Hiya. So I'm fairly new here and I'm still working through coming out and coming to terms with my own gender identity. I already see a Psychologist and I'm going to see a Psychiatrist for other issues but I'm not sure about coming out to them. Should I do it? How do I address it? Will it affect anything? I'm reaching out here to see if anyone has advice on the matter as I'm terrified of it. Thank you so much everyone for listening....
When I came out as transgender to my psychiatrist, then I wrote a short not about it to him and said I wrote a note to him, because I was too scared to say it out loud. Psychologists are professional and if you feel you wish to address what you're dealing with, then you certainly should come out to them. You can also always change psychologist, if they don't seem to understand you and your needs.
if you're scared, there often are facebook groups or whatever to find "safe" and "queer-friendly" professionals. You seem to live in a rather big city so there probably are a few of those groups. You may also wanna ask any queer association that's nearby, maybe give them a call if you're afraid to go there yourself, you could ask them.
Take it one step at a time and do some research on psychologists. Read what they put on their sites. If they hint at being faith based, then you shouldn't see that psychologist unless they emphatically say they are open to LGBT clients and are accepting and supportive of all orientations. Some who might be open to it might not be a good fit because they do too much family and couples therapy and don't have too much to offer to individuals and LGBT folks. Getting references from the LGBT center might be a good place to start but don't stop there. You deserve to find the support you seek.
Thank you everyone who responded to my post. I will certainly take it all under advisement and see where it goes. I'm certainly a take-it-a-step-a-time kind of gal so I'm just going to see how things go. Slow and steady as this is a big deal and I want to make sure this is cared for properly.
Welcome to EC!! The sooner the better to tell them and I like Rayland's method too as a way to get it over with. It was hard for me to do but I expected them to be professional and it's confidential. It was the source of much of my struggles so I knew I had to and she was wonderful. Best wishes coming your way, you can do it!!
I have an appointment tomorrow and I think I'll use it to talk about my issues! I'm sick of this crap!
I personally see an LGBT therapist because it was important I knew he could understand that aspect of me without prejudice.