More and more clients are seeking mental health support for fertility issues and reproductive trauma.
As therapists, we need to be prepared to guide clients through the pain and grief when they feel like their dreams have been shattered.
Unfortunately, most therapists don’t receive training in this area. And for therapists who’ve had their own reproductive struggles, there’s an added challenge of supporting your client and not becoming triggered yourself.
That’s why we’ve brought together a group of expert trainers to provide the education and skills all therapists need on this crucial topic.
Their decades of clinical research and experience will prepare you with the insight you need to effectively guide clients through this complex and difficult journey, including:- The specific things you need to know and do when working with fertility issues
- How to provide effective support through the trauma of pregnancy loss
- Ethical dilemmas and legal issues in fertility counselling
- How to avoid countertransference issues
- How to work with expanding fertility options, including fertility preservation, surrogacy, and reproductive technology
- And much more!
Infertility, Pregnancy Loss & Reproductive Trauma Training Course
Join our expert trainers for seven in-depth modules filled with real clinical situations and in-depth insight on today's most complex reproductive issues.
- Why every therapist needs foundational training on fertility counselling
- What happens when making a baby isn’t working?
- The evolution and growth of reproductive medicine
- What therapists should know about infertility and medically assisted reproduction
- The support you can offer right now as a psychotherapist
- When does a certified fertility counsellor need to become involved?
- What are the advantages and next steps to becoming a fertility counsellor?
- What does the future hold for fertility counselling?
- Identify reproductive concerns and how they impact the course of psychotherapeutic treatment
- Understand countertransference issues that can arise from the therapist's own reproductive history
- Ethical dilemmas and legal issues in fertility counselling
- Knowing when and how to refer
- Preparing clients for fertility treatment and ART
- Working with clients during fertility treatments and ART
- Working with clients who are pregnant after ART
- Working with clients post-birth/postpartum after ART
- Working with miscarriage and pregnancy termination: what to know and to know what to say as a clinician
- What is reproductive trauma and how can it interact with past trauma
- Understanding the experience of reproductive loss
- How to support clients through their unique experience of grief
- The growing area of fertility preservation
- Working with singles or un-partnered clients
- Working with the LGBTQ+ population
- Working with advanced age individuals and couples
- Working with egg and sperm donors
- Working with recipients of egg/sperm/embryo donation/gestational surrogacy
- Working with gestational surrogates
- What questions you should ask and what you should know regarding this process
- Working with families who used have used donor conception or a gestational surrogate
- Disclosure and its impact on everyone involved in the family building process
(a $179.90 value!)
Dr. Kristy Koser earned her BS in psychology and MA in counselling from Eastern Mennonite University. She holds a PhD in Counselling and Supervision from James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Virginia. Dr. Koser specializes in fertility counselling, helping couples navigate complex decisions while maintaining their relationship after a diagnosis of infertility and during fertility treatment. She has authored a number of chapters on fertility counselling, written professional peer-reviewed articles, and has presented on the topic by invitation at many venues around the country. Dr. Koser is a member of the American Society of Reproductive Medicine (ASRM) and is licensed to practice in OH, VA, and PA .
Click here for information about Kristy Koser.Sharon N. Covington, LCSW-C, BCD, is a Board-Certified Diplomat in Clinical Social Work with almost 50 years' experience as an adult psychotherapist and over 40 years providing services in reproductive medical settings. While maintaining an active private practice, she is Director of Psychological Support Services for Shady Grove Fertility, the United States' largest ART program. In addition, she is an Assistant Clinical Professor at Georgetown University School of Medicine in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology and has been an Associate Investigator in the Intramural Research Program on Reproductive and Adult Endocrinology at the National Institutes of Health.
Click here for information about Sharon Covington.Laura Covington, PhD, LICSW, LCSW-C, LCSW, is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker who works with the counselling staff of Shady Grove Fertility in the Washington, DC metro area, and she is licensed in DC, MD, and PA. Dr. Covington has extensive experience providing psychological services for individuals and couples related to infertility and donor conception. She is a member of American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM) Mental Health Professional Group (MHPG) and also volunteers on Support Group Oversight Committee with RESOLVE. Dr. Covington has authored a number of chapters on fertility counselling, including on topics related to trauma, known gamete donation, pregnancy and parenting after infertility, and on being a pregnant therapist. Dr. Covington has a special interest in research and education around reproductive health issues, particularly with genitourinary trauma and Primary Ovarian Insufficiency (POI).
Click here for information about Laura Covington.Dr. Linda Applegarth is Clinical Associate Professor of Psychology at the Perelman/Cohen Center for Reproductive Medicine at Weill-Cornell Medical College in New York City and is past Director of Psychological Services. She has been involved in the field of infertility and reproductive medicine for over 40 years. Her clinical work has focused on assisting individuals and couples with the psychological components related to family-building options, fertility treatment, fertility preservation & donor-assisted reproduction. Dr. Applegarth is past Chair of the ASRM Mental Health Professional Group and is a past Secretary of the Board of Directors of the American Society of Reproductive Medicine. Her primary research interest includes follow-up with families and children created through donor-assisted reproduction. Her professional life has also included numerous teaching and other speaking engagements with the American Society for Reproductive Medicine, with other professional organizations, and with Pharma.
Click here for information about Linda Applegarth.Sunita Osborn, PsyD, MA, is a licensed clinical psychologist who practices in Houston, Texas and works with adults and couples. Known as an expert on the treatment of pregnancy loss, Dr. Osborn specializes in reproductive psychology and helps individuals and couples in all phases of the reproductive journey.
Dr. Osborn has been featured and interviewed on several different media outlets including NPR, With Whit, Psychology Today, and several miscarriage-focused platforms such as, “The Miscarriage Map: What to Expect When You are no Longer Expecting” and, “The Miscarriage Map Workbook: An Honest Guide to Navigating Pregnancy Loss, Working Through the Pain, and Moving Forward.”
Click here for information about Sunita Osborn.We’re that confident you'll find this learning experience to be all that's promised and more than you expected.