Author: jdarling8604

Autumn’s Arrival

As the Equinox strikes on Sunday, I encourage all to reflect on the celestial event that marks a balance between our daytime and nighttime hours as we in the Northern hemisphere shift properly into autumn. Temperatures are now cooling down, deciduous trees are beginning their celebration, and the harvest season goes into full swing.

Harvest times are a wonderful opportunity to reflect on the summer season’s accomplishments, the opportunities to celebrate and continue cultivation, and prepare for the quiet and often cold times that are coming. As September ends, I encourage everyone to mindfully engage in nature and take advantage of what each person has local to them.

For my own reflection and cultivation, I will be traveling to Lisbon to attend the World Professional Association of Transgender Healthcare (WPATH) conference “A Gender Diverse World in Global Unity” for which I hope to gather more knowledge, resources, and insights to better serve the trans & gender diverse community. Any colleagues who are similarly attending are encouraged to reach out and coordinate a meet!

Darling Mental Health continues to provide online trainings and we look forward to seeing new faces at upcoming events:
Family Interventions for Gender Diverse Minors – 9/21
Erotic Toys and Health – 9/28
Fantasies & kink – 10/12
Non-Monogamy & Polyamory – 10/26,
Compassion for Arabs – 11/9
Intersections with Dissociative Disorders – 11/23
If you would like to attend any three trainings and pay a package price of $200 please use the product BUNDLE option and identify which ones you wish to attend in check out; you will receive verification via email.

Additionally, the 2025 Curriculum is currently being developed. Speakers and educators who wish to be part of our curriculum are encouraged to reach out. All proposals that relate to sex therapy, gender-affirming care, or advocacy for minority groups are considered.

Email proposals/interest to collaborate to Jeremy@DarlingMentalHealth.com

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Prideful Labor Day

As September begins, the US celebrates a national holiday that honors the Labor Movement. Labor Day is a day to reflect and appreciate the social and union advocacy that resulted in legislation which has provided protections to laborers & the working class. No society can function healthily without a healthy labor force that has agency, voice, and the right to live, work, and pursue happiness!

Labor Day also marks the “unofficial” end of Summer and in Worcester it is the pre-cursor to Pride. Our Pride festival at the Commons will be in the afternoon on Saturday the 7th with evening block parties at Femme Bar, MB Lounge, and Electric Haze. For more scheduling information, including daily events for this upcoming week, please go to:

Page – Pride Worcester

Darling Mental Health will have a table at Pride and we look forward to seeing you this year with opportunities to connect in-person, network, collaborate, and answer any questions you may have about sex therapy, gender-affirming mental health counseling, and other services offered.

Meanwhile, Darling Mental Health is holding a Pride Sale on all online trainings, reducing the rate price from $30 to $20 per CE credit hour, $60 for each 3 hour course. The sale ends Sunday Sept. 8th at 12 PM.

Let’s go out and meet in the community, making better connections, and building a safer world for our queer youth!!

Happy Worcester Pride!!!

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NBCC Approved CE Provider

Darling Mental Health is proud to announce that in addition to being an AASECT approved CE provider we are now also approved by NBCC to make it easier for all participants to be able to make effective use of their trainings and CE experiences as it relates to maintaining licensure and requirements by their licensing boards.

Darling Mental Health, LLC has been approved by NBCC as an Approved Continuing
Education Provider, ACEP No. 7600. Programs that do not qualify for NBCC credit are
clearly identified. Darling Mental Health, LLC is solely responsible for all aspects of the
programs.

We are committed to providing high quality continuing education for therapists, educators, and advocates of sexual health and gender-affirming care in the Worcester, MA region and beyond. Please feel free to reach out with any questions as it relates to attending future trainings and ensuring the ability to receive AASECT and/or NBCC credit for your participation.

Thank you!

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LAPOSH – Free Event on 8/11

Hello Colleagues and Collaborators!

Darling Mental Health is proud to announce our first public event and social meet and greet for local area professionals of sexual health – LAPOSH!

A meet-up and networking opportunity for local area professionals of sexual health includes an open invite to all: counselors, educators, prescribers, physical therapists, speech therapists, students, and others interested in the field of sexual health!

Sunday 8/11, 4-6PM at Wormtown Brewery in Worcester
Sliders & appetizers will be served – cash bar

Whether you are an established professional, newly networking in the field, unsure of your career path, or needing to understand the local resources available; we hope to bring together a diverse body of professionals to create more insightful connections and networks.

Presentations of local resources and services to Worcester will be made including providers of gender-affirming care, STI testing and treatment, and other advocacy efforts in the community. Darling Mental Health’s curriculum of continuing education opportunities will be reviewed, topics related to gender identity and sexual dysfunction treatment: ethics, medical and non-medical interventions, mental health therapy techniques, diversity and representation, and pleasure enhancement skills.

Meet the presenter for our upcoming Sex and Couples Therapy training and hear about what you can expect if you choose to register for our 3 hour workshop scheduled for Saturday August 24th

Ask questions about becoming a certified sex therapist, educator, or counselor and provide feedback of what kind of networks, resources, trainings, and/or events you would like to see to help our local and state communities of sexual health providers get better connected!

We hope to see you there!

** FREE to attend, light snacks will be served, cash bar **

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Freedom Letter

Hello All,

As Today is the Fourth of July and the United States celebrates its independence from the British Empire I find myself reflecting on many things that are difficult to articulate, synthesize, and process. For different reasons there are many people in the US who are proud to be an American, for many there is pure shame; the rest of us are somewhere in-between not sure whether either emotion is fair to a people who have lost insight on how our systems operate.

What I do recognize and want to speak to is the sheer hypocrisy of our independence from British domination while the American colonies were themselves dominating the African/Black population they had enslaved and forced migration from their homes and lands. Not to mention the most silent genocide in humanity’s history against the Indigenous tribes that continued well into the 20th century with systemic practices of warfare (biological and technologically lopsided) and forced sterilization which is barely recognized in our history books. The history of the United States is covered in blood, and we were falsely told that ALL of the blood shed was justified and/or a divine right to be a nation of personal and religious freedom to self-determination.

Now we face a nation that is struggling to define what limits to power should exist for our leaders, what structures of governance actually help cultivate healthy and progressive movement to the future, and what transparencies and truth can actually be heard and trusted in a world of privatized news media and far-winged conspiracy theories. It’s exhausting and hard for so many of my clients, and I suspect every therapist is feeling it too.

How do we find hope in all of this? How do we as cultivators of good mental health find an authentic way to continue on and build structures of support that help and protect the weak and vulnerable without sacrificing our own resources to maintain self?

I’m not entirely sure. But I hope there is a future filled with more grace for our queer youth and less fear for their diversity and existence. I will continue to work towards that education goal and hope that the networks of resources continue to grow and build so that safe supports can be easily accessed.

For each person reading this I hope you are able to find time in the coming days and months to enjoy your lives, your families, your friends, and your options to express yourselves and find moments of celebration that are authentic to you and find ways to foster hope and courage for the future.

I hope today marks a day of positive shift as the season continues to flourish in the Summer heat; may we all find time to care for ourselves and ready ourselves for the future.

Hopefully,

Jeremy Darling

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Celebrate Pride Month in New England!

As the First of June 2024 hits and we begin to celebrate Pride month, let’s take some moments to reflect on the beauty of the season and the blessing of fair weather in New England:

Related Posts: June Advocacy & Pride Testing

This time of year is always abuzz with many different celebrations and large social events and is a busy time for conferences giving opportunities to connect, educate, and further hone one’s skills in advocacy for those who need our support. Anti-trans legislation is on the rise and combating that fear with education is the primary mission of Darling Mental Health. Working to develop a network of therapists, resources, and educational opportunities is our goal in furthering the health and wellness of all peoples in the LGBTQIA+ community.

Focusing on local efforts and engagements to community can be helpful ways to find joy and hope in the world. Darling Mental Health is dedicated to participating in and bolstering the initiatives of local/regional groups and is glad to be presenting at the New England Association For Family And Systemic Therapy’s “Cultivating Clinical Competency in Gender Affirming Care: Combating Anti-Trans Systems” Conference on the 7th of June: Hormones, Gender Diverse Teens, and Their Families

If you are a clinician, educator, advocate, or simply curious about therapist language and lensing please feel free to attend!

Pride Worcester activities and events can be found online at PrideWorcester.org with their currently planned schedule starting with “Barbie” on the Worcester Common June 20th 6PM and ending with the Festival on September 7.

Boston’s Pride for the People, a volunteer run organization will be having their pride on June 8th.

Regionally there will be corporate supported Pride Parades in Boston, Providence, and Portland on June 15th.

Boston Pride‘s website has a map of the locally connected/networked Pride’s throughout the State.

Please feel free to comment any events you are looking forward to or any advocacy efforts that you would like to highlight!!!

Happy Pride Month!

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May Day!

Happy May Day and Beltane Blessings to all as today not only marks the beginning of a new month but is also the midpoint between the spring equinox and summer solstice.
May is Mental Health Awareness Month and there are many exciting things happening!

Worcester Pride is having its Launch Party tomorrow, Thursday May 2nd, from 6-8PM at Electric Haze; this will be a great opportunity for any vender or volunteer who wants to engage with the Worcester Pride committee and ensure their place in the festival or to help out with the logistics and function of the celebration that Worcester has every September!

The 2nd Annual Mental Health Awareness Community Conversation is happening Thursday May 9th, 5 PM at St. Bernard’s Catholic Church. The focus of this community event is targeted to burn-out, self-care, and resource management/awareness for first responders with participation and support from over a dozen Worcester based practices and resources!

Additionally, Darling Mental Health will be providing two of its four gender-affirming care therapy trainings on Saturdays 5/11 and 5/18 where we will be focusing on Queer Theory and fundamental understanding about providing gender-affirming therapy as well as Gender Inclusive Language and Communication that explores what is needed in providing comprehensive evaluations and letters of support when clients need to address steps to begin medical transitioning. Please go to the Trainings page for more information!

Mother’s Day will be on Sunday the 12th and Memorial Day is Monday the 27th this year, don’t forget!

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April Updates

As we all enjoy the wonderful diversity of Spring weather patterns in New England I would like to remind the community of several things.

Seasonal activities are starting up and Outloud Sports Worcester (WooPride Kickball) will be starting its season soon with an open scrimmage this Sunday 4/14 at the outdoor baseball field in Great Brook Valley.

The Volleyball Village People will begin their open season of games April 24th.

Darling Mental Health’s training schedule has been updated with some changes in the months of August and October. Please check the full listing of course offerings in the Curriculum. All are welcome to attend and discounts do exist, please inquire if you wish to attend something but need assistance!

The sold-out Safe Homes Gala is this upcoming Friday (4/12) and if you would like to support the fundraising efforts please check out their online silent auction:

Welcome — Open Sky Community Services: 2024 Safe Homes Gala (readysetauction.com)

Safe Homes (safehomesma.org) is a non-profit drop-in center for LGBTQIA+ youth age 13-23 providing a safe space to seek out support, ask questions, acquire gender-affirming resources, and navigate queer adolescence with access to peer support. This program has been wonderful for many in the community, and I hope that it among the other programs in Worcester is a regular resource that all LGBTQIA+ youth are aware of and can engage with when needed!

Finally, Today is Eid-Fitr which marks the end of Ramadan and the ritual fasting for practicing Muslims; they return to habits of eating during the day and will be celebrating in a feast this evening. Blessings to all!

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Trans Day of Visability

Trans Day of Visibility is quickly approaching, presenting a crucial opportunity to honor and empower the transgender community; usually held on April 31st, this year Easter falls on the same day so many localities will celebrate it at another time. Founded in 2010 by transgender advocate Rachel Crandall, this day aims to shift the media narrative, which disproportionately focused on violent stories involving transgender individuals, failing to capture the breadth of their experiences and contributions. Crandall’s initiative sought to celebrate the lives of transgender individuals and empower them to live authentically while still acknowledging the pervasive discrimination and persecution they face. As Trans Day of Visibility approaches, checking for local events and celebrations is essential. Supporting and attending these activities can be a powerful way to show solidarity, especially in the current climate. Many in the transgender and gender-diverse community, colleagues and friends, are facing increased hardships due to regressive and suppressive measures affecting their right to exist, express themselves, or seek appropriate healthcare. Our support and visibility during these times are more critical than ever, offering a beacon of hope and unity in the face of adversity. – Edited from an original writing by Dr. Wissam Deeb

In Worcester, the observation of Trans Day of Visibility will be held on Saturday April 6th 3PM-6PM. The event is being organized on Facebook by Jai Santora.

Please check out the event page if you are local: https://fb.me/e/1Tz7Ywfi9

April 6th, 3 PM at Gambrino’s Cask & Barrel: 266 Park Ave, Worcester

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Leap Day Update

Happy Leap Day to All!

Darling Mental Health is happy to announce the 2024 curriculum has been scheduled with 10 trainings spaced out from April to October. Additional trainings may be created based on feedback and interest. The curriculum and course descriptions can be found on the training page for review. Courses 1-5 are designed to provide any therapist/provider a comprehensive ethical lens and system of evaluation/treatment to support transgender persons through different stages of transitioning including writing support letters. Courses 6-10 expand on different factors affecting sex therapy including race, religion, colonization, and binary/monogamy default lensing.

  1. Ethics of Sex Therapy – April 27th
  2. Queer Theory and Gender Therapy – May 11th
  3. Gender Inclusive Language and Communication – May 18th
  4. Family Interventions for Gender Diverse Minors – July 6th
  5. Transgender Affirming Healthcare – July 13th
  6. Couples and Sex Therapy – July 20th
  7. Religion and Sexuality – August 17th**
  8. Cultural Differences Affecting Sex Therapy – August 31st**
  9. Compassion for Arabs – September 14th**
  10. Non-Monogamy and the Kink World – October 12th**

**full course descriptions coming soon

To register/pay for any training please use the shop page.

All courses can be purchased at a 50% reduced price through the month of March!!!

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