2026 MMHA Conference, Day 2, All Sessions

MORMON MENTAL HEALTH ASSOCIATION

13TH ANNUAL CONFERENCE

Mormon-ish: Navigating the Space in Between

Friday, July 31, 2026

 

Day 2: General & Community Track

7 CEUs

 

Session 1: Presentation (1 CEU)

Performance vs Presence: Reclaiming Masculinity After the “Mantle”: Moving Beyond Performative Identity Toward Authentic Connection

Ashley Kirkpatrick, LAC

An IFS-informed exploration of performative scripts, “Mantle Burnout,” and relational shutdown in male LDS clients.

 

Session 2: Presentation (1.5 CEUs)

The Heroine’s Journey and Latter-day Saint Women’s Development 

Julie de Azevedo, PhD, LCSW 

A compassionate and developmentally informed framework for understanding the complex intersection of Mormon culture, women’s mental health, and identity development

 

Session 3: Presentation (1 CEU)

The Body After Belief: Nervous System Responses to Mormon Culture, Shame, and Sexuality

Hailey Maire-Grant, LCSW, CST

An exploration of how religious and cultural conditioning can become physiologically embedded in the body and nervous system, particularly around themes of sexuality, worthiness, identity, emotional expression, and relational safety, with special attention given to those who remain connected to Mormon culture while simultaneously experiencing pain, grief, ambivalence, or disillusionment

 

Session 4: Presentation (1.5 CEUs)

Natasha Helfer, LCMFT, CST-S; Mike Fuller, LCSW; Aimee Mortenson, CCMHC, CST, LPC, NCC, MS

Navigating Religious Incongruence, Sex Addiction, Pornography Models, and Purity Culture in LDS Practice

A dynamic, integrated session bringing together four major submissions into a single powerhouse panel, offering a nuanced look at navigating religious incongruence to support sexual wholeness, untangling moral shame, clarifying ICD‑11 CSBD criteria in contrast to “sex addiction” frameworks, and understanding person‑in‑environment distress within high‑demand religious contexts. 

 

Session 5: Presentation (1 CEU)

Mormon Women and Intergenerational Trauma: Reclaiming and Transforming LDS Culture into Spiritual Anti-venom

Heather Sundahl, LMFT, MA

An examination of the mental‑health impact of patriarchal, high‑demand faith traditions on women, highlighting how cultural messages within Mormonism can become internalized and passed from mother to daughter, shaping identity, worthiness, emotional expression, and the body’s sense of safety 

 

Session 6: Presentation (1 CEU)

Motherhood in the “In-Between”: Identity Disruption and Authenticity After Mormonism

Chelsey Liaga, LMSW

A thoughtful exploration of the emotional, relational, and identity‑based challenges Mormon mothers may encounter during faith transitions, offering practical frameworks and therapeutic interventions that support authenticity, differentiation, nervous‑system regulation, and the reconstruction of self within the ongoing demands of motherhood