Recognizing & Resolving Sexual Conflicts in ISTDP #2 – Dr Patricia Coughlin

Many of our patients struggle with conflicts regarding their sexuality. Anxiety and inhibition regarding sexual desires, and a fusion of sexual and aggressive impulses, are only two of the many conflicts that can adversely affect a patient’s sexual life.

In part two of this webinar, we will specifically focus on the fusion of sexual and aggressive feelings and impulses that can wreak havoc in patients’ lives. In addition to discovering the source of this fusion, we will discuss how to disentangle these impulses and help integrate sexual feelings with loving feelings.

In this audio-visual webinar, Dr. Coughlin will focus on recognizing, understanding and helping patients’ resolve sexual conflicts, freeing them to enjoy their sexual and romantic relationships fully. Sexual conflicts will be examined in a number of cases, some of which involve sexual feelings and impulses coming up in the transference. Handling these feelings in the same direct and matter of fact manner that we handle other feelings is often a challenge for therapists. If we are anxious and defend, our ability to help patients will be seriously hampered. This topic has been too often neglected in ISTDP circles, failing to provide trainees with the knowledge and skill required to deal with these common problems effectively. This training will address this gap and empower therapists to handle all manner of sexual conflicts and difficulties.

This training expands on Dr. Coughlin’s presentation on this topic with ISTDP San Diego in February 2022, and offers special attention to the relationship between sexuality and aggression.