We are pleased to announce that Sam Guzzardi, LCSW, a New York City-based psychoanalyst trained at the Institute for the Psychoanalytic Study of Subjectivity (IPSS), will present “Holding Laplanche Lightly: The Story of Two Queer Treatments” at our fourth annual LGBTQ+ Workshop on October 20th.  Romy Reading, PhD, a candidate at New York University Postdoctoral Program in Psychoanalysis and Psychotherapy and co-host of the podcast, Couched, will be the discussant. A community workshop will take place via Zoom from 1-4pm. Jamie Steele, LMFT, will chair a post-workshop student meeting with Sam from 4:15-5:45. All meetings will be hld on Zoom.

     Survey feedback from the workshop with Avgi Saketopoulou, PsyD, in 2022 reflected an interest in more opportunities to learn about Jean Laplanche, so we are excited for Sam to share his latest thinking on the clinical implications of Laplanche’s theory. Sam writes, “From Queer Studies to Black Studies, from psychoanalysis to literature, the work of Jean Laplanche is becoming increasingly popular in the United States.  In this presentation, participants will hear the stories of two queer patients whose treatment was, borrowing from Donna Orange, informed by an analyst “holding lightly” the theories of Jean Laplanche.  Designed particularly for those who may be unfamiliar with Laplanche’s ideas or uncertain about their relevance to those interested in clinical practice, this presentation will both explicate the fundamentals of Laplanchian theory while avoiding the notion of “applying” Laplanche to clinical work.  Rather, through the telling of clinical story, participants will be invited to experience a Laplanchian sensibility in clinical work, particularly as it applies to issues of queerness and LGBTQ+ experience.”

     Sam’s written work has appeared in The Journal of the American Psychoanalytic Association, Psychoanalytic Dialogues, and other major analytic publications. Sam’s paper “The Only Fag Around: Twinship in Gay Childhood” has won several awards, including the Ralph Roughton Award at APsA. His newest piece, “Towards a Queered Psychology of the Self: Empathy and Passibility from the Margin to the Center,” was published this year in Psychology, Self, and Context in January.  

     The LGBTQ+ workshop fulfills the continued education requirements for LGBTQ+ cultural competency. It is in alignment with WBCP’s Diversities Committee mission statement, which encourages and supports all efforts to expand psychoanalytic thought, theory, and practice to value the richness that diversities bring to a deeper understanding of individual and community experiences.