Financial Trauma & Anxiety in SWers Workshop

Money stress isn’t “just budgeting.” For a lot of clients—especially sex workers—it can be trauma, stigma, survival mode, and nervous system activation all tangled together.

In this workshop, we’re talking about financial trauma + financial anxiety in sex workers through a trauma-informed, culturally responsive, sex work-affirming lens. We’ll cover what it can look like clinically (compulsive spending, avoidance, panic, shame spirals, dissociation around money), why it makes sense, and how to intervene without reinforcing harm.

You’ll leave with practical tools you can use immediately: financial narrative mapping, CBT strategies for money-related anxiety, and boundary-setting/communication practice—plus referral considerations and ethical guidance.

What to Expect: a grounded, skills-forward space where we name the realities of financial stress without moralizing it.

We’ll cover:

• how financial trauma shows up for sex workers (clinically + systemically)
• trauma-informed interventions you can actually use (not just theory)
• boundary-setting and communication tools (with role-play prompts)
• ethical considerations, referral pathways, and cultural responsiveness
• case examples + reflective moments to integrate what you’re learning

You’ll walk away with concrete language, structure, and tools for sessions—especially when money shame, avoidance, or urgency is running the room.

Who This Space is For:

This space is for therapists + sexual health professionals who want to support sex workers with care that’s:

• trauma-informed
• sex-work-affirming
• culturally responsive
• practically useful (not just “insight”)

Especially for you if you’ve ever thought:

• “I don’t want to accidentally shame my client when money comes up.”
• “I need better tools than ‘try a budget.’”
• “I want to understand how trauma + financial behaviors connect.”
• “I want to talk about money and safety and agency in the same conversation.”

If you work with clients navigating stigma, survival, debt, irregular income, or financial panic—this will support your clinical toolbox.

Learning Objectives:

• By the end of the workshop, participants will be able to identify and describe at least five ways financial trauma manifests in sex workers, including compulsive spending, avoidance behaviors, and anxiety, referencing socio-cultural, ethical, and sexual health considerations.
  • c. Socio-cultural factors (e.g. ethnicity, culture, religion, spirituality, socio-economic status, family values) in relation to sexual values and behaviors
• By the end of the workshop, participants will demonstrate at least two trauma-informed intervention techniques tailored for sex workers experiencing financial anxiety, including setting healthy boundaries, budgeting strategies, and referral practices, with fidelity to ethical and culturally responsive care standards.
  • o. Professional communication skills

This program meets the requirements of the American Association of Sexuality Educators, Counselors and Therapists (AASECT) and is approved for 2 CE credits. These CE credits may be applied toward AASECT certification and renewal of certification.