"Incredibly enriching, informative and validating… a game changer for us on every level."
M & A, parents of 14 year old
"My child is clearly happier... honestly- they are thriving!"
Rose, parent of 10 year old
"I am so much more hopeful for my child and better equipped to help them with any challenges they face."
Lisa, parent of 17 year old
Are you coming to terms with your child being trans or non-binary?
Are you worried about how the world will treat them?
Are you grappling with questions that are hard to find good answers for?
Do you want to know you're doing everything you can to support them?
You are not alone.
You want your child to be safe and happy in the world. To be comfortable in their own skin. To come to you and connect with you so that you can guide and support them.
The thing is... The truth is very hopeful. You can absolutely support your transgender or non-binary child to thrive.
Research shows that parental support and connection is by far the biggest predictor of wellbeing and happiness for trans and gender diverse people.
Not only that...
Even with all the additional challenges that trans people face, with strong parental support, trans and gender diverse people have been shown to have similar mental health outcomes as the general population.
Your strong support is incredibly powerful. For them, you are it.
We are experienced mental health professionals who specialise in supporting transgender and gender diverse young people and adults, and their families.
Video Course
Get expert, in-depth, practical information you can trust, so that you can make the best possible decisions as you support your child
Group Calls & Community
Regular, ongoing support and events.
Professional Guidance
Ask for advice, recommendations and guidance any day of the week with same-day responses.
Course Outline
Module 1: What Really Matters
- Common Parental Emotions and Thoughts: What parents say about their experience of parenting a trans child (you are not alone)
- Why it's so Hard: and cultivating self-compassion
- Risk and Resilience Factors: The pivotal #1 factor affecting trans mental health
- The Parental Fear Paradox: How trying to protect your child might paradoxically be the hardest thing they face
- Mapping the Wellbeing Curve: Where you are now and envisioning the path ahead
- The Positive Support Cycle: Getting There Faster
Module 2: Small Changes, Big Effects
- How do they know they are trans?
- The formation of gender identity
- When and why language matters
- Receiving and responding to new information from your child
- Four sentences that create trust and connection, even if you’re not ready to ‘get on board’.
- The Task of Telling People: The Who, When, What, and How of disclosure.
Module 3: Strengthening Emotional Connection
- Parenting when we’re afraid
- The essentials guide to emotion theory
- Emotion Coaching for daily and deepening connection
- How to repair after conflict and hurt
- When your child doesn’t talk to you, and what you can do about it
Module 4: De-Pathologising Gender Diversity
- How binary thinking has eclipsed the natural diversity within all living things.
- The social significance of bodies
- Embracing a broader perspective on gender roles through time and across cultures
- Unwiring ourselves from the myths of femininity and masculinity.
- Helpful and practical ways to talk about bodies with your child
Module 5: De-Personalising Dysphoria
- Differentiating diagnosis from feeling
- How dysphoria disguises itself
- Coping with dysphoria
- Does dysphoria make you trans?
- Understand the cause of dysphoria: a minority stress lens
- Finding Meaningful Relief: Mitigating dysphoria.
- The many ways to manage dysphoria, when relief is not yet possible.
Module 6: Affirming Change
- Traditions of Transition: The legacy of concealment
- The real purpose of transition
- Common parent and child feelings during transition
- Urgency, certainty and doubt
- Navigating 'testimonial injustice' in the medical system
Module 7: Navigating & Building Community
- Responding to your child's experiences of transphobia
- Three essential types of community, and how to build them.
- Troubleshooting when community is hard to access
- The courageous conversations template
- Use healthy anger to guide you
Get Started
1.
Enrol
Join us in the Parent Community and get access to the video course, Q&A recordings and resources.
2.
Join cohort calls
Meet and connect with a small group of families who together digest and discuss the video course each week for 7 weeks.
3.
Get personal guidance
Get expert guidance any day of the week. Never feel alone with this again.
Who We Are
We are Ari Heart (they/them) and Jes Anderberg (she/her).
We are both therapists and educators, working in the fields of trans mental health, advocacy and education. Together we have thousands of hours of clinical experience working with gender diverse people and their families.
Throughout our work, we have continuously seen the urgent need for parents to receive high-quality and compassionate information and support when their child is gender diverse.
We have collated years of professional, community, and personal expertise and research into this 7 week program, so that parents can escalate their learning and improve their life and relationship with their child.
"I could not imagine better facilitators for this program than Ari and Jes, whose immense kindness, generosity, wisdom and relevant personal and clinical experience enliven and enrich the course content and discussions."
- Sally & Justin, parents of 5 year old.
“Ari is a caring and thoughtful practitioner who I have known for many years, they’re someone I trust and highly respect. I’m so happy that they are supporting parents to help our young people thrive.”
- Starlady, Zoe Belle Gender Collective
About Jes
What's Included
- Video Course
- Our 'parent your trans child to thrive' course
- 7 modules in bit sized lessons
- self-paced / a-synchronous - 1 module per week
"The information is so helpful and nuanced." (Rose)
- 7 Weekly Group Calls
- Supportive group of parents
- Professional guidance
- Debrief and apply the video modules to your own family
"Witnessing and being witnessed every week, hearing the challenges and triumphs of the other families, the learning and sharing - It was so lovely." (M & A)
-
3-month Parent Community membership (option to continue at $99/m)
- Connect with past group participants
- Questions answered daily
- Guest speakers
- Ongoing support group
"I consider this community invaluable... a place where kindness and respect flourish... our corner where we can all contribute and support each other. Here we can gather strength to bring about change." (Sue)
Choose a Cohort
Jan Group (USA)
Mondays - Starting January 20th
ET, USA (New York) - Mondays 8-9.30pm
PT, USA (Los Angeles) - Mondays 5-6.30pm
Enrol for January groupFeb Group (Aus)
Tuesdays, Starting February 11th
Melbourne (Aus) - Tuesdays 7.30-9pm
Enrol for February group
What Others Have Said
