Webinar: Love, Sex and Relationships: Promoting Healthy Sexuality

Date

November 18, 2016 at 10:30am - 12pm

Access

Open to the Public

Presenter

Tara Strachan

Organization

BC PSR Advanced Practice

Love, Sex and Relationships: Promoting Healthy Sexuality 

Presenter: Tara Strachan, CTRS

Date: Friday, November 18th, 2016 – 10:30–12:00 PST

Tara will lead us in a conversation about this important aspect of recovery. Often topics such as this, get overlooked in mental health services. However, relationships and intimacy are both important aspects of humanity. Join us as Tara shares the journey she and the members of ECHO clubhouse took to create a program that addresses relationships, intimacy and sexuality.  

Learning Objectives

1. To understand the needs of clients living with mental health challenges in developing healthy intimate relationships
2. To explore current research supporting the need for professionals to address relationship building skills with clients
3. To develop an understanding of “sex positive” culture and explore ways to promote this within a mental health setting
4. To give participants an opportunity to explore their values and worldview in relation to sexuality
5. To provide an opportunity to dialogue about challenges in supporting mental health clients in healthy sexual expression

Tara Strachan is a certified Recreation Therapist. She currently works for Nav Canada as an Occupational Health and Wellness Consultant. She has served mental health clients for over seven years; working with an agency supported through the Ministry of Children and Families, and The Canadian Mental Health Association Vancouver-Fraser Branch (CMHA). While working at the ECHO Program through CMHA, Tara created a Love, Sex and Relationship group to support mental health clients in exploring their sexuality and acquire skills in developing intimate relationships. She wrote a manual and has trained 30 mental health professionals to facilitate this program in 11 clubhouses throughout the Fraser Health Authority. Tara also successfully completed the Sexual Attitude Reassessment course certified through the American Association of Sexuality educators, counselors and therapists. She is passionate about wellness and believes in working with clients in a power sharing role and creating opportunities that foster hope and joy. Tara is committed to promoting healthy sexual expression and decreasing stigma associated with sexuality and mental health clients.