December 12, 2012 | 2 minute read
In November I was an invited speaker at the annual conference of COSRT (The College of Sex and Relationship Therapists – http://www.cosrt.org.uk/) where I discussed the psychology surrounding plastic surgery jointly with Dr Bo Mills, the renowned consultant specialising in intrapsychic and interpersonal intimacy.
The conference, entitled, “Physiological causes and treatment options in sex therapy – the latest medical and therapeutic input” was a great success, with a wide range of topics and speakers – from discussions on plastic surgery, the impact of breast cancer and reconstruction on relationships and topics I was less familiar with, such as the psychological impact and adjustment after gender reassignment surgery. The quality of the speakers was high, and the audience engaged well, asking many pertinent questions.
My relationship with Dr Mills, is such that we could describe several real life examples where my referring to him for specialist input had a powerful positive impact on particular patient’s situations. In some cases surgery was not the right thing and didn’t go ahead, whilst in others, consultation with him brought clarity to decision-making, enabling priorities to be established by the patient, sometimes leading to the surgery they had originally consulted me about.
I value my relationship with Dr Mills highly, and have a low threshold for suggesting his input as part of my patients’ plastic surgery journeys. So far, I can say that all patients who have seen him have found the experience invaluable.