Here’s the material from the Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States (SIECUS) I discussed on the air (listen to attached clip), with the annotations taken from our slowly forthcoming book Consent-Based Sex Education to be released in 2020 (finally!) Key Concept I: Human Development Goals: Help children[1] to appreciate their bodies. Provide information about…
Understanding How A Teen's Conflict in Gender Identity Can Come Out Pretty Great
In this segment of Up to Date with Steve Kraske, I’m joined by Peter, a twenty-four-year-old transman who recently underwent top surgery–the removal of breast tissue to to confirm gender. I’ve known Peter for many years and have watched him on his journey from insecure and dysphoric teen to confident and hopeful young adult. As…
Women's Fascination with True Crime: It's Not "Weird" at All
The genre of true crime has always been fascinating to me. It’s actually what drew me to the field of psychology. Dr. Kelsey Daugherty is a huge fan. Dr. Wes’ daughter, Alyssa, got into forensic accounting after a long standing interest in crime scene investigation. Her new favorite true crime sub-genre investigates financial scams like…
Make Consent an Everyday Conversation
In the wake of the #metoo movement there’s emerged a necessary and welcomed conversation about consent and its importance in the reduction of sexual assault. On the local level there has been a strong emphasis on self-defense classes to help empower individuals against potential attackers. While this is important work, it leaves out a key…
Setting Media Limits with Kids
One of the biggest battles for today’s parent is balancing our children’s technology use. As a parent and a therapist, I deal with this in my home and at the office. Although internet/technology addiction has not yet found its way into the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, professionals in the mental health field are witnessing the negative…
Let's Leave the Politics Behind in Understanding the Seriousness of #MeToo
I don’t care who you believe in the whole Kavenaugh and Blasey Ford situation. You’re entitled to your interpretation of the facts and your opinion of the various parties and the motives, and I’m entitled to mine. I’ve done forensic psychology long enough to have seen every side of cases like this. In the vast…
Teacher Salary and the Duty Day: Is It Really For the Kids?
As long as I’ve been married to a teacher (on our wedding day, Reagan was just starting his second term) I’ve heard about the duty day, and to be honest, I’ve never quite understood it. I mean I understand that teachers have a contract with their employer (the school district) and it says that they…
Talking LGBTQ With Teens
I recently posted a 2013 Up to Date interview with Matt and Casey discussing life in the LGBTQ community. Two years thereafter, in May 2015 we did an update on this with Julia Poe, who was at the time a senior at Shawnee Mission East High School and the National Teen Journalist of the year.…
Same-Sex Attracted and Gender Nonconforming Teens: What a Difference Five Years Makes
I thought I’d post this blast from that past, from November 2013. While the Up to Date segment with Matt Rood of Lawrence High School and Casey, then a student at KU, is still great information for parents, it’s amazing how far we’ve come since then. To think that this was cutting edge stuff back…
New DBT Practice in Lawrence: An Update on KLWN
Here’s the latest I can discuss on DBT and Bert Nash. I think it is a hopeful situation. You can skip ahead to 6:38 on this clip to learn more and skip our concrete report! I think information on the new DBT Center of Lawrence has it’s website up, but just barely. Clients who have…