Came out to my counselor

[giuseppina]

I had a meeting with my substance abuse counselor this morning. If any of you remember in one of my threads, I mentioned we tried to talk about my cross dressing. In that the first question he asked was "are you gay?" He instantly made it clear to me that he was clueless about this topic. ...

I would be inclined to find another qualified and licensed counsellor if this happened to me. My experience is different: the counsellor did some research about gender issues and asked questions in a non-judgemental manner.

...Do you really need to see a counsellor on a regular basis for substance abuse or anything else? Can't you stop on your own? Willpower? ...

Addictions issues are generally not solvable by willpower, Krisi. A counsellor is there to provide help with finding new and healthier coping mechanisms. There is no evidence to suggest this in Susan's post above, but she may be self-medicating to alleviate other issues in her life. While this is not a good idea, resolving these underlying issues is part of the solution for Susan. Your comment about willpower may do more harm than good.

The best course of action for those who seek counselling to stop their dressing is acceptance. There is enough evidence that such counselling is ineffective and unethical due to potential harm to the client; clients should be so advised. I would be inclined to report any counsellor to their regulatory body who claimed otherwise as incompetent.