in' terminology? I know a woman who would be but would not use this exact term to describe herself.

I asked this question some time ago and I think the best advice was to come straight out and ask. One of our friends had a short course of CBT with a recommended therapist and at the first sessions asked. The therapist said that this really wasn't about what she (the therapist) thought or believed and my friend explained that she wouldn't want a therapist who was strongly wedded to any particular faith or to extreme right or left-wing beliefs and if money was going to change hands she wanted to know who she was dealing with. They didn't continue the arrangement.

I think therapists have been able to hide all sorts of shit behind that 'I'm a therapist, you can trust me to be unprejudiced' malarkey. There's a lot of dreadful, exploitative, abusive therapy going on. Alex Drummond is a certified therapist, ffs!