Coming Around

Parenting Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Kids

by Anne Dohrenwend, PhD, ABPP

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“I’m gay.” When a child confides these words to a parent, they can totally transform the relationship. Whether that transformation results in a closer bond or a broken one is entirely dependent upon the parent's ability to accept, nurture and honor the child, whatever his or her sexual orientation.

Coming Around is an insightful and uplifting resource for understanding and coming to terms with a child’s sexual orientation and maintaining a dialogue between parent and child. With compassion and wisdom, Dohrenwend addresses parents' fears regarding what to say and what not to say, bigotry and social and religious prejudice, the legal issues facing LGBT individuals and how to understand homophobia.

Most important, she shares how to communicate that, whatever happens with a child's sexual or gender orientation, parents will never withdraw their love.

Coming out is a vulnerable time. Its announcement requires the re-exploration of a parent's personal feelings on homosexuality. Respecting your teen or adult child’s decisions isn’t always easy, particularly if you fear his or her decisions will cost friends, ambitions, acceptance and respect. Coming Around is a rich resource, jam-packed with insights, information and practical guidance for parents of gay, bisexual and transgender children, as well as an indispensable reference for therapists, clergy, educators and psychological self-help collections.

"...asks and answers a range of difficult questions parents have..."
      — Publishers Weekly

"...a strongly recommended pick for parents who are struggling to cope..."
      — Midwest Book Review

"...timely, valuable, and firmly grounded in the lasting values of civilized life—love, reason, and understanding."
      — Gordon Osmond, Bookpleasures.com

Anne Dohrenwend, PhD, ABPP, has a PhD in counseling psychology from the University of North Dakota and is board certified in Clinical Health Psychology. She is currently the assistant program director of the Internal Medicine Residency Program at McLaren Regional Medical Center, Flint, Michigan and is an associate professor at Michigan State University. She and her partner reside in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

Nonfiction, 5 1/2 x 8 1/2, 240 pages
Self-help/Parenting
LC #2012932037, world rights
ISBN-13: 978-0-88282-393-5, (pb), $14.95
ISBN-13: 978-0-88282-413-0, (eBook), $14.95