PLEASE PROVIDE A RSPONSE FOR THIS DB POST

" As this writer has finished his practicum and is not finishing his internship, various social issues or problems have impacted his work. With an always-expanding society and recent societal stressors, the context and impact of social problems on counseling and human services professionals have been a fluid and ongoing issue to contend with. For example, the COVID-19 pandemic has had profound impacts on the overall mental health of society relative to financial insecurity, racial and ethnic tension, vaccination discrimination, lack of resources, increase in financial costs, and much more (Purtle, 2020). Recent social issues have also created tension among Americans regarding gender identity discrimination. According to Bass and Nagy (2022), members of the LGBTQ community have historically experienced a challenging history making it imperative that health professionals understand entirely and are open to various special considerations and avoid unconscious and perceived biases. As society advances by utilizing advanced technologies, the experienced social issues evolve and may have new implications and influences for counseling and human service managers.

This writer's internship occurs at a partial hospitalization (PHP) and intensive outpatient program (IOP) for adults suffering from substance use disorders, mental health disorders, and co-occurring disorders. Although this writer's experience in counseling has only occurred after the pandemic, the implications are highly evident. According to Dobson et al. (2022), data from the 2019 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS), and the 2020 Household Pulse Survey (HPS) show a significant increase in self-reported experiences of depression and anxiety, especially for young and low-income Americans in 2020. According to Purtle (2020), because of the isolation mandate at the beginning stages of the pandemic, many Americans experienced heightened anxiety and depression relative to fear and risk of contracting and spreading the disease and the lack of social interaction among peers and loved ones.

This writer feels that exacerbated stress experienced by Americans because of the pandemic has increased the severity or has initiated symptoms of severe mental health conditions (i.e., severe depression, bipolar disorder, suicidal ideation, etc.). For example, many clients who have entered the PHP program were hospitalized in an inpatient unit prior due to experiences of hopelessness and suicidal ideation because of job loss, financial instability, and job insecurities because of the pandemic. Many clients within the PHP and IOP program have had a history of mental health issues and hospitalizations, with more frequent visits and severe issues within the past two years, compared to before the pandemic. This writer has also experienced several clients who have never been hospitalized or treated for major mood disorders (e.g., bipolar disorder) and have recently initiated their dormant mood disorder because of excessive stressors (i.e., health issues, financial instability, family deaths). The experienced heightened stressors appear to have had a significant impact on the mental health needs of many Americans.

Another social issue this writer has been professionally impacted by is the controversial notion of gender identity. According to Carlozzi (2020), "gender identity refers to the subjective sense of who one is as far as male, female, or other. Gender Identity is determined more by the brain than by sexual anatomy" (para. 2). According to Bass and Nagy (2022), the LGBQ community is comprised of a broad cross-cultural range of community members of all races, ethnic and religious backgrounds, and socioeconomic status. Bass and Nagy (2022) further explain that to provide quality and effective mental health services to the LGBTQ community, a professional must be open and understanding to the multiple forms of special considerations necessary in effectively treating the community while actively working to avoid unconscious and perceived biases.

With the recent emphasis on gender identity discrimination in American society, this writer has been very aware of the importance of multicultural competence, especially within his new profession. For example, this writer does not have an all-encompassing knowledge base of the terms and experiences of all LGBTQ community members. As a result, this writer is hyperaware of the importance of pronouns and seeks further knowledge and education on an LGBTQ client's gender identity. This writer has also experienced some anxiety while facilitating group therapy because of the "unknown" reaction that some clients may have toward a transgender group member. Fortunately, this has not been an issue thus far. Still, this writer feels that a client will inevitably have strong, uneducated, negative opinions about a transgender group member. This writer has also developed a hyperawareness of utilizing preferred pronouns with a client. Until recently, this writer had never had an awareness of the pronouns used to address others; in the past, this writer always addressed individuals based on their physical appearance (i.e., male or female). Through his internship and course work, this writer has developed a curious stance on addressing others, not based solely on physical appearances, and the importance this holds for the individual.

References

Bass, B., & Nagy, H. (2022, October 3). Cultural competence in the care of LGBTQ patients. National Library of Medicine. Retrieved December 6, 2022, from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK563176/

Carlozzi, A. (2020, November 16). Counseling transgender persons and their families. Counseling Today. Retrieved December 6, 2022, from https://ct.counseling.org/2017/08/counseling-transgender-persons-families/

Dobson, E., Graham, C., Hua, T., & Pinto, S. (2022, April 4). Despair and resilience in the US: Did the COVID pandemic worsen mental health outcomes? Brookings. Retrieved December 6, 2022, from https://www.brookings.edu/research/despair-and-resilience-in-the-us-did-the-covid-pandemic-worsen-mental-health-outcomes/

Purtle, J. (2020). Covid-19 and Mental Health Equity in the United States. Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, 55(8), 969-971. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00127-020-01896-8

"