a therapy first conference
Identities in the Therapy Room: What Is Unfolding?
New York City | October 17-18, 2026
Moving forward together.
In the 21st century, mental health professionals are working in an unprecedented landscape shaped by rapid social, cultural, and technological change. These changes are transforming how identities develop, how gender and the body are experienced, and how relationships are formed and navigated. Therapy First is bringing together clinicians from across the field to grapple with the questions this moment raises.
What forces now act upon the unfolding psyche? To what extent do long-held developmental understandings still hold, and how might they require refinement? Do our ideas about identity need rethinking in light of the lived realities of youth today? What do therapists need in order to be professionally and culturally competent in caring for them? And perhaps most pressing: what is the role of the therapist at a moment when our very understanding of selfhood is in flux?
The clinicians participating in this conference share a commitment to building the professional bridges we urgently need, and to finding common ground in support of our profession and those we serve.
Join us in meeting one of the defining challenges facing youth today.
FINDING COMMON GROUND
By finding common ground, clinicians are better equipped to serve their patients. Identities in the Therapy Room: What Is Unfolding? gathers clinicians from across a divided field to share knowledge and skills for everyday clinical work with youth experiencing gender dysphoria.
REGISTRATION:
$695
CE credits available. Details forthcoming.
Space is limited. Attendance is by application only, open to licensed mental health professionals.
Keynote Speaker
Jonathan Shedler
Jonathan Shedler, PhD, is internationally recognized as an author, researcher, and clinical teacher. He is best known for his article The Efficacy of Psychodynamic Psychotherapy, which won worldwide acclaim for demonstrating that psychoanalytic therapy is an evidence-based treatment. Dr. Shedler’s research and writing continue to shape contemporary understanding of personality and its central role in psychotherapy. He is the author of more than 100 scientific and scholarly articles, the creator of the Shedler–Westen Assessment Procedure (SWAP) for personality diagnosis and case formulation, and co-author of the Psychodynamic Diagnostic Manual (PDM-3). Dr. Shedler lectures internationally, leads workshops for professional audiences, consults to U.S. and international government agencies, and provides expert supervision and consultation to clinicians worldwide. He is a Clinical Professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) and a Training and Supervising Analyst at the San Francisco Center for Psychoanalysis.
Featured Speakers
Erica Anderson
Erica Anderson, PhD, is a clinical psychologist who is best known for her work with gender questioning youth. She previously served as a staff psychologist at UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital’s Child and Adolescent Gender Center, and was the first transgender president of the United States Professional Association for Transgender Health (USPATH). She has also served on the board of the World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH). Drawing on more than 40 years of clinical experience, she writes and speaks widely on the importance of individualized assessment and treatment for youth experiencing gender dysphoria.
Joe Berger
Joe Berger, LICSW, is a trans man, hospital case manager, and psychotherapist based in Burlington, Vermont. He received his MSW from the University of Vermont, completed postgraduate training in Bowen Family Systems Theory at the Bowen Center for the Study of the Family in Washington, D.C., and currently serves as faculty for the Vermont Center for Family Studies. He holds expertise in gender transition and the family. He maintains a private practice and has worked across community mental health settings, including a state psychiatric hospital, a parenting program at a women’s prison, and a residential program for women transitioning out of incarceration.
Noelle Burton
Noelle Burton, PsyD, is a graduate of the NYU Postdoctoral Program in Psychoanalysis and Psychotherapy and an Associate Editor of Psychoanalytic Dialogues. She is a founding member, Faculty and Supervising Analyst at The Institute for Relational Psychoanalysis of Philadelphia; and Faculty, The Stephen Mitchell Relational Study Center. Dr. Burton has written on the topics of relational multiple self-state theory, dissociation and trauma, substance abuse, the use of the analyst’s imagination and intuition in clinical work, intimacy in the clinical encounter, and most recently on the integration of psychoanalytic treatment with psychedelic medicine. She has worked with adolescents in residential treatment and private settings, as well as adults in her private practice in suburban Philadelphia.
Laura Edwards-Leeper
Laura Edwards-Leeper, PhD, is a licensed clinical psychologist in full-time private practice. She has previously worked at Pacific University, Seattle Children’s Hospital, and Boston Children’s Hospital/Harvard Medical School, where she was the founding psychologist of the Gender Management Service (GeMS). In that role, she developed the psychological assessment protocol for transgender adolescents seeking medical interventions. Dr. Edwards-Leeper is a Fellow of the American Psychological Association (Division 54: Pediatric Psychology) and served as Chair of the Child and Adolescent Committee for the World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH). She has authored numerous scholarly publications and is internationally recognized for her expertise. In recent years, she has spoken publicly about concerns and complexities within this rapidly evolving field.
Alessandra Lemma
Alessandra Lemma, D. Clin Psych., is a Fellow of the British Psychoanalytic Society and a Chartered Clinical and Counselling Psychologist with extensive experience as a clinician, academic, and author. Currently Visiting Professor in the Psychoanalysis Unit, University College London, Consultant, Clinical Psychologist, DIT at the Anna Freud Centre, and Visiting Professor at Centro Winnicott, Rome. Formerly Head of Psychology and Professor of Psychological Therapies at the Tavistock Clinic. Recognized internationally for contributions to psychoanalysis, trauma, impact of technology on the psyche, transgender identities, and ethics. She is the recipient of the 2022 Sigourney Award, the 2025 Scharff Award, and the British Psychoanalytic Council’s 2025 Bernard Rattigan Award for Psychoanalysis and Diversity. Her most recent books are First Principles: Applied Ethics for Psychoanalytic Practice (OUP, 2023) and Psychotechnical Becomings; Psychoanalysis, Identity, Desire and Mourning in Times of AI and Digital Mediation (Routledge, 2026) and forthcoming is: Journeying Through Psychoanalysis: Lessons from the Couch (Wiley, 2027).
Lisa Marchiano
Lisa Marchiano, LCSW, is a certified Jungian analyst, award-winning author, and co-host of the depth psychology podcast This Jungian Life. She is the author of several books, including Motherhood: Facing and Finding Yourself, and has published numerous peer-reviewed articles and book chapters on gender-related distress. She is currently a doctoral candidate at the Boston Graduate School of Psychoanalysis, where her research focuses on social media and identity. Lisa serves on the faculty of the C. G. Jung Institute of Philadelphia, lectures and teaches widely, and maintains a private practice. She holds an MSW from New York University and completed her analytic training through the Inter-Regional Society of Jungian Analysts.
Shirin Sajadi
Shirin Sajadi, PsyaD, is an Iranian psychoanalyst, educator, supervisor, and artist. She is a faculty member at the Boston Graduate School of Psychoanalysis, serves on the Board of Directors of the Massachusetts Association for Psychoanalytic Psychology, and maintains a private practice in Brookline, Massachusetts. Dr. Sajadi’s clinical and scholarly interests center on unconscious fantasy, symbolic processes, sexuality, gender, and the evolving challenges of subjectivity in contemporary culture. Her work integrates classical and contemporary psychoanalytic thought with philosophy, critical theory, and cultural analysis to examine how social forces shape psychic life. She advocates a clinically grounded yet politically engaged psychoanalytic practice that remains attentive to questions of power, culture, and collective life. In recent years, her research has focused on the impact of digital culture, algorithmic systems, and technofascist tendencies on identity formation, symbolic thinking, and the capacity for inward reflection.
Laurel M. Silber
Laurel M. Silber, PsyD, is a clinical psychologist in private practice in Bryn Mawr, PA working with children, adolescents, and their families for over 30 years. She has published articles and chapters in edited volumes on subjects such as child psychotherapy, intergenerational transmission of trauma, parental implication and childism, play and play therapy, and gender. The book she is working on currently is in press, entitled: Transforming Transmitted Trauma with a Child in Mind. She serves on the Editorial Board of the Journal of Infant, Child, and Adolescent Psychotherapy. She is the former Director of the Child Relational Psychotherapy Program of the Institute for Relational Psychoanalysis of Philadelphia.
…and over a dozen additional speakers to be announced soon.
A Message From Our President, Paul Garcia-Ryan
It is in challenging times that we recognize the shoulders we stand on. More than fifty years ago, Wilfred Bion described the kind of listening psychotherapy requires as the capacity to listen without memory or desire. His words reflect an orientation that guides clinicians to receive what clients bring with curiosity, openness, and humility.
This capacity, cultivated through ongoing process, is nowhere more necessary than in the care of young people today.
Therapy First’s inaugural conference, Identities in the Therapy Room: What Is Unfolding?, is an invitation to meet one of the defining challenges of our time, and to work together to chart a constructive path forward.
We hope you’ll join us.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is eligible to attend the conference?
This conference is a professional development event open only to licensed mental health professionals. Both Therapy First members and non-members are eligible to attend. Priority is given to clinicians practicing in the United States with youth and to Therapy First members.
Why is an application required, and what does it involve?
The application form is a brief set of questions to provide identification, membership status, and practice information. This is a small, in-person gathering for mental health professionals with limited capacity. The application confirms that attendees are licensed mental health professionals and helps keep the conference focused on serious clinical conversation among practicing peers.
How do I register?
After you submit your application, we’ll review it within 5 business days and email you to confirm your eligibility. If you’re approved, you’ll receive a registration link to complete payment and secure your place.
What is expected of attendees?
All attendees are expected to conform to traditional norms of collegiality and professionalism. For further information, please refer to the norms of professional conduct set forth in the Code of Conduct.
What is included with my registration?
Your registration includes two full days of programming, breakfast and lunch on both days, and a reception on Saturday evening.
Do Therapy First members receive discounted registration?
Yes. Members receive a 10% discount on all Therapy First events. Be sure you’re logged in to the Therapy First website when you register, and the discount will apply automatically.
Where will the conference take place?
The conference will take place at a private venue in Midtown Manhattan. The exact location will not be disclosed to registered attendees until shortly before the event. Once you’ve registered, we’ll send information you need to begin planning your travel and lodging arrangements.
Will access to the venue be restricted?
Yes. The conference will be held at a private venue closed to the public requiring valid ID for entry.
Will hotel accommodations be available?
Yes. We’ve reserved a block of rooms at a special rate at a hotel near the venue, available first come, first served. Registered attendees will receive a booking link and reservation timeline.
How many CE credits will be available?
A range of CE credits will be available. Additional details will be forthcoming.
Will recording and photography be allowed?
Recording or photography by any means during the conference is strictly prohibited. For further information, please refer to the norms of professional conduct set forth in the Code of Conduct.
What is the refund and cancellation policy?
All registration fees are non-refundable. We encourage you to review the conference details carefully before completing your registration.
I have a question that isn’t answered here. Who can I contact?
Please reach out to us anytime at [email protected].