I am a Licensed Professional Counselor in the Commonwealth of Virginia, a Certified Rehabilitation Counselor, and a Certified Brain Injury Specialist. National associations of providers (APA, AMA, ACA, NASW) do not support conversion therapy. When asked to “listen to the experts,” they have spoken, and do not endorse the practice of conversion therapy. The “attempt to treat something that is not a mental illness” as worded by the ACA, is unethical and is not therapy or counseling. The American Counselors Association, the entity who creates and upholds ethics of licensed counselors, has rebuked conversion therapy as a practice that “does not work” and a violation of the ACA code of ethics.

A founding ethical principal of counseling is autonomy; it is the supporting and encouraging of a person to achieve their desired and determined goal and is a founding piece of professional ethical guidelines. We do no harm (nonmaleficence), we do good (beneficence), tell the truth (veracity), uphold and keep our word (fidelity), apply equal treatment to all (justice), and support persons in achieving their self-identified goals (autonomy), these are the ethical principles of a counselor.

 This is not about parent's rights to dictate treatment or judgement upon personal beliefs, this is about ethical proven interventions. Conversion therapy has no proven, peer-reviewed support Conversion therapy has been proven to be dangerous and harmful.