Our Philosophy
Hello! My name is Gregory Gomez, and I am Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and Professional Clinical Counselor in The Coachella Valley, CA. In the recent past, I have had the opportunity to dive deeper in to what is needed in the Latinx community by having direct conversations with many individuals , and have formulated a program experience. At Atender, Live! we believe that mental health wellness relies on the ability to reach out and share similar experiences. Despite the feelings of aloneness most humans may go through, your story is our story, and people who are just like you are hear to listen. Facilitators of the group are people just like you, who are willing to be open and authentic in their disclosures, to make you feel more comfortable with yours!
The Program
Atender, Live! is an ala carte, program where participants can engage in any one of the three experiences they want. It includes a Podcast, a self- supporting group focus group, which allows participants to talk about family issues, fear, sadness, grief, and any other items that were once believed to be taboo to discuss, and training opportunities to run future groups. Atender, Live! focuses on these life changing experiences, and is structured in three different areas.
Experience 1: Weekly Podcasts
Atender, Live! Latinx Taboo Talk is held once a week on Podbean, and the link is posted in this website, on our Instagram and Facebook page. Each episode will involve founder Gregory Gomez, Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist/ Licensed professional Clinical Counselor, either discussing a cultural taboo such as mental illness, sex and others, or interviewing someone who has experienced consequences of practicing social taboos. You can find the link below. https://mworld1977.podbean.com/
Experience 2: Physical Groups
For now, there will be one group available in the Coachella Valley Area, starting in early September. This group will either introduce a topic at the beginning of the group, or expand on the most previous Taboo Talk. The group will be based on Albert Bandura's Social Learning Theory. We focus on 8 basic actions to strategize dealing with cultural taboos which are: Attention and Connection, Motivation and Inspiration, Attention and Highlighting, and Replication and Continuation.
Experience 3: Training Opportunities
Atender, Live! does not have to end after the Podcast or group! There is a simple and short training experience that all are eligible to take part in. There will be training materials passed on with information regarding the group's purpose, important facts about Social/ Systems Theory approach, and resources for support. This is further explained in the physical groups.
