Psychoanalysis and its practitioners—psychoanalysts—aren’t usually associated with cutting edge technologies.  We were slow even to develop websites that would effectively convey our ideas and activities to our local communities.  But among institutes accredited by the American Psychoanalytic Association (APsaA), the Cleveland Psychoanalytic Center is out front as the first adopter of social media.That’s according to Jake Lynn, APsaA’s Director of Public Affairs.  Lynn is responsible for launching APsaA’s first Facebook page just under a year ago.  With a growing fan base 378 who “Like” APsaA on Facebook, the page is becoming a go-to place for links to news and events of interest to a diverse group of Facebook users. Earlier this year, the Cleveland Psychoanalytic Center’s Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy Program (PPP) initiated its own Facebook page.  Now the Cleveland Psychoanalytic Center has broadened its social media presence with an additional Facebook page and plans for a Twitter account.  Among our objectives are to communicate about the full range of offerings of the Center and to rapidly communicate with prospective candidates.  Our YouTube channel and LinkedIn account will not be far behind.In addition, the Cleveland group has rolled out a newly designed website that includes its first blog.  In the blog, we will discuss psychoanalytic ideas as they pertain to psychoanalytic education, the mental health professions, current social issues, family matters, the arts, and other fields of interest.The success of our expanded Internet presence will rely not only upon its timeliness and relevance—which we plan to deliver—but also on the participation of our members and many others far beyond our previous reach.  We invite you to become part of the Cleveland Psychoanalytic Center’s Internet presence.  There are numerous ways to do so.

1. ‘Like’ us on Facebook.  Share and comment on our posts at the Center's main Facebook page, as well as the Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy Program Facebook page.
2. Follow us on Twitter @psychcleveland.  Retweet us to help grow our social media community.
3. Keep checking out our new blog at psychoanalysiscleveland.org/news-and-events/blog/ or add it as an RSS feed to your personal homepage, which will deliver updates to you automatically.
4. Bookmark and visit our website, psychoanalysiscleveland.org, to learn more about our mission, psychoanalytic and psychotherapy training programs, and other activities.
5. Join our email lists.  You’ll automatically receive email notification of new events and/or blog posts.
6. Contact our Blog editors with topics you would like to see in our blog.

Participating in social media is fun, interesting, and easy.  If you haven’t yet discovered the satisfaction of engaging with others online, and you have an interest in what people are thinking about psychoanalysis, the Cleveland Psychoanalytic Center’s social media platforms would be a good place to start.  We hope you’ll join us as we join the global Internet community, where communication is no longer limited to sharing what we have to offer, but includes listening to those who choose to interact.In upcoming blog posts, we’ll address the topics of managing your professional identity, commenting effectively, and understanding privacy settings for analysts, therapists, and other mental health professionals participating in social media.  There’s an opportunity to post your comments below.