Estimated: 3 minutes to read

Welcome Green House Cohort 5!

Each January, LifeWorks welcomes a cohort of graduate therapists into its Green House training program.  These therapists spend 12 months on staff at LifeWorks, work with clients and focus on: Developing cultural competence and knowledge related to LGB, trans and genderqueer, non-monogamy and kink/BDSM Strengthening their identities as therapists and learning how to use their unique strengths in clinical relationships […] Read more “Welcome Green House Cohort 5!”

Estimated: 10 minutes to read

An Interview With Elisabeth Sheff, Ph.D., CASA, CSE

Eli Sheff is a leading expert on polyamory and has conducted groundbreaking research on polyamorous families with children. In the past, she has contributed her findings to the LifeWorks blog. This summer, Eli is traveling the country for her Practical NonMonogamy workshop tour, which is bringing her here to Chicago. On Saturday July 7, 2018, […] Read more “An Interview With Elisabeth Sheff, Ph.D., CASA, CSE”

Estimated: 5 minutes to read

Constructing a Queer Life: On the Choice to Parent, or Be Child-Free

Many people grow up following a cultural life script: you go to school, get a job, marry your one true love and start a family. Happily Ever After! At least, that’s a common scenario many cultures, based on heteronormativity, have historically supported. But as many of us grow up, we realize that that version of […] Read more “Constructing a Queer Life: On the Choice to Parent, or Be Child-Free”

Estimated: 6 minutes to read

Queer, Polyam, Kinky, Single? Alternative Valentine’s Day Ideas

Navigating Valentine’s Day can be tricky, especially if you’re single, or if your relationship falls outside the margins of heteronormative monogamy. As the 14th approaches, you might feel like you can’t escape ads selling jewelry by reinforcing the gender binary or promotions trying to push pricey dinner dates for two. But, even as you feel […] Read more “Queer, Polyam, Kinky, Single? Alternative Valentine’s Day Ideas”

Estimated: 6 minutes to read

Polyphobia: Anti-Polyamorous Prejudice and Discrimination

Eli Sheff is considered a leading expert when it comes to polyamory and stigma. Eli is the CEO and Director of Legal Services at the Sheff Consulting Group, a think-tank of experts specializing in diverse subcultures and under-served populations. The following is an article she wrote for Psychology Today about polyphobia and discrimination.  Prejudice is making judgements about […] Read more “Polyphobia: Anti-Polyamorous Prejudice and Discrimination”

Estimated: 11 minutes to read

Children in Polyamorous Families Part 5

This fifth and final blog in the series on children in polyamorous families focuses on custody. The first looked at age-dependent experiences and why the kids are in such great shape, and the second detailed some of the advantages and disadvantages in poly family life. Third in the series came poly families’ strategies for dealing […] Read more “Children in Polyamorous Families Part 5”

Estimated: 5 minutes to read

Children in Polyamorous Families Part 3

This is the third in a series of blogs on children in polyamorous families. The first looked at the age dependent experiences of children in polyamorous families and why they appear to be doing so well, and the second detailed the advantages and disadvantages these children identified in poly family life. Third in the series, this blog explains four strategies these kids use to deal with the disadvantages found in poly family life, including blending in, being careful who they told about their families, avoiding the issue completely, and negotiating with parents. Read more “Children in Polyamorous Families Part 3”

Estimated: 7 minutes to read

Children in Polyamorous Families Part 2

In the first part of this series on children in polyamorous families, I explained how these kids have age-dependent experiences and why they appear to be doing so well in general. This second blog in the series details the advantages and disadvantages that children report in my study of polyamorous families. Advantages Children and young […] Read more “Children in Polyamorous Families Part 2”

Estimated: 5 minutes to read

Green House Experiences & Insights

We are now accepting applications for the Green House 2019 Cohort. Launched in 2016, the Green House is LifeWorks’ postgraduate psychotherapy training program. Participants join us here in Chicago for 12 months of tuition-free learning and real-world clinical experience centered on self-development, individual supervision, and cultural competence. Wondering if the Green House is right for […] Read more “Green House Experiences & Insights”

Estimated: 8 minutes to read

Children in Polyamorous Families Part 1

Eli Sheff is considered a leading expert on polyamorous families with children. The following is the first in a series of five articles she wrote for Psychology Today about children in poly families. As public awareness of polyamorous families has risen over the past 20 years, so has concern over their impact on children. In order to […] Read more “Children in Polyamorous Families Part 1”

Estimated: 6 minutes to read

The Conflict with Conflict in Polyam Relationships

Ever had conflict? Most people have had more conflict than they care to recall. Conflict is important to everyone and every relationship but when you are in a multi-partnered relationship good conflict skills become even more critical. On May 6, 2017, Rami Henrich, LCSW and I presented a workshop on applying the principle of deep […] Read more “The Conflict with Conflict in Polyam Relationships”

Estimated: 7 minutes to read

More to Love: Polyamory in the Real World

On May 30, 2017, LifeWorks partner Rami Henrich, LCSW was part of an interview for Chicago Tonight which aired on Chicago’s PBS station WTTW regarding polyamorous relationships.  In the on air interview, Rami shares her experience of being in a polyamorous relationship for over 34 years.  She is joined in the interview by Caroline Kearns of Chicago Polyamory Connection […] Read more “More to Love: Polyamory in the Real World”

Estimated: 2 minutes to read

Healing from Affairs — Cheating is not Polyamory

Affairs can surface in a long-term relationship.  Can healing occur when the affairs have been covert, repeated and ongoing? Several years ago a couple, Peter and Sherri (not their real names), a married, het/cisgender couple, came to see me. They had been married for approximately 25 years. As are my usual questions when I first […] Read more “Healing from Affairs — Cheating is not Polyamory”

Estimated: 2 minutes to read

Interview with Jo Flannery, AMFT, MA Sexology

Jo Flannery, AMFT, MA Sexology, is one of four therapists to join LifeWorks this year through the Greenhouse, our postgraduate psychotherapy training and mentoring program. The Greenhouse provides new clinicians with opportunities to develop their identities as therapists, deepen their skills and unique strengths, and expand their cultural competence through hands-on experience and educational modules. […] Read more “Interview with Jo Flannery, AMFT, MA Sexology”

Estimated: 6 minutes to read

Cultural Competence and Bias

As therapists, we recognize our ethical obligations to know and acknowledge the limits of our training and skills. We know that our expertise grows over time with experience and supervision, training, reading, dialogue and further training. These activities contribute to our mastery of specialized areas, methods or skills. But what about cultural competence? How do […] Read more “Cultural Competence and Bias”

Estimated: 4 minutes to read

Welcoming the 2016 Green House Therapists

LifeWorks is proud to announce that the first Greenhouse cohort is underway. Four new therapists have joined our team for 2016. Please welcome Brandon Haydon, LSW, Allison Burque, LCSW, Natalie A. Hock, MSW, and Jo Flannery, AMFT, MA! The Greenhouse is a postgraduate psychotherapy training and mentorship program developed and sponsored by LifeWorks. The program […] Read more “Welcoming the 2016 Green House Therapists”

Estimated: 4 minutes to read

Becoming a Polyamory Ally: How to Start

This blog was inspired by the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) blog How to Be a LGBTQ Ally. I am grateful to HRC for their groundbreaking leadership in the fight for the rights of LGBT people in US and around the world. To read the original HRC blog, click http://www.hrc.org/blog/entry/how-to-be-an-lgbt-ally For a lot of people, learning […] Read more “Becoming a Polyamory Ally: How to Start”

Estimated: 5 minutes to read

The Long Haul

The following is an excerpt from a recently published article by Rami Henrich, that can be found in Elizabeth Sheff’s book, Stories from the Polycule: Real Life in Polyamorous Families. The first of its kind, this anthology collects stories and essays written by and about real people living in “polycules”: the networks between people in […] Read more “The Long Haul”

Estimated: 1 minute to read

A New Polyamory Book: Stories from the Polycule

We are pleased to announce that our friend and associate, sociologist and researcher, Dr. Elisabeth Sheff has just published her newest book, Stories from the Polycule: Real Life in Polyamorous Families. The first of its kind, this anthology collects stories and essays written by and about real people living in “polycules”: the networks between people in polyamorous […] Read more “A New Polyamory Book: Stories from the Polycule”