How Do I Talk to My Kids About Gender and Sexuality? Ft. Dr. Marshall Forstein, MD, DLFAPA - Shrinking It Down

How Do I Talk to My Kids About Gender and Sexuality? Ft. Dr. Marshall Forstein, MD, DLFAPA – Shrinking It Down

By Marshall Forstein, M.D., Khadijah Booth Watkins, Associate Director and Gene Beresin, Executive Director

*Content warning: Some of the conversation today includes topics that some listeners may find sensitive including sexuality, gender identity, and violence towards members of the LGBTQIA+ community.

What is gender identity? How is it different from sexual orientation? And why are pronouns so important? We talk through all of these questions and more in this week’s episode. Gene and Khadijah are joined by special guest, Marshall Forstein, MD, DLFAPA, to discuss some of these common terms we are hearing more and more every day and give tips on how to have conversations with your kids about all of these topics. Tune in for one of our favorite episodes yet!

Media List

Follow along with the conversation.

June is LGBT Pride Month (youth.gov)
Reflections on Becoming a Father as a Gay Man (MGH Clay Center)
How and why to discuss Juneteenth with your children (The Washington Post)
LGBTQ+ Glossary (It Gets Better Project)
How To Talk To Your Kids About Internet Pornography (MGH Clay Center)
The Impact of Reality TV On Our Teens: What Can Parents Do? (MGH Clay Center)
Getting to the Finish Line: Will You Choose Endurance or Resilience? (MGH Clay Center)
Supporting Your Child in the Face of Trauma (MGH Clay Center)
What is Family Therapy? (MGH Clay Center)
Pink Freud & The Transitional Objects – 2020 AACAP Virtual Meeting – YouTube (YouTube)

Episode produced by Bianca Dempsey

Edited by Sara Rattigan

Music by Gene Beresin

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Marshall Forstein, M.D.

Dr. Forstein attended The College of Medicine, University of Vermont after a career of teaching high school English, where he developed a lifelong interest in teaching and education. He completed an internship at Presbyterian Hospital, Pacific Medica...

To read full bio click here.

Khadijah Booth Watkins, Associate Director

Khadijah Booth Watkins, MD, MPH, is associate director of the Clay Center for Young Healthy Minds at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), and the Associate Director of the Child and...

To learn more about Khadijah, or to contact her directly, please see Our Team.

Gene Beresin, Executive Director

Gene Beresin, MD, MA is executive director of The MGH Clay Center for Young Healthy Minds, and a staff child and adolescent psychiatrist at Massachusetts General Hospital. He is also...

To learn more about Gene, or to contact him directly, please see Our Team.