Abstract

Dissociative people with severe sexual trauma often seek help to learn how to be able to have non-traumatizing and non-dissociative sexual relationships with partners of their choice. This workshop covers the basics in how to approach and begin to work to heal dissociative clients’ sexual traumas sufficiently to enable them to have consensual sexual relationships with partners of their choice.

Sexual relationships can often trigger traumatized self states, who may ‘awaken’ in sexual encounters, and experience feeling re-traumatized, even when the sexual encounter started off as consensual. Or self states whose job it was to provide sex, regardless of their own wants or needs, may automatically be triggered out during sex, or, in some cases, be called out by partners for their own reasons.

Therapists working with clients who have been severely abused sexually and are dissociative need to learn both how to deal with dissociation and how to address sexual issues in a timely, respectful manner.

This workshop will cover the basics in working to heal sexual trauma in dissociative clients, including working collaboratively with the client, exploring the system’s desire or opposition to working on this issue. Part of the process will be taking note of their history of sexual relationships, what healing they’ve had so far, and their goals for healing at this time.

Checking in with the person’s system will need to be done initially, and the therapist and client need to create ways to continue to monitor the system’s reactions and responses to the work, including ways to hit ‘pause’ when necessary.

In addition, the workshop will address evaluating any partner’s level of support for the client and this work, and defining what consent would mean, and how it could be expressed.

The workshop will discuss the issues of unwanted sexual arousal, ‘sexual non-concordance’, in the client’s trauma, shame, and how to understand those issues and heal from them.

The workshop will also discuss the experience therapists often have of noticing their own sexual arousal in the therapeutic setting - how to understand that and deal with it appropriately and ethically.

At the conclusion of this workshop, attendees should have a greater understanding of the challenges faced by their clients, and grounded, practical ways to frame and address the many facets of the person’s sexual healing.

Potential to Distress: Yes