Systems-Involved Transgender and Gender-Diverse Youth: Homelessness, Juvenile Legal Systems, and Child Welfare and Foster Care.

Transgender and gender-diverse (TGD) youth are overrepresented in legal and social support systems intended to protect and support youth along their developmental journeys. However, these systems often fall short for TGD youth and further stigmatize an already vulnerable population. This article provides an overview of the experience, care, and treatment of systems-involved TGD youth. Working with systems-involved transgender and gender-diverse youth necessitates a high level of compassion and advocacy in pursuit of more equitable care and access.

Differential Impact of Depressive and Manic Mood States on Alcohol Craving in Comorbid Bipolar Alcoholism: Preliminary Findings.

OBJECTIVES: To examine the differential impact of depressive and manic mood states on alcohol craving in patients with bipolar disorder and comorbid alcoholism. METHODS: Forty-four men and women, ages 18-65, with DSM-IV-TR comorbid diagnoses of bipolar I disorder and alcohol dependence were assessed over a three-month period to examine the extent to which their depressive and manic symptoms were associated with alcohol cravings (i.e., desire to use and not to use alcohol) at each assessment point, controlling for age, ethnicity, socio-economic status, baseline alcohol use, and number of assessments. RESULTS: Both manic and depressive symptoms were associated with greater desire to use alcohol. Only depressive symptomatology was associated with reduced desire not to use alcohol, and desire not to use alcohol declined over the course of the three-month treatment period. CONCLUSION: Whereas enhanced desire to drink alcohol may be a conditioned reaction to both manic and depressed mood states, desire not to drink alcohol may be more of an indicator of treatment motivation, which is negatively affected by depressed mood. Depressive symptoms may warrant prioritization and aggressive targeting early in treatment given that desire to refrain from alcohol use was only influenced by depressive symptoms and declined over the course of treatment.

Community-Based Alternatives to Incarceration and Assessment and Community-Based Planning for Probation/Community-Based Alternative.

There is growing concern regarding the current treatment of juvenile offenders within the justice system. Most mental health professionals would agree that it is best to adopt a rehabilitative approach toward delinquent youths, but current practices do not always follow this principle. Youth incarceration is a costly and often debilitative process. There is growing evidence for community-based alternatives that aim to rehabilitate juvenile delinquents. Some of these interventions have proved to be successful in the prevention of delinquent acts.

Sexual Enhancement Treatment for Sexually Violent Predators: Ethical and Legal Implications.

The treatment of sexually violent predators (SVPs) has been controversial since the implementation of sexual predator laws and statutes that seek to balance the civil rights of SVPs and the protection of potential victims. In this paper, we will present the case of an SVP who sought sexual enhancement surgery in order to perform intercourse with his wife. We will also discuss the conflicting legal and ethical issues affecting a decision to implement sexual enhancement therapy for SVPs in an effort to reconcile these divergent positions.