Same-Sex Couples and Other Identities Psychoanalytic Perspectives The Library of Couple and Family Psychoanalysis Series

This book provides a contemporary exploration of psychoanalytic theory and its application to therapy with lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans and queer relationships, challenging heteronormative practice and introducing new perspectives on working with gender and sexual diversity.

In this wide-ranging collection, international contributors draw on key aspects of couple psychoanalytic theory and practice, whilst also expanding hetero and mono-normative frames of reference to explore the nature of relating in open, closed and poly relationships. Developments in regard to gender and sexuality within the contexts of family and culture and an examination of same-sex parenting are also included, as are psychosexual considerations and the process of aging. A major focus of the book is the importance of the therapist?s own gender and sexuality in the clinical encounter and how to manage adjustments in approach to counter the dominance of heteronormative thinking in practice.

The first book of its kind to incorporate an in-depth examination of same sex, queer, bi-sex, trans and queer relationships in regard to psychoanalytic thinking and practice, Same-Sex Couples and Other Identities is a vital resource for psychoanalytically informed psychotherapists, counsellors and practitioners working with a diverse range of clients.

1. Sexuality and Gender in Development: Facets of Bedrock and Beyond Paul E. Lynch 2. Revitalizing the Oedipal Model for LGBTQ Couples and Families Shelley Nathans 3. Family Matters: The impact of family and sociocultural context on LGBTQ Identities and Psychodynamics Andi Pilecki Eliza-Christie 4. Cultural and Intercultural Considerations in Working with Same-Sex Couples Patricia Porchat 5. The same or different? Exploring unconscious anxieties for couple psychoanalytic psychotherapists working with same-sex couples Kate Thompson 6. Bisexual People and their Partners in Relational Psychoanalytic Therapy: Aesthetic Conflict, Multiple Selves and the Uncontainable Esther Rapoport & Irit Kleiner Paz 7.Queer Relationships: Unmapped Intimacies Iggy Robinson & Alice Kentridge 8. The fear of difference and desire to differentiate: Working with two transitioning couples Linsey Blair and Dorota Mucha 9. They "went in two by two": The challenge for couple psychotherapists of working with those in open and polyamorous relationships Damian McCann 10. Psychosexual considerations in working with LGBTQ+ couples and individuals Marian O’Connor 11. The Process of Aging for Same-sex Couples David Richards 12. Responding to the challenge that same-sex parents pose for psychoanalytic couple and family therapists: Confronting implicit bias Damian McCann & Colleen Sandor 13. The LGBTQ Couple choice of therapist he/she/they, straight or gay: Creativity vs Defense Colleen Sandor 14. "I love you and you have the scars to prove it": Understanding and responding to intimate partner violence and abuse in same-sex couple relationships Damian McCann

Damian McCann, D.Sys.Psych, is a couple psychoanalytic psychotherapist working at Tavistock Relationships, London, and adjunct faculty member of the International Psychotherapy Institute (IPI), Washington, DC. He is a full member of the British Psychoanalytic Council and has a particular interest in working with gender and sexual diversity in psychoanalytic practice.