Last week, Therapy First convened mental health clinicians of diverse perspectives from across the U.S., Canada, and Europe for our inaugural conference, Identities in the Therapy Room: What Is Unfolding?, in New York City. In his opening remarks, President @paulgarciaryan speaks to the professional polarization surrounding the mental health care of youth experiencing gender dysphoria and invites clinicians to listen deeply across differences in experiences, perspectives, and ideas with curiosity, openness, and humility—what he calls “the beating heart” of the psychotherapy profession.

We’re excited to announce that Therapy First President @paulgarciaryan  will serve as Guest Editor for the peer-reviewed journal Frontiers in Psychiatry, overseeing a Research Topic titled “Navigating Identity Today: Developmental and Sociocultural Dimensions of Gender Dysphoria in Youth.” 📮The call for submissions is now open, and we invite clinicians and researchers to consider submitting a manuscript. 📚 THE RESEARCH TOPIC This Research Topic aims to advance understanding of the intersections between adolescent identity development and youth gender dysphoria in the 21st century. It seeks to examine how developmental and psychological processes intersect with contemporary sociocultural contexts in relation to identity formation and gender dysphoria in youth. Contributions may examine how identity and gender dysphoria develop and acquire meaning within the lives of individual youth, the factors associated with different developmental trajectories and mental health outcomes, and how a fuller understanding of adolescent development can inform clinical assessment, psychotherapy, and gender-related care. ➡️ If you'd like to contribute, please email [email protected] to receive more detailed information about this collection and explore all options available. @FrontiersIn

We’re delighted to welcome @KarnacBooks as an official sponsor of Identities in the Therapy Room: What Is Unfolding? 📚✨ Founded in 1950, Karnac Books is the world's leading independent psychoanalytic and psychotherapy bookseller and publisher. Over more than 75 years, they have become an iconic presence in psychoanalysis and psychotherapy. We’re honored to have their support.

Next month, Therapy First will bring together mental health clinicians from diverse perspectives working with young people experiencing gender dysphoria to explore clinical common ground amid a rapidly changing cultural and clinical landscape. The conference is sponsored by @FrontiersIn, one of the world’s largest and most impactful research publishers, publishing more than 200 peer-reviewed journals, including Frontiers in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.

Next month, Therapy First’s conference will foster much-needed, substantive clinical dialogue about what professionally and culturally competent psychotherapy with young people today requires of clinicians. 🗓️ New York City, October 17-18, 2026.

The environmental context is inseparable from clinical work. Contemporary identity development is complex, shaped by culture, technology, peer relationships, and the broader social environment. This understanding plays a  crucial role in informing clinical formulation for clinicians working with youth today.

Interested in becoming a sponsor? You can view our Sponsorship Guide by clicking the link below: therapyfirst.org/wp-content/…

Therapy First’s inaugural conference, Identities in the Therapy Room: What Is Unfolding?, is sponsored by @FrontiersIn, one of the world’s largest and most impactful research publishers.

How a clinician engages with a young patient at the beginning of therapy matters. It can either open up the process or narrow the scope of what’s possible. 👥 Therapy First President Paul Garcia-Ryan in conversation with psychologist Patricia Constantinian

Young people today are coming of age in a particularly difficult time, navigating uncertainty about their lives, their futures, and the world around them alongside the already complex developmental work of adolescence. For therapists, understanding this broader context can be an important part of cultural and professional competency when working with the lived realities of youth today.