Free Emotion Regulation, DBT Course with Sophia Graham

Who am I?

I’m a disabled, queer coach and therapist working primarily with marginalised individuals and groups. I’m especially excited about working with people interested in building psychological skills so they feel more able to manage the challenges in their lives in their own way. I believe that we are the experts in our own lives and that finding new tools and developing new skills helps us to create the lives we want to live.
Why work with performers?

Therapy professionals, in general, have not been great at working with people outside the mainstream. This means that performers can really struggle to access high-quality support. As someone that has had been really let down in the past by judgemental and unprofessional therapists, I know what that is like. I also know that it takes a huge toll on people’s wellbeing, and sometimes costs lives. I want that to change, and I’m doing my bit to try to make that change in the world.

What is Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT)

Dialectic Behaviour Therapy (DBT) is a non-pathologising approach that teaches skills for creating a life worth living. It focuses on the areas of mindfulness, interpersonal effectiveness, distress tolerance and emotional regulation. The DBT approach is one of the most heavily researched and validated forms of psychotherapy. It was initially designed for clients with a borderline personality disorder diagnosis but has been found to be effective in relation to a broad range of diagnoses including depression and anxiety. This is a peer group where we work together to learn DBT skills and practice them in our lives between sessions. One of the most important parts of this approach is working with others to understand the skills we are learning. Homework is an essential component of DBT, and you will be given worksheets to complete each week between sessions. We go through these in detail each session, and that’s where a lot of the learning happens, as people are able to share their experiences, successes and challenges.

Why emotion regulation?

Out of control emotions can make it hard to maintain friendships, romantic relationships and can even jeopardise our careers. Many of us never learned the skills we need to cope with difficult emotions, and that makes it impossible to deal effectively with stressful or distressing situations that inevitably come up in our lives. This course teaches participants how to recognise, understand and regulate emotions so that they have more choices about how to manage day to day stressors and distressing events.

Why interpersonal effectiveness?

Our efforts to manage our own emotions are frequently challenged by our interactions with other people. Sometimes this leads us to behave in ways that we later regret. Other times we can fail to speak up assertively for what we need, which can lead to resentment or misunderstandings later. This course is about empowering us to handle interpersonal situations more effectively.

Why distress tolerance?

There are no lives without pain, and everyone has crises at times. These times of intense emotional dysregulation can lead to out of control behaviours that can damage our relationships, life and reputation. This course teaches techniques for reducing emotional activation and distress. It equips participants with skills to practice in their lives so they are able to deal with crises more effectively and cope better with intense distress.

Time commitment

You will attend a 2-hour session each week and complete homework between sessions which usually takes between 20 minutes and an hour.

What do you do in a group meeting?

We start with a mindfulness exercise, then in each session after the first, we go through the homework and discuss each of our experiences with it for the first hour. This hour helps us to consolidate our skills and troubleshoot any problems. Then we have a 5-10 minute break before learning a new skill.

To apply please please click on the link found at pineapplesupport.org/support-groups

Pineapple Support & WebCam Lab Offer Free Therapy to Colombian Models

Pineapple Support has partnered with the Webcam Lab and Fundación Liam to bring free therapy to cam models and adult workers in Colombia.

The sessions are available now.

The Webcam Lab, a comprehensive service center for the Latin American cam industry and AJ Studios’ charitable arm Fundaciòn Liam will work with Pineapple Support to ensure a full-time therapist will be available to any model or performer in Colombia needing mental health services and therapy.

“Our company has always been characterized by the support and genuine interest in the progress of the more than 2,500 models that are an active part of the Webcam Lab family of affiliate studios,” said Webcam Lab Relationship Coordinator José Luis Araujo S. “It is valuable for us to integrate to this philosophy the support and the quality service that Pineapple Support represents.”

British performer Leya Tanit founded Pineapple Support in 2018 in response to a string of losses in the adult industry from depression and other mental illness. Since its launch, the organization has connected over 250 performers to mental health services including free and low-cost, therapy, counseling and emotional support.

“There are many adult models and performers in Colombia without access to stigma-free and specialized support,” Tanit said. “I’m incredibly thankful to The Webcam Lab and Foundación Liam, whose support will allow us to promote the mental health and well-being of performers in the Latin adult industry.”

“As a foundation, we have always tried to have the best tools to positively impact the lives of people with whom we have the pleasure of working,” said Foundación Liam Director Lisbeth L. Contecha. “Tools that we know are greatly enhanced by working with Pineapple Support.”

Performers who are interested in accessing therapy or studios that wish to secure free therapy for their performers can email psicologaclinicatwl@gmail.com.

Or visit PineappleSupport.org/Colombia

Pineapple Support, Blue Pearl Offer Free Adult Biz Counseling

Pineapple Support has renewed its partnership with industry therapist Jasmine Johnson (MSW, MA, LCSW) of Blue Pearl Therapy to host two free five and four-week online support groups for adult industry performers — one for survivors of sexual trauma and one centered on grief and loss, beginning August 7th and 21st.

“We hope these sessions will help performers build strong bonds and develop an ongoing support network,” said Leya Tanit, founder and president of Pineapple Support. “Jasmine was one of the very first therapists to offer her services to Pineapple Support. She knows how important it is for performers who have experienced trauma and grief to talk with others with similar backgrounds.”

Blue Pearl Therapy is a sex-worker-aware, stigma-free therapeutic practice that provides both online and offline therapy and coaching. Johnson is a licensed clinical social worker and gerontologist providing therapeutic services related to PTSD, depression and anxiety for over 15 years.

Tanit launched Pineapple Support in response to a string of losses in the adult industry from depression and other mental illness. In its first year alone, Pineapple Support has connected over 250 adult performers to mental health services including free and low-cost, therapy, counseling and emotional support.

“As an active clinical therapist and adult entertainer myself, I know firsthand the challenges that can accompany accessing mental health support,” Johnson said. “I am elated to partner with Pineapple Support to help bridge the gap between mental health resources and sex workers.”

Johnson said performers can expect to meet online weekly with peers and a sex worker-friendly therapist to discuss the impact of grief and sexual trauma, including coping skills. Performers can expect a judgment-free safe space where the only thing anyone needs to have in common is being a member of the adult industry community.

“One of the hardest things that adult performers face is stigma from the therapeutic community,” Tanit explained. “We need to meet performers on their own terms, and in an environment that understands their needs.”

For more information, click here.