ABSTRACT

The first peer-reviewed book of its kind, this important volume addresses a current gap in the field of gestalt therapy: that the practice—and psychotherapy more broadly—still suffers from pervasive hetero- and cis-normativity.

This book offers gestalt-therapy-based research and training material on gender, sex, and relationship diversity (GSRD), including chapters on a variety of GSRD issues and how therapists can become more GSRD-sensitive. The contributors position themselves across the whole spectrum of GSRD and offer their voices as an invitation to further queer the gestalt community with diverse content ranging from academic, research-oriented pieces to experiential, reflective perspectives. Featured chapters explore topics including gender-radical clients, sex and sexuality, relationship diversity, integrating GSRD and gestalt therapy, and addressing heteronormativity in gestalt therapy training.

Queering Gestalt Therapy is for everyone who is interested in gender, sex, and relationship diversity, especially as they relate to gestalt therapy practice. This book will be especially useful for therapists, supervisors, coaches, and students of gestalt therapy.

chapter Chapter 1|11 pages

Understanding Gender Radical Clients

chapter Chapter 2|15 pages

Gender Identification

chapter Chapter 3|10 pages

Holding Uncertainty So That It Can Be Thought About

Relational Gestalt Therapy with Gender Creative Children

chapter Chapter 4|9 pages

The Drag and Queer Years as a Means of Developing a Therapeutic Self

Bringing Street Work in the Office

chapter Chapter 6|12 pages

‘Selfish and Destructive’

Where Does the Late-in-Life Lesbian Seek Therapeutic Support?

chapter Chapter 7|12 pages

A Gay Son and His Dying Straight Dad *

An Account of Ambiguous Loss and the Embodiment of Homophobia

chapter Chapter 8|4 pages

Activism and Therapy

chapter Chapter 9|11 pages

Compulsive Sexual Behaviours

Moving Beyond the Frontiers of Addiction Thinking

chapter Chapter 10|11 pages

Queering Relationships

chapter Chapter 11|9 pages

LGBTQIA in Rural Ireland *

Lives Creatively Lived

chapter Chapter 13|11 pages

“I Assumed That It Was a Man She Was in Love With” *

Heteronormativity and Queer Experimentation in Gestalt Therapy Training