First do no harm: Principles of care for clients with sexual identity confusion and/or conflict.

Individuals who experience sexual identity confusion and/or conflict face unique stressors and life circumstances for which they may seek psychotherapy; however, little specific guidance exists for therapists working with clients who experience sexual identity confusion and/or conflict. To meet this need, we present a framework for therapists whose clients experience distress related to sexual identity confusion and/or conflict. We first define and describe sexual identity confusion and conflict, situating both in developmental theories of sexual identity.

Responding to gender and sexual minority stress with functional analytic psychotherapy.

Despite an overwhelming literature detailing the impact of societal bias on the well-being and relationships of gender and sexual minority clients, as well as greater rates of help-seeking from mental health professionals, recent advances in minority stress research have not been fully incorporated into clinical practice. Minority stress factors such as internalized stigma, rejection sensitivity, and concealment interfere with vulnerable and intimate relationships, and likely contribute to the transdiagnostic challenges that GSM clients report, such as loneliness and social isolation (Mereish & Poteat, 2015). Further, behavioral patterns emphasizing inauthentic self-presentation are common interpersonal styles of stigma management (Pachankis & Hatzenbuehler, 2013).