Cosmetic Psychotherapy: The Ethics of Treating Clients in Absence of a Presenting Problem

Friday, August 22, 2025
9:30 a.m. - 12:30  p.m.

Zoom Webinar

Registration Fee: $50

OVERVIEW:  Therapy is no longer just a tool for crisis—it's becoming a status symbol. As mental health stigma fades, a new kind of client is emerging: one who isn’t struggling in the traditional sense, but who sees therapy as a pathway to optimization, self-improvement, and even social capital. From TV dramas to celebrity interviews, therapy is being portrayed as not just healing, but aspirational. So what happens when people walk into our offices not because they’re hurting, but because they want to level up? Welcome to the world of cosmetic psychotherapy—a provocative and evolving area of practice that mirrors trends in cosmetic surgery and psychopharmacology. Rather than focusing on dysfunction, cosmetic psychotherapy is about enhancement. These clients are emotionally stable and high-functioning, yet they want more: sharper communication, deeper self-awareness, improved performance, or a more refined sense of identity.

This webinar dives into the ethical, cultural, and clinical terrain where psychology meets self-optimization. What responsibilities do clinicians have when the goal isn’t healing, but upgrading? And how can we thoughtfully engage with this growing demand without compromising core values of the profession? Clinicians will gain fresh insight into this new treatment trend intersecting wellness culture, marketing, and medicalization—leaving better equipped to work with a new generation of therapy seekers. 

OBJECTIVES: After attending this Zoom webinar, the participant will be able to:

• Define cosmetic psychotherapy and articulate how it differs from traditional, pathology-oriented models of mental health care,   
• Describe the medicalization process and explain its relevance to modern psychotherapy, particularly in the context of performance and enhancement-focused treatment, 
• Analyze the ethical advantages and challenges associated with cosmetic psychotherapy, including considerations of client autonomy, clinician responsibility, and societal influence,
• Define the concept of "good citizenship" and examine how societal norms, cultural ideals, and structural influences shape the demand for and delivery of cosmetic psychotherapy.  

WHO SHOULD ATTEND:
This continuing education Zoom webinar is designed for case managers, social workers, psychologists, therapists, counselors, and health care workers.  The community is also invited to attend. 

CONTINUING EDUCATION:                                                              
Mental Health America of the Heartland is a pre-approved provider for social workers through the Kansas Behavioral Sciences Regulatory Board (BSRB) Provider Number 17-007. This continuing education provider is approved 3.0 hours for social workers and accepted for psychologists, professional counselors, masters prepared psychologists, marriage and family therapists and addiction counselors.

In order to receive continuing education credit and a certificate of attendance for this Zoom webinar, you will be required to participate in the Zoom webinar. You will receive a Zoom invitation via email within a week of webinar. Also you will need to take an online exam and complete an evaluation that will be sent in a separate email after the live Zoom webinar. You must pass the test by 70%. The Zoom webinar will not be available by recording and viewing at any other time.