Our colleagues are offering a couple new groups that we thought might be of interest to our community.

Youth
Ryan DeVane, LCSW and Liz Rhea, LMSW are co-facilitating a group for queer and gender-expansive youth starting April 19th. Given the incredibly harmful and deeply troubling legislation in Georgia right now, a space where high school aged clients can gather in community and experience solidarity together is of the utmost importance. The aim of the group is for participants to engage in community building while expanding their resilience skills in a supportive and affirming space. The group is both process and experiential in nature. 

Details: 

Time: 6-7:30pm on Wednesdays starting April 19th; 8 week group 
Location: in-person at our office, right off the Decatur square; actual address disclosed after being accepted into the group 
Price: $75/session; $30 for the required 30-minute phone screening 
*phone screening required to ensure a good fit for the group* 

To schedule a phone screening or for additional questions, please email me (Liz) at liz@lizrheatherapy.com or Ryan at ryan@groundedwellbeing.org 

See flyer PDF


Young Adults
Ryan DeVane, LCSW and Liz Rhea, LMSW are co-facilitating a group for queer and gender-expansive young adults starting April 20th. Given the incredibly harmful and deeply troubling legislation in Georgia (& all over the country) right now, a space where young adult clients can gather in community and experience solidarity together is of the utmost importance. The aim of the group is for participants to engage in community building while expanding their resilience skills in a supportive and affirming space. The group is both process and experiential in nature. 

Details: 

Time: 6:30 - 8:00pm on Thursdays starting April 20th; 8 week group 
Location: in-person at our office, right off the Decatur square; actual address disclosed after being accepted into the group 
Price: $75/session; $30 for the required 30-minute phone screening 
*phone screening required to ensure a good fit for the group* 

To schedule a phone screening or for additional questions, please email Liz at liz@lizrheatherapy.com or Ryan at ryan@groundedwellbeing.org 

See flyer PDF

Our friends over at Baobab Counseling Center are offering a couple new groups that we thought might interest our community of clients, friends and so on. 

Life is an ebb and flow of rhythms; from sounding deafening at times to soothing and everything in between. When we are “out of rhythm”, our mental, physical, spiritual and emotional health can suffer. Through repetition in beats, drumming awakens every part of the brain to become synchronized and can help revive our internal rhythmic state’s equilibrium.

D R U M M I N G   G R O U P (for kids or adults)

Come learn rhythms on the djembe drum while also learning how to read music and develop your own beats!
What do I get out of it?

• Learn drumming beats
• Learn how to create my own beats
  
• Increase social connection
• Tap into the healing benefits of:
  • Increasing Focus
  • Reducing Stress
  • Improving Mood
  • Encouraging Creativity
  • Increasing Self-Confidence
  • Enhancing Leadership Skills
  • Encouraging Teamwork and More!

T H E R A P E U T I C   D R U M M I N G (for adults)

Group will incorporate both learning rhythms on the djembe drum, developing your own beats and utilizing drumming in a therapeutic way through building teamwork, increasing social skills, decreasing anxiety etc.

We received a call for research participants and are passing it along to you, our community, because we believe in supporting more research about our lives and loves. 

Here's their letter:

We are working on a dissertation that examines communication with a committed partner during important transitions in consensually non-monogamous relationships. If you are 1) 18 years or older and 2) currently in a self-defined committed consensually non-monogamous relationship with at least one partner (e.g., including but not limited to a primary partner, nesting partner, life partner) and 3) that partner has started a new sexual or romantic partnership with someone other than yourself in the past six months you are eligible to voluntarily participate. As incentive for your participation in this study, you may choose to be entered in a raffle to win one of eight $100 Amazon gift cards. Please note that the co-investigator is a member of the polyam community and identifies as pansexual.

This anonymous online survey will take approximately 20-30 minutes to complete and is conducted by co-investigator R. E. Purtell and principal investigator Dr. Matthew M. Martin from WVU’s Department of Communication Studies in 108 Armstrong Hall, P.O. Box 6293, Morgantown, WV, 26505.

If you wish to participate in this voluntary research study, you can follow the link below to learn details of the study and complete the survey. This survey will in no way identify you to your survey responses. Your participation is completely voluntary. You may skip any question that you do not wish to answer and you may discontinue at any time.

Survey Link: https://wvu.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_6mN5M6bhPfPjVqe

If you would like more information about this research project, feel free to contact coinvestigator R. E. Purtell at rep0027@mix.wvu.edu. West Virginia University’s Review Board acknowledgment of this project is on file (Protocol #2301698499). Thank you in advance for your participation! 

​I'm thrilled to be invited to participate on a panel at Dick Fest - all about Dicks on T! Curious and want more info? Check out https://www.velvetlipssexed.com/dickfest - use code ANNA5 to let them know you want to see me!

There's lots of other classes focused on Dicks (for folks of all genders) - if you're a dick-connoisseur you don't wanna miss this. 

We are thrilled to congratulate Jace Johns-Cooper on completing his internship with us and graduating with his Masters degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling at Mercer University. Jace will continue working with Love Positive Counseling as an post-masters counselor under Anna Baxter's supervision while he pursues his LAPC license. 

An important focus of his practice is reexamining societal norms and experiences through a queer and feminist lens to assist clients in becoming their true self. He also values healthy internal and external communication, self-care and exploration, and advocacy.


His passion is working with LGBTQ+ individuals, as well as those within the polyamorous and kink communities. He came out as a trans man in 2014 and started identifying as polyamorous in 2015. He has recently started becoming involved with the kink community in the past few years. He has also been an advocate for the LGBTQ+ community for the past five years through local non-profits. 

Jace is available for scheduling new clients and his rate is now $125/hr with some availability for sliding scale. To book your first session with Jace, request an appointment and be sure to select Jace as the clinician (The rate will show $175 but the cost charged at the time of your appointment will be the rate negotiated with Jace.)

To contact Jace directly with questions or to schedule an appointment, email jacejohnscoopercounseling@gmail.com or call 678 210 9907. 

Dr. Cathy A.R. Brant is looking to interview youth in grades K-12 and those in their undergraduate years in college who identify as gender diverse (transgender, nonbinary, genderqueer, agender, gender fluid, etc.) about their experiences in schools. Participation in this study is completely voluntary. You will be asked to participate in one interview (via phone, Facetime or Zoom) for approximately 45-60 minutes, and engage in data accuracy checks.

For additional information, contact Dr. Brant at brantc@rowan.edu! 

Follow this link: https://tinyurl.com/2p9x69re or Scan the QR code! 
 
 Approved by Rowan University's Institutional Review Board  (PRO-2022-105).
Questions about your rights as a research subject? Call Rowan University’s Office of Research Compliance (856) 256-4058. 

​

We're boosting the signal to support OUT Georgia's work with transgender folks in Georgia.

The TGX360 survey, which is available online in English and Spanish language versions through March 11, will be used to guide the work of OUT Georgia’s TGX360 Initiative, aiming to advance economic equity and employment and entrepreneurship resources for Georgia’s growing transgender, gender nonconforming, and non-binary community.
Survey responses are due NO LATER THAN March 11, 2021; Information collected is strictly confidential.  

Once the survey data is analyzed, OUT Georgia’s TGX360 Advisory Committee will hold a town hall to share the results, highlight the initiative’s next steps, and open an important discussion of how TGX360 can best serve and represent those in need of employment and entrepreneurial support.
NOTE: This survey is intended for Georgians who identify as transgender, non-binary, gender non-conforming, intersex, Two-Spirit, questioning, and any other gender identity under, or adjacent to, the transgender umbrella. We ask that cisgender folks do not complete this survey, but rather ask our allies to share with TGX folks who may wish to contribute!
If you have any questions, contact Gabrielle Claiborne at Gabrielle.Claiborne@OUTGeorgia.org or Chris Lugo at Chris.Lugo@OUTGeorgia.org.

We recently received an email from a research asking for our assistance recruiting research participants. We are sharing this information with you, our community, in case it pertains to you. ​Please note that the co-investigator is a member of the polyamorous community.

We are working on a research project that examines communication with a committed partner about extradyadic sexual encounters (i.e., sex with someone other than a primary partner, life partner, nesting partner, boyfriend, girlfriend, etc.).

If you are...
1) 18 years or older and
2) currently in a self-defined committed consensually non-monogamous relationship with at least one partner (e.g., primary partner, nesting partner, life partner) and
3) have disclosed information about an extradyadic sexual encounter in the past six months
... you are eligible to voluntarily participate.

As incentive for your participation in this study, you may choose to be entered in a raffle to win one of two $50 Amazon gift cards.

This anonymous online survey will take approximately 15-30 minutes to complete and is conducted by co-investigator R. E. Purtell and principal investigator Dr. Megan R. Dillow from WVU’s Department of Communication Studies in 113 Armstrong Hall, P.O. Box 6293, Morgantown, WV, 26505.

If you wish to participate in this voluntary research study, you can follow the link below to learn details of the study and complete the survey. This survey will in no way identify you to your survey responses. Survey Link: https://wvu.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_0DGKHN8RUtLIWQC

We are thrilled to announce a new member of the Love Positive Counseling team: Coryn Murphy, M.Ed, MS!

Do you feel unseen and unheard by others in your life? Coryn understands the importance of being seen and heard and wants to help you create change in your life. Coryn believes that empathy and compassion are the catalyst for growth and change whether you are working through sexuality concerns or general anxiety, depression, and life events. Coryn creates a safe space to help clients better understand themselves and improve their relationships.

Corinne uses hypnotherapy in her practice to help support clients who want to use their unconscious to help them create change and she uses meditation to help clients find balance and grounding in our chaotic world. Coryn is pursuing sex therapy certification training to further enhance her sex therapy skills. Coryn is an ally to the LGBTQ, kink, and polyamorous clients.

In addition to therapy, Coryn also provides meditation classes and sessions. She has been meditating for the past 15 years and enjoys using mindfulness techniques to help clients find their balance. Meditation sessions can be used in conjunction with therapy or as their own separate experience.

Coryn earned her Master in Education from Loyola University Maryland and Master of Science in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from The University of West Alabama. Coryn is under formal supervision of Anna Baxter, LPC, CPCS. 

Coryn is available for scheduling new clients beginning January 25, 2022! Coryn's rate is $125/hr (with some sliding scale slots available). To book your first session with Coryn, request an appointment and be sure to select Coryn as the clinician (The rate will show $175 but the cost charged at the time of your appointment will be your negotiated rate). 

To contact Coryn directly with questions or to schedule an appointment, email corynmurphyga@gmail.com or call 678 210 9907.