Contemporary Sexuality - February 2009 - (Page 5) abstinence, premarital sex and the use of the word “protect” when talking about condoms and other forms of birth control. Sometimes, that language reinforces negative ideas about sexuality. These frames for sexuality are one that therapists see in their offices every day. They contribute to desire and Michele Angello arousal concerns as well as to identity and expression issues. A Real Reason researcher will discuss how these “conceptual obstacles” interfere with support for comprehensive sexuality education and will introduce a potential new frame for talking about sexuality that may help create a cultural sea change. There will also be a Whipple Family Plenary at the conference. Details had not been finalized at press time. Pre-conference workshops Pre-conference workshops are a great way to get in-depth knowledge about a particular subject. Every AASECT conference has an impressive list of offerings. And every conference offers a pre-conference Sexual Attitude Reassessment (SAR) seminar. Eli Coleman, PhD, director of the program in human sexuality at the University of Minnesota, will lead the two-day SAR in Arizona. Coleman, who is past president of the World Association for Sexology, has conducted research in the areas of “compulsive sexual behavior disorder, sexual orientation, psychological and pharmacological treatment of a variety of sexual disorders,” according to the University of Minnesota website. Here are several other pre-conference workshop highlights: • Christine McGinn, DO, will present a halfday workshop on the “Biological Foundations of Transgender Issues.” McGinn, a plastic and reconstructive surgeon at the Papillon Gender Wellness Center in Philadelphia, has presented at the International Conference of Gender Dysphoria, co-written a chapter on atypical orgasms in The Science of Orgasm, and serves on the National Advisory Council on Sexual Health. • Michele Angello, PhD, a professor at Widener University and a therapist in private practice, will present a corresponding half-day workshop on the psychological perspectives of transgender children and youth. • Elizabeth Schroeder, EdD, MSW, executive February 2009 Vol. 43, No. 2 | www.aasect.org director of Answer at Rutgers University, will present a full-day workshop on advanced techniques in sexuality education. • Chris Fariello, PhD, MA, LMFT, director at the Institute of Sex Therapy at the Council for Relationships in Philadelphia, and Susan Kellogg-Spadt, PhD, CRNP, co-founder of the Pelvic & Sexual Health Institute at Graduate Hospital in Philadelphia, will present a pair of full-day workshops for new sex therapists addressing the basics of physiology and sex therapy and one for advanced sex therapists featuring cutting-edge techniques in therapeutic and medical interventions. • Several experts will lead a series of sessions titled “The Wired, Wild World of Sexuality.” The morning session will focus on the newest sexuality trends online; the afternoon session will examine the impact of doing sex therapy in this new, highly sexualized online world. A complete list of pre-conference workshops will appear in a future issue of Contemporary Sexuality and is available at aasect.org. Other activities On Friday night, actor Martin Moran will perform “The Tricky Part,” a one-man play about a 12-year-old boy’s sexual relationship with a 30-year-old man. The play is autobiographical and is based on a book Moran wrote exploring the complex effect the three-year affair had on his life. “The subject is so tough,” Moran told the Boston Globe in a 2005 interview. “People ask me, ‘Are you over it?’ The answer is no. But I could never have been the person I am without it. Part of the legacy is exactly that complication. … It’s discovering you can hold both things at once: continued on page 6 “People ask me, ‘Are you over it?’ The answer is no. But I could never have been the person I am without it. Part of the legacy is exactly that complication.” — Martin Moran Twenty-one Native American tribes call Arizona home, and many of them have continued ancestoral traditions such as hoop dancing. Photo courtesy of Greater Phoenix Convention and Visitors Bureau Contemporary Sexuality 5 http://www.aasect.org http://www.aasect.org
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