Level 1
Illumination Series
A consciousness-raising process on understanding the abuse and trauma related to infidelity and problem sexual behavior.
Faculty
Dr. Omar Minwalla
Psy. D.
Licensed Psychologist & Clinical Sexologist
Dr. Omar Minwalla is a Licensed Psychologist and Clinical Sexologist trained at … Read More
Level 1: Illumination Series
Understanding the Psychological Abuse, Victimization, and Trauma associated with Infidelity and Compulsive Sexual Behavior
Module 1
Credits: 21 CE
Understanding Psychological Abuse, Infidelity, and Compulsive Sexual Behavior Disorder
This course provides professionals the basic building blocks to understanding deceptive sexuality and trauma. Dr. Minwalla uses his educational metaphor, “the secret sexual basement”, to help professionals understand how infidelity, compulsive sexual behavior disorder, psychological abuse disorder, and trauma and stressor-related disorders intersect and inter-relate, specifically illuminating the abuse, the victimization, and the trauma associated with these clinical presentations. The course will then review and discuss etiological factors such as child and adolescent development, complex trauma, personality templates and personality pathology. Professionals will learn how masculine socialization, sexual entitlement, sexuality socialization, and personality characteristics relate to clinical symptoms of infidelity, compulsive sexual behavior, psychological abuse, and intimate partner abuse. Finally, to serve as a clinical and ethical foundation, the course reviews common problems encountered by psychologists in working in the areas of abuse and will discuss professional guidelines for the psychological practice with boys and men as well as guidelines for the psychological practice with girls and women. Professionals will also review and discuss professional guidelines for the psychological practice of working with human sexuality, stigma, and sexual minority persons and the importance of advancing sexual rights as human rights.
Day 1: Introduction to Psychological Abuse, Infidelity, and Compulsive Sexual Behavior
Learning Objectives: At the completion of the program, participants will be able to:
- Identify the psychological abuse disorder as it relates to infidelity.
- List and describe the diagnostic criteria for compulsive sexual behavior disorder.
- Identify and differentiate sex offending from compulsive sexual behavior disorder.
- Define and explain how sexual entitlement is associated with problematic sexual behavior.
- Identify spouse and partner abuse, psychological using the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual-V.
- Define the six symptoms of complex trauma.
- Define and explain the appropriate use of the terms, abuse, and victim, as used in clinical treatment.
Day 2: Etiological Factors to Psychological Abuse, Infidelity, and Compulsive Sexual Behavior
Learning Objectives: At the completion of the program, participants will be able to:
- Explain developmental complex trauma in client-friendly language.
- Define personality and personality disorders, in client-friendly language.
- Explain how personality characteristics influence clinical symptoms.
- Explain how the gender socialization of boys and men relates to male sexual entitlement.
- Discuss the role of male socialization in the psychological abuse associated with infidelity.
- Explain how sexual socialization relates to sexual stigmatization and oppression.
- List three primary psychological contributors to the psychology of infidelity, compulsive sexual behavior, and psychological abuse.
Day 3: Clinical and Ethical Practice Guidelines for Psychological Abuse, Gender, and Sexuality
Learning Objectives: At the completion of the program, participants will be able to:
- List 2 guidelines for the psychological practice with girls and women.
- List 2 guidelines for the psychological practice with boys and men.
- List 2 guidelines for the psychological practice with intimate partner abuse and relationship violence offered by the American Psychological Association Working Group.
- List 2 guidelines for the psychological practice with sexual minority persons.
- Explain and discuss the ethical and clinical imperative to identify the abuse disorder, victimization and trauma-relates stress and disorders related to psychological abuse, infidelity, and compulsive sexual behaviors disorder.
- Compare, critique, and discuss various treatment approaches to infidelity, compulsive sexual behavior, and intimate partner psychological abuse.
- Compare, critique, and discuss various treatment approaches to infidelity, compulsive sexual behavior, and intimate partner psychological abuse from an ethical, justice, and social perspective.
Module 2
Credits: 21 CE
Understanding the Trauma experienced by the Intimate Partner and Relationships impacted by Psychological Abuse, Infidelity and Compulsive Sexual Behaviors
This course is an educational immersion to help professionals understand the specified trauma and stressor-related disorder experienced by victims, particularly women, children and family systems associated with infidelity, psychological abuse, and compulsive sexual behavior disorder. Professionals will learn how to identify the psychological abuse, the victimization and describe the traumatic sequences. Professionals will learn to diagnostically distinguish the relevant types of trauma and stressor related disorders, including complex trauma, acute and post-traumatic stress, betrayal trauma, attachment-based trauma, post-infidelity trauma, institutional betrayal trauma. The course presents a five-stage treatment approach, which places this type of abuse within a framework related to gender-based violence, the bystander approach, and promotes critical analysis and discussion of our professional clinical and ethical obligations as psychologists and mental health professionals.
Day 1: Psychological Abuse, Systemic Abuse and Complex Trauma
Learning Objectives: At the completion of the program, participants will be able to:
- List 4 types of trauma-related stress disorders associated with infidelity, compulsive sexual behavior, and psychological abuse.
- List the 6 symptoms of complex trauma and how they may apply to a victim of systemic psychological abuse.
- Identify and explain the concept of gaslighting as psychological abuse and its relationship to infidelity.
- Analyze and critique the role of honesty in human relationships and the potential impact of psychological and relational health.
- Discuss the role of psychological abuse and victim exposure to infidelity.
- Explain 2 reasons for continued abuse in the exposure phase.
- List the DSM-V symptoms of posttraumatic stress.
Day 2: Exposure to Abuse, Infidelity, Compulsive Sexuality and the Traumatic Sequences
Learning Objectives: At the completion of the program, participants will be able to:
- Analyze and discuss the impact of continued psychological abuse, post-exposure, on the victim of psychological abuse.
- List 2 potential impacts to an intimate partner’s sexuality impacted by infidelity, compulsive sexual behavior, and psychological abuse.
- List 2 potential impacts to an intimate partner’s gender impacted by infidelity, compulsive sexual behavior, and psychological abuse.
- Describe 2 reasons for persistent negative relational patterns in the relationship between abuser and victim-survivor.
- List 2 potential impacts on children and the family system impacted by infidelity, compulsive sexual behavior, and psychological abuse.
- List 2 potential community or social injuries and symptoms experienced by victim-survivors.
- List and explain 2 treatment interventions that may harm versus help victims of infidelity, compulsive sexual behavior, and psychological abuse.
Day 3: Infidelity as Gender-Based Violence, Our Professional Responses and Treatment
Learning Objectives: At the completion of the program, participants will be able to:
- Define the term gender-based violence.
- Explain the fundamental attribution error of victim-blaming.
- Describe and explain the bystander approach to violence prevention.
- Discuss the role of addressing gender in the treatment of infidelity, compulsive sexual behavior, and psychological abuse.
- Identify the five stages of treatment for the treatment of infidelity, compulsive sexual behavior, and psychological abuse.
- Define and discuss the role of justice in the treatment of infidelity, compulsive sexual behavior, and systemic psychological abuse and complex trauma disorders.
- Describe how the bystander approach is congruent with professional ethical responsibilities related to abuse intervention.
- Discuss the profession, currently and in the future, and the psychological treatment of infidelity, compulsive sexual behavior, and systemic abuse and complex trauma-related disorders.
Faculty
Dr. Omar Minwalla
Psy. D.
Licensed Psychologist &
Clinical Sexologist
Dr. Omar Minwalla is a Licensed Psychologist and Clinical Sexologist trained at … Read More
The Institute for Sexual Health (ISH) is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education for psychologists. The Institute for Sexual Health maintains responsibility for this program and its content.
