Trainings Offered by Sebastian

If you are feeling overwhelmed by the task of supporting clients whose mental health is affected by the current administration and sociopolitical climate — unsure of how to best use your role and skills, you’re in the right place. Through three online trainings — the first offered in the immediate aftermath of the November 2024 elections, thousands of clinicians have found their footing and developed more confidence in what they are offering their clients and communities. Recordings of these trainings (including resources) are now available for purchase and on-demand viewing. Our work matters and you are uniquely positioned to make a really positive difference during an immensely difficult time.

Note: I am planning future online trainings and a longer course for 2026. Additionally, if you are interested in having me provide a workshop or speaking engagement for your organization, I am currently booking my calendar for next year. You can reach me at drsebastianbarr@gmail.com

Recordings of Past Trainings

Why This Matters:

While the sociopolitical climate in the U.S. (and globally) has been growing increasingly hostile to trans communities in recent years, this has intensified under the current federal government. Since January 2025 especially, trans and nonbinary people have struggled with worsened mental health as communities navigate hateful rhetoric, risk of violence, restrictions to care and other rights, and fear of what's to come.

Many clinicians feel limited in their ability to support trans and nonbinary clients facing this harsh reality and still unpredictable future, with some likening their provision of therapy these days to "offering sunscreen to a person on fire." But therapy can be much more than sunscreen - and it needs to be. Trans and nonbinary communities need access to helpful ways to make sense of and respond to or manage the understandable distress they are experiencing so that they live meaningfully in the present and future. Mental healthcare providers are positioned to be an invaluable resource to trans and nonbinary clients right now - we just need to be grounded in best practices.

What to Expect:

In this webinar, Dr. Sebastian Barr will draw from research, clinical experience, and community knowledge to help clinicians build their capacity to step into this work with confidence and comfort. The webinar will include discussion of general steps and practice considerations, general psychotherapeutic approaches, recommendations for responding to common scenarios, and reflections on caring for ourselves while doing this work.

A similar webinar offered in November 2024 helped thousands of clinicians find their footing and received many pieces of positive feedack. This content has been updated to speak specifically to the concerns and realities we are now facing in Spring of 2025, and what this asks of us as mental health professionals.

Selection of additional positive feedback from live attendees of the May 2025 Webinar:

“This was a fantastic seminar! I so appreciated all of the content.” | “This is so healing as a trans nonbinary therapist.” | “I appreciate you and your work!” | “I am a trans therapist and times have been tough. This was the perfect way to end the week.” | “I’m looking forward to part two!”

This 2.5 hour training builds upon the foundations and core approaches for affirming and effective work in this climate that I discussed in my May 2025 training (available here). This may be beneficial as a standalone, as well.

In this expansion, Dr. Sebastian Barr draws from research, clinical experience, and community knowledge to speak specifically to the concerns and realities we are now facing and what this asks of us as mental health professionals. This training focuses on specific manifestations of sociopolitical distress and how to apply the approaches from May’s training in these complex scenarios. Topics include:

• using trans grief as a framework for our work in 2025 and beyond

• helping clients cope with reduced access to gender affirming medical care and/or threats of reduced access

• working with clients’ heightened responsiveness/reactivity (sometimes deemed “overreacting” or “hypervigilance”)

• addressing misinformation from clients

• clients who are considering detransition

• working with clients’ increased suicidality

• supporting trans people needing to relocate for safety

• helping clients experiencing activist burnout

Additionally, there is time spent on therapists’ experience of doing this work and needs around this. Dr. Barr discusses how therapists can best navigate challenging reactions we are having to the sociopolitical climate, therapy material, and clients. We will also discuss the agency we can find and build to prevent vicarious traumatization and our own burnout.

November 2024 Webinar on Post-Election Distress in TNB Clients

Note that some of this content is out of date.