  |
NWSP “Lunch and Learn” Meetings: March-June 2025 Sponsored by the NWSP Membership Committee This monthly series of meetings (Noon-2pm), held at the Silver Spring Library, offers an opportunity for New Washington School of Psychiatry members to share their ideas and experiences with other members of the NWSP community in an informal setting. If you have an idea for a “lunch and learn” in the Fall, please email Joel Kanter at joel.kanter@gmail.com
Lunch and Learn Schedule 2025 Friday, Mar. 7th, 2025: 12:00 p.m.— 2:00 p.m. (ET) Julie Bindeman, PsyD "You have a Donor--Not a Dad/Mom": Addressing the challenges of donor conception with clients on both ends No CEs Offered Program Description: A person’s origins contribute to their identity across the lifespan. When parents are unable to use their own gametes (sperm or eggs), technology exists for them to conceive using a donor. How this information is shared with a donor-conceived person can be indicative of how the person accepts this aspect of one’s self.Presenter Bio: Presenter Bio: Julie Bindeman Psy-D, is the co-owner of Integrative Therapy of Greater Washington in Rockville, Maryland. She specializes in reproductive psychology, where she actively writes, lectures, and presents. She is the current chair of the Mental Health Professional Group within the American Society for Reproductive Medicine. She edited the book The Mental Health Clinician’s Handbook for Abortion Care (Springer, 2024) and has authored other publications on reproductive psychology. Location: Silver Spring Library, 900 Wayne Avenue (3rd Floor). Public parking across Wayne Avenue Cost: No cost for NWSP members; $25 for non-members.
Friday, Apr. 4th, 2025: 12:00 p.m.— 2:00 p.m. (ET) Alejandro Berthe-Suarez, MSW, LCSW-C and Joel Kanter, MSW, LCSW-C Men’s Issues in Therapy No CEs Offered Program Description: In recent years, there has been increasing evidence of how some men are struggling: declining educational attainment, rising rates of male suicide and substance abuse, high levels of loneliness and social isolation, and workplace challenges related to changing job markets. In this program, the presenters will discuss the special concerns of male clients of different generations. Location: Silver Spring Library, 900 Wayne Avenue (3rd Floor). Public parking across Wayne Avenue Cost: No cost for NWSP members; $25 for non-members. 
Friday, May 16th, 2025: 12:00 p.m.— 2:00 p.m. (ET) Alison Fellowes Comly, MA, LICSW Speechless, but not thoughtless: The Inner Life of Autistic Persons No CEs Offered Program Description: The focus of this presentation is to share clinical interventions with adolescents and adults with nonspeaking autism. Topics include the characteristics of nonspeaking autism, regulation of affect in psychotherapy, and communicating with clients who use a keyboard to communicate. Case material and video recordings will be shared to illustrate the clinical issues involved in working with non-speaking clients. Presenter Bio: Alison Fellowes Comly MA, LICSW is in private practice in Washington DC and sees children, adolescents, families, and adults. After completing her social work education at the Unversity of Chicago, she continued her training as a Fellow at Yale University’s Child Study Center where she focused on evaluation and treatment of children and adolescents from both psychodynamic and developmental perspectives. At Yale, she also was awarded a fellowship at the Bush Center for Child Development and Social Policy where she researched universal Pre-K programs. Coming to the DC area, she worked with children and families at the Reginald Lourie Center and became an Emerging Leader’s Fellow at the Children’s Defense Fund. Her interest in working with autism began at Yale and has continued as part of her practice for over the past 20 years. Location: Silver Spring Library, 900 Wayne Avenue (3rd Floor). Public parking across Wayne Avenue Cost: No cost for NWSP members; $25 for non-members.
Friday, June 6th, 2025: 12:00 p.m.— 2:00 p.m. (ET) Tom Holman, PhD A Professional and Personal Journey With Disabled and Neurodiverse Children No CEs Offered Program Description: Third person description: After his first intriguing encounter with autism in 1978, Tom Holman devoted much of his practice to the treatment of disabled and neurodiverse children using a a biopsychosocial framework. Familiarizing himself with the research developments with these children over the decades, he closely observed how these disabled children adapted to a wide range of family and residential environments. Besides focusing solely on disabilities, Tom explored the process of personality development and the challenges of developmental transitions, extending with some clients into adulthood. Reflecting on his experiences doing therapy and evaluations with children, parents, and families, the presenter will explore how we can transcend our own limited perspectives and preconceptions, and enter the world of people who are often so different from us. This requires the clinician to accept their vulnerability and to consider what the world looks like from each person’s point of view, regardless of their communication skills. Similarly, clinicians must examine their own identifications, ableism and neurotypical privilege and remain open to the possibilities of enrichment along the route of this professional and personal journeys. Presenter Bio: After working as a paraprofessional in mental health beginning in 1971, Tom Holman received a Ph.D. in clinical psychology from Catholic University in 1980. He has worked in a variety of settings, including a psychiatric halfway house; outpatient clinics; infant, toddler, and preschool programs; inpatient, day hospital, and residential treatment programs; and private practice. In his current practice in Gaithersburg, he does evaluations for children and adolescents and treatment for children, adolescents, and adults. He taught and supervised in the Child and Adolescent Psychotherapy program of the Washington School of Psychiatry for over 20 years and currently teaches Developmental Thinking as part at the Institute of Contemporary Psychotherapy and Psychoanalysis (ICP&P). Location: Silver Spring Library, 900 Wayne Avenue (3rd Floor). Public parking across Wayne Avenue Cost: No cost for NWSP members; $25 for non-members. |
