LGBT affirmative psychology: what it is and what is its therapeutic role

For centuries, most human societies in the Western world have discriminated against many minorities based on their sexual identity and gender identity. Today, although these discriminatory trends are downward, they continue to exist, although at the same time there is increasing awareness of the negative of this phenomenon.

At this meeting point between declining discrimination and rising acceptance, there arises LGBT affirmative psychology: a therapeutic perspective that invites both to take care of the well-being of people exposed to attacks because of their identity sexual or gender, on the one hand, how to transform society so that the above is not necessary and everyone is treated with equality.

• Related article: "The 8 benefits of going to psychological therapy"

The impact of LGBT claims on psychology

Psychology is the science that studies behavior, but it must not be forgotten that behavior also changes psychology itself. For this reason, it is normal that social transformations have made the point of view and the purposes from which psychologists start to have changed a lot in recent decades.

An example of this is the way in which awareness-raising about the problems of LGBT groups has contributed to making psychology a richer and more useful tool to help a part of the population that continues to feel vulnerable in many ways: lesbians, gays, bisexuals and trans. Where decades ago there was a science that considered homosexuality as something intrinsically pathological, today there is one that does not put the label of disease to forms of sexual orientation or gender identity that deviate from the heterosexual and cisgender (that is, from the conventional correspondence between sex and gender), and that at the same time recognizes that discrimination exposes these groups more to psychological problems, statistically.

In this way affirmative psychology has emerged, a field of work that focuses on the needs of non-heterosexual and non-cisgender people. Its applied aspect, affirmative therapy, aims to understand the mechanisms for the construction of LGBT identity and, based on them, help people with problems derived from discrimination and social pressure linked to her.

Goals of affirmative therapy

These are some of the goals frequently set by LGBT affirmative psychology when helping people who seek help.

1. Treatment of the sequelae of homophobia and transphobia

Unfortunately, even in countries with the highest rates of acceptance of homosexuality (such as Spain) and the trans community, attacks with physical or verbal violence are relatively usual. Many times, these aggressions occur even during childhood, in contexts of bullying, and reaching adulthood does not prevent similar situations from repeating themselves.

This can facilitate psychological disturbances such as anxiety or depressionas well as body dysmorphic disorder. And it is that beyond the physical wounds, going through these experiences contributes to not being satisfied with one's own body, blaming oneself for what happened, isolating oneself socially and even having more doubts about one's own identity.

Understanding what it means to go through these kinds of experiences is essential to offer professional help to these kinds of victims, many of whom receive continuous attacks on a daily basis. And therefore, it is one of the goals of LGBT affirmative psychology.

• You may be interested: "The 16 types of discrimination (and their causes)"

Accompany and advise when deciding to be a mother or father

Motherhood and fatherhood are roles strongly mediated by social conventions; For this reason, it is normal to hear a lot of criticism about who should or should not have children, and what are the most useful parenting strategies and which are not. If to this we add the factor of sexual identity and gender identity, to this social pressure there is to add the tendency to culturally discriminate against minorities that go outside the norm on these issues, and the existence of legal and institutional barriers that continue to nurture the idea that you can only have children if you are heterosexual and cisgender.

For this reason, psychologists can specialize in helping people who feel bad about the prospect of having to do it in the first place. choosing whether or not to raise a baby, and second, dealing with the frustration and anxiety that often comes from having to fight to to get it.

Search for one's own space in LGBT environments

It should not be forgotten that LGBT is not homogeneous, and that even within the groups represented by this acronym there are several "social circles" or sub-collectives. Sometimes, the formation of these sub-categorizations responds to a trend whose existence must be recognized: discrimination within LGBT groups themselves.

This last factor can make it difficult for many people to find their place and identity even in spaces where no one is heterosexual, for example. Although psychotherapy is not enough to solve this, it is also true that affirmative psychology can contribute both to avoid totally unnecessary forms of discomfort, and to help victims of discrimination to be aware that they have nothing to hide and that they should see these attacks as a social problem, not as a defect of them as individuals. In this way, in addition, it contributes to making an environment predisposed to accept unconventional forms of sexuality and expression of gender identity truly inclusive.

Acceptance of one's own identity

Finally, the process of accepting oneself helps people belonging to these minorities feel good about their identity most of the time, and not only do not treat it as a taboo, but that normalize their existence and thus show it in their social relationships and in the expression of their sexuality.

conclusion

It is clear that much remains to be done at a cultural, institutional and political level so that LGTB groups cease to have a reason to exist because of the disappearance of discrimination. However, part of the change also happens through the diffusion of the culture of mutual care and acceptance, and these are precisely the pillars of affirmative psychology. For this reason, psychologists who can put a grain of sand with our work in this area do so knowing that we not only help the individual who attends our consultation; We also invite the entire society to the therapeutic process.