More than Boundaries and Pronouns: Foundational Sexuality and Understanding Gender Identity

Tuesday, March 26, 2019 - 9:30am to 12:30pm
Association of Developmental Disabilities Providers
1671 Worcester Road
Suite 201
Framingham, MA 01701
ADDP/JRI Training Room (Basement Level rooms 104/106)
Training

Brief Description

As a staff member, are you able to explain different gender identities to the individuals you support? Do you feel comfortable talking about sexuality with them? And are you able to address any problematic sexual behaviors exhibited?

Support staff are providing services in a new and different time, which calls for new and different approaches. Today there is both a pronounced focus on how others identify in terms of gender and sexuality and often a vast misunderstanding about what these terms actually mean. This training aims to provide foundational knowledge of sexuality, in regards to basic language and terminology and specific aspects related to working with those with intellectual and developmental disabilities. There will be a strong emphasis on gender identity as it relates to and contrasts with biological sex and sexual orientation and how one's gender identity can affect experiences in the community at large. With a shifting landscape occurring in society, it is important to understand these essential components of our own sexuality and self-expression in order to better support all individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities to navigate these experiences themselves.

Purpose/Background

The purpose of this training is to enable support staff to feel more educated, comfortable, and confident in regards to sexuality and gender. With an increase in community inclusion, individuals are experiencing more opportunities to express themselves in terms of their sexuality and preferred identities. However, with increased opportunity also comes potential risk. Through the education imparted in this training, staff are more likely to feel better equipped to understand the gender and sexual identify dynamics facing those with intellectual and developmental disabilities. The goal is to ensure that individuals served have healthy and positive sexual identities and experiences. This includes understanding the existing problems, barriers, and risks as well as the most effective language and approaches to sexuality and gender.

**Please note that presentation of the sexual violence statistics during this presentation may be upsetting to some. Resources will be provided by the speaker to address any emotional issues that the presentation of the statistics raises.

Intended Audience

Supervisors, Clinicians, Direct Support Professionals

Learning Objectives

Participants will learn:

Foundations of Sexuality, including:
• Common misconceptions associated with individuals with disabilities and sexuality;
• More effective language and terminology when discussing individuals with disabilities;
• Effective responses to commonly seen problematic sexual behaviors and situations;
• Statistics related to individuals with disabilities and sexual violence, potential signs of sexual violence, and risk factors for sexual violence;
• Present practices in the I/DD field and how they may relate to someone's experience of sexuality;
• Potential barriers to an individual's full expression of sexuality; and
• Methods of supporting healthy sexual expression and positive sexuality.

Participants will also learn:

Enhanced Understanding of Sex, Gender, and Sexual Orientation, including:
• Terminology and definitions related to biological sex, gender identity, and sexual orientation and how to differentiate between them;
• How gender identity affects one's experiences in the community-at-large;
• How commonly used language may alienate certain gender identities; and
• Methods to promote learning about and expression of gender identity.

Your Speaker/Trainer

Emily Trudeau, MS, BCBA, LABA is a board-certified behavior analyst and licensed applied behavior analyst. At present, she is the Assistant Director of Clinical Services at NuPath, Inc. She has provided training through Planned Parenthood, Dr. Peter Gerhardt, and DDS, including DDS Central/West’s “Training of the Trainers” with Pat Carney. She has presented twice at the ADDP annual conference on topics related to sexuality; this is her second stand-alone training for ADDP.

Price

Member: $85; Non-member: $120

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