Difficulties being a psychotherapist to a LGBT counselee

38^th Asia-Pacific Nursing and Medicare Summit

OCTOBER 03-04, 2018 OSAKA, JAPAN

Gizem Beycan Ekitli

Ege University, Turkey

Scientific Tracks Abstracts: Adv Practice Nurs

Abstract :

Statement of the Problem: Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transsexual (LGBT+) individuals compose a population that the community does not hear and especially prefers to stay away. This shall be regarded as a community mental health problem. The author considered appropriate to deepen this discussion in two sections based on culture as a CBT therapist. Universal Challenges: These individuals are experiencing mobbing, being exposed to all kinds of violence both emotional and physical in social life, being bullied by their peers and ignored by educators and are often exposed to inequality and labeling in the health sector. The therapy process shall proceed in three steps to provide the individual's bio-psychological and social integrity. Islamic Challenges: In the Islamic philosophy, the superstitions regard all situations except the heteronormative are considered as diseased, abnormal and which shall be solved urgently. They believe LGBT+ members go against the natural disposition (fitrah) which Allah has created in mankind whereby the male is inclined towards the female and vice versa. Whoever goes against that goes against the natural disposition of mankind. In contrary in Holy Qur'an, which contains 6236 verses, you cannot see any evidence referring to LGBT+ even in a single word in the verses. However, as a fundamental part of the society, the LGBT+ individual also grew up in the arms of these damaged cultural attitudes. For this reason, the most difficult and most challenging part in societies where Muslims are dominant is to break this erroneous and diseased attitude. It is the psychotherapist's primary responsibility to be able to recognize all these concerns of counselee and to respond them appropriately. A systematic supervision process is a necessity here as well as in all psychotherapy processes. Conclusion: Working with LGBT+ individuals is not different from other counselee when the real question has been determined (generalized as self-confidence-self-worth). Soon as your counselee has noticed this, it indicates that you are opening an important door for the collapse of internalized homophobia. It should be remembered that �??Liberation of homosexuals would free also heterosexuals�?�.

Biography :

Gizem Beycan Ekitli is a Member of Psychiatric and Mental Health Nursing Department, Nursing Faculty, Ege University, Turkey. She is also a certified CBT Therapist approved by The European Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapy. She has expertise in psychotherapies, test anxiety, musical interventions on wellbeing and supports several research initiatives examining LGBT+ population. She is professionally recognized for her continuous pursuit of occupational organization of nursing students. She is previous President and current Honorary Member of Turkey’s the first and only official nursing students’ association known as OHDER.

E-mail: gizem.beycan@ege.edu.tr