In our Trauma Masterclass, three leading experts in trauma work present a range of perspectives on working with traumatised clients.

Tony Buckley: Keeping the Body in Mind

In this presentation Tony Buckley discusses a key somatic approach to trauma treatment. Sensorimotor Psychotherapy integrates cognitive and somatic interventions in the treatment of trauma, emphasising body awareness, practicing new actions and building somatic resources.

With an emphasis on Sensorimotor Psychotherapy’s “embedded relational mindfulness,” key components of this approach are illustrated: uncoupling trauma-based emotions from body sensations; building somatic resources; and developing a somatic sense of self.

With a Sensorimotor Psychotherapy approach attention is paid to safely preventing dysregulation through pacing, boundaries, and a gradual focus on the body.  There is an emphasis on how somatic interventions integrated with cognitive interventions can help change meaning and belief originating in past trauma, supporting the regulation of difficult emotions and physical symptoms in the present.

Tony outlines the key learning points which address interventions for all three-treatment phases in a Sensorimotor Psychotherapy approach to trauma treatment: stabilisation and symptom reduction, work with traumatic memory, and re-integration.

Miriam Taylor: The Well-Resourced Therapist

This presentation looks at trauma from a relational field perspective. The message is about the necessity for therapist self-care – it is not a luxury but an integral part of the work. Under the umbrella term Fields of Mutual Influence, two different dynamics are considered: the Traumatised Field and the Shared Mindful Field. The presentation focuses on the resources available to the therapist and how we can increase our resilience to more comfortably bear witness without either dissociating or being pulled into trauma contagion.

The Window of Tolerance model, a key to trauma therapy and to building resources, is reconceptualised to include the resources available to the therapist. Mirror neuron theory is a second neurobiological lens through which the therapeutic relationship is considered. Reference is made to the therapist’s own relationship to trauma, their mission as therapists, the Messiah Complex and to socially sanctioned altruism and self-sacrifice, each of which can emerge in the therapeutic relational dance.

Because trauma is fundamentally experienced in the body, of particular importance for both therapist and client are body-based resources related to safety, grounding and resilience, and attention will be given to how we can use these. Participants are encouraged to reflect on their range of resources and how they might develop them further, and on the gains of the work which might include mutual healing.

Clinical examples illustrate some of the main dilemmas for the therapist, and these are interspersed with some personal reflection points, developing both the Shared Mindful Field and somatic supports. The images that accompany the presentation include those designed to provide a sensory respite to trauma.

Dr Valerie Sinason: Trauma and Dissociation: What Determines Therapeutic Success or Failure

In her presentation, Valerie focuses on trauma and dissociation and what might help us to understand when treatment or intervention has been successful.

Testimonials:

The post Trauma Masterclass first appeared on Therapy Education Online.

In this presentation Tony Buckley will discuss a key somatic approach to trauma treatment. Sensorimotor Psychotherapy integrates cognitive and somatic interventions in the treatment of trauma, emphasising body awareness, practicing new actions and building somatic resources.

With a Sensorimotor Psychotherapy approach attention is paid to safely preventing dysregulation through pacing, boundaries, and a gradual focus on the body. There is an emphasis on how somatic interventions integrated with cognitive interventions can help change meaning and belief originating in past trauma, supporting the regulation of difficult emotions and physical symptoms in the present.

Tony will outline the key learning points which addresses interventions for all three-treatment phases in a Sensorimotor Psychotherapy approach to trauma treatment: stabilisation and symptom reduction, work with traumatic memory, and re-integration.

Testimonials:

“Tony Buckley was excellent. Very clear, informative and organic in delivery.”

Please note  that any mention in the videos about “handouts” or “printouts” by trainers, are in reference to printouts of the PowerPoint slides, which were made available to delegates who attended the LIVE workshop. These slides are included within the videos and are the property of the trainers. They are not available for download or redistribution with any video rental purchase.

The post Keeping the Body in Mind: The Sensorimotor Psychotherapy Approach first appeared on Therapy Education Online.

Here we look at what the body can tell us, and how to apply this to therapeutic practice.

Testimonials For Nick Totton’s Training:

“Nick provided an excellent warm balance between teaching and experiencing. Just right.”

“I found the day very powerful. Great experiential learning. This has been an inspirational day and will really help in developing and affirming my practice.”

“Nick was interesting, inspiring, human and warm.”

“Lovely man. Articulated his views well and allowed a generous attitude to flow in the room.”

Please note  that any mention in the videos about “handouts” or “printouts” by trainers, are in reference to printouts of the PowerPoint slides, which were made available to delegates who attended the LIVE workshop. These slides are included within the videos and are the property of the trainers. They are not available for download or redistribution with any video rental purchase.

The post We Are All Body Psychotherapists first appeared on Therapy Education Online.

Course Title: Trauma and Attachment: Ghosts and Angels from the Nursery, and the Problem with Burying Grief
Trainer: Kate Brown
Duration: 1 hour 19 minutes

Our trauma masterclass offers a range of complimentary perspectives, portraying concepts and different treatment intervention strategies for therapists working with the various manifestations of trauma in their client population.

Our three presenters each outline their own particular approach to trauma treatment (EMDR, Sensorimotor, and Attachment-based) as well as making some important distinctions between trauma, developmental injury and attachment trauma issues highlighting the need for a range of appropriate interventions tailored to the individual client.

Dr Kathrin Stauffer: “EMDR in the Treatment of Trauma”

EMDR is a very successful approach for treating the symptoms of post-traumatic stress and can be said to have revolutionised trauma therapy, especially through a dramatic shortening of the number of therapy sessions required. Whereas originally the approach was mostly applied to one-time trauma suffered in adulthood, in recent years practitioners have developed a plethora of modifications that allow many other applications including phobias, chronic pain, and early childhood trauma.

Kathrin presents an overview of EMDR including the range of applications and postulated modes of action, as far as we understand these. She uses clinical material from her own experience of processing trauma for which there are no explicit memories but only current body sensations, emotional flashbacks, or similar disturbances. Finally she outlines the differences between EMDR for adult trauma and EMDR for early trauma and presents some of her work with clients who were emotionally neglected as children.

Miriam Taylor: “The Well-Resourced Therapist”

In this presentation Miriam looks at trauma from a relational field perspective. The message is about the necessity for therapist self-care – it is not a luxury but an integral part of the work. The presentation focuses on the resources available to the therapist and how we can increase our resilience to more comfortably bear witness without either dissociating or being pulled into trauma contagion.

Two simple concepts drawn from neuroscience research are reconceptualised to help us consider the relationship in trauma therapy. Reference is made to the therapist’s own relationship to trauma, and Miriam thinks about the ways in which we as individuals get pulled into helping.

Because trauma is fundamentally experienced in the body, of particular importance for both therapist and client are body-based resources related to safety, grounding and resilience, and attention is given to how we can use these. Participants are encouraged to reflect on their range of resources and how they might develop them further, and on the gains of the work which might include mutual healing.

Clinical examples illustrate some of the main dilemmas for the therapist, and these are interspersed with some personal reflection points, developing both the Shared Mindful Field and somatic supports.

Tony Buckley: “Keeping the Body in Mind”

In this presentation Tony Buckley discusses a key somatic approach to trauma treatment. Sensorimotor Psychotherapy integrates cognitive and somatic interventions in the treatment of trauma, emphasising body awareness, practicing new actions and building somatic resources.

With an emphasis on Sensorimotor Psychotherapy’s “embedded relational mindfulness,” key components of this approach are illustrated: uncoupling trauma-based emotions from body sensations; building somatic resources; and developing a somatic sense of self.

Tony outlines the key learning points which address interventions for all three-treatment phases in a Sensorimotor Psychotherapy approach to trauma treatment: stabilization and symptom reduction, work with traumatic memory, and re-integration.

Bonus video:

Kate Brown: “Trauma and Attachment – Ghosts and Angels from the Nursery, and the problem with burying grief”

Kate explains aspects of trauma theory, such as how different sorts of trauma have different impacts on a person’s life and psyche, and how a person’s attachment style will often determine how a person copes with certain traumas.

The ground-breaking work of Judith Lewis Herman’s work ‘Trauma and Recovery’ is used to emphasise the impact of trauma in such symptoms as hypo and hyper-arousal, sensitivity to intrusive memories of traumatic events, and limiting of exposure of events which have reminders of previous traumas.

Kate will use clinical examples of how a client’s early traumas may be enacted in the therapeutic relationship, and how a therapist’s unprocessed trauma may impact the therapy. She concludes with exploring how our attachment styles impact how we process trauma, and the implications of Attachment Theory for our clinical work with traumatised patients.

Please note  that any mention in the videos about “handouts” or “printouts” by trainers, are in reference to printouts of the PowerPoint slides, which were made available to delegates who attended the LIVE workshop. These slides are included within the videos and are the property of the trainers. They are not available for download or redistribution with any video rental purchase.

The post The Art of Trauma Treatment first appeared on Therapy Education Online.

Nick Totton: “Body Psychotherapy’s Contribution to Social and Political Renewal”

Very many people would agree that we are in deep trouble as a society and as a species. I am going to be arguing that an important aspect of our predicament is that we have become disembodied – losing touch with the rich flesh that grounds our experience of and our relationship with the world. Among the effects are a loss of connection with the wild and the other-than-human; with our embodied intuition and empathy; and with our capacity for pleasure and relaxation.

These losses are not only bad for us; they are bad for the planetary ecosystem, since we are acting from a place of alienation and isolation. I will be suggesting that our disembodiment is largely a function of personal and collective trauma; and that embodied forms of therapy can make an important contribution to changing it, both on a small scale through individual and group therapy, and on a larger scale by being a public voice for rebalancing and renewal.

Morit Heitzler: “Somatic countertransference and the therapist’s body”

Over the last decades, the field of psychotherapy has increasingly recognise the centrality of the body and non-verbal communication in psychotherapeutic processes. Neuroscience’s contributions (mirror neurones, right-brain-to-right-brain attunement, etc) have emphasised the importance of the mind-body connection and helped us understand why awareness of the body is crucial in attachment and affect regulation. This has great implications for the practice both of therapy and of supervision.

Traditionally, psychoanalysts might have used the term ‘somatic countertransference’ to point to aspects of our internal experience as therapists and viewed it as an obstacle to the therapeutic space. These days, we do not see the ability to experience in our own bodies the unconscious messages transferred to us through non-verbal channels as a threat to the neutrality of the therapist, but as a precious form of communication that can support and deepen our understanding and attunement to the client’s body-mind system.

In this talk Morit will explore and demonstrate how as therapists we can attune to and process the information inherent in our ‘somatic countertransference’ so it becomes useful and transformative, and how by doing so we increase our capacity to function as the ‘regulatory object’ and a relational container for both our clients and ourselves.

Tony Buckley: “The Sequelae of Embodied Trauma – Latest Movie Release”

The movies provide an interesting metaphor for illustrating the impacts of trauma which later becomes a sequence of replayed activation in the client’s body in response to triggering stimuli. Defensive action becomes truncated, an incomplete script encoding only partial sequence of activation in response to danger and life threat.

Trauma can be characterised as an interrupted movie script which remains fixated as an incomplete sequence of immobilising or defensive life preserving action patterns, experienced as sensation, tension and impulse replaying like a looping but incomplete movie reel.

Dissociation can be understood as consciousness operating as a movie film board censor, editing and removing the most disturbing scenes which further interrupts the sequence and leaves free floating physiological sensations divorced from original imagistic content.

The phrase “latest movie release” represents a sensorimotor treatment approach which invites the client to access the interrupted sequence and allow the body to complete its sequence of activation where the client can become their own hero or heroine to triumphant outcome. This conference workshop illustrates the sensorimotor approach towards resolution of dysregulated states through exercises, slides and video highlighting the body’s natural sequencing processes.

Please note  that any mention in the videos about “handouts” or “printouts” by trainers, are in reference to printouts of the PowerPoint slides, which were made available to delegates who attended the LIVE workshop. These slides are included within the videos and are the property of the trainers. They are not available for download or redistribution with any video rental purchase.

The post The Somatic Masterclass first appeared on Therapy Education Online.

An increased understanding and appreciation of neuroscience alongside the development of effective approaches to treating trauma have shown that being able to work effectively with embodied presentations and communications will increase our effectiveness as therapists and offer greater and safer choices for our clients and patients, particularly for those who are struggling with traumatic experiences or somatic symptoms.

In this conference with three leading experts in the field of body-mind psychotherapy we explore ways in which to attune to the embodied presence of both ourselves and our clients and how to facilitate body-mind communication and dialogue. There is particular attention paid in our final presentation to the skills required by non-body psychotherapists who might wish to respond to embodied moments that occur in the process of talking therapy.

Featuring three talks and a Q&A

Margaret Landale: “Embodied presence, embodied dialogue”

This presentation will explore how we might recognise and draw on the intricate processes of embodied perception, attunement and presence; how to stay focused on what is unfolding in the present moment and how to enhance our capacity to work sensitively and empathically with the flow of emerging phenomena.

In this context, the therapist’s own capacity for paying attention to their embodied experience, attunement to their felt sense as well as openness and receptivity to the unfolding relational processes is essential. We will try to help raise awareness of both the possibilities and challenges we encounter when working with embodied processes and embodied reflexivity.

We will also explore how by paying skilful attention to the direct lived experience as it is embodied between client and therapist we may expand awareness together, facilitate an embodied dialogue and cultivate qualities of curiosity, acceptance and empathy.

The talk will have a strong clinical focus, providing a mix of basic practical orientation, clinical examples and relevant theory.

Ewa Robertson: “The Third Body”

‘It is a very remarkable thing that the unconscious of one human being can react upon that of another, without passing through consciousness’ (Freud 1915).

‘The elusive, deceptive, ever-changing content that possesses the patient like a demon now flits about from patient to doctor and, as the third party in the alliance, continues its game, sometimes impish and teasing, sometimes really diabolical’ (Jung CW16).

The client’s and the therapist’s bodies are always in dynamic dialogue across a space between them. To engage in this dialectical exchange involves the therapist in a mutual and collaborative struggle that is both in and out of awareness. So often we get caught in trying to fix problems to avoid the fear of merger or loss of control. In so doing we may miss the potential healing space that can transform both therapist and client and yet is not created by either. This emergent phenomenon has its own identity that we might call a third body.

We will look at how we can surrender our knowing and allow this third body to speak. The presentation will include a mixture of case examples, relevant theory as well as practical exercises.

Michael Soth: “Techniques for expanding talking therapy into body-mind process”

Even the best therapeutic intervention can only be as good as the client’s receptivity to it, and that is not mainly a left-brain issue. Whether a therapist’s words ‘land’ in the client is not only a question of their content and meaning. Whether or not a therapist’s response is being received gets determined, largely pre-reflexively, by the client’s whole body-mind system, and that depends interpersonally on the ‘felt sense’ of the working alliance. Readiness for change (i.e. neuroplasticity) occurs at the edge of the window of tolerance (which Michael will introduce as having both intra-psychic and intersubjective dimensions). Practically, this often boils down to charged moments of heightened affect when the working alliance is in crisis.

As a therapist, how do you ‘catch’ and make use of these moments that are characterised by spontaneous body-mind processes, which occur between client and therapist before, alongside and in spite of left-brain reflections and words?

In this presentation Michael will focus on the principles of embodied-relational practice mostly in terms of embodied ways of being and working in those critical moments that arise spontaneously as part of the normal talking interaction between client and therapist. Rather than grafting new ‘body techniques’ onto their existing style and practice, the aim of this presentation is to help therapists to become more deeply embodied in moments of crisis and to craft spontaneously and creatively embodying interventions from within enactments.

Please note  that any mention in the videos about “handouts” or “printouts” by trainers, are in reference to printouts of the PowerPoint slides, which were made available to delegates who attended the LIVE workshop. These slides are included within the videos and are the property of the trainers. They are not available for download or redistribution with any video rental purchase.

The post The Body Speaks: Embodied Conversations first appeared on Therapy Education Online.

Our relationship with our bodies, our skin, our appearance can be complex and challenging.

In this conference our three speakers will consider the many ways we experience the skin we live in, how shame of our bodies influences our sense of self and identity, how men experience their bodies, and the meaning of ‘the gaze’.

Featuring three talks and a Q&A

Linda Cundy: “Attachment, Bodies and Skin”

Early relationships embody us, and skin defines what is inside – “me” – from what is outside – “others.” Skin contains our inner states, protects us from intrusion, and is the sensual interface between two bodies. This talk will explore the ways we experience skin, adorn it, attack it; but also how our skin can “attack” us through eczema, psoriasis, acne, odour and aging. What are the implications for relationships with other people and with ourselves?

Dr Nicole Schnackenberg: “Shame, Identity and the Embodied True Self”

We all have a body and we all have a relationship with that body. Our sense of self, including any embodied shame, impacts on this relationship; both on the felt physicality of the body and the perception of how it looks.

In this presentation we will consider how and why shame impacts on human identity and can come to be pinned onto the physical appearance; and the distress this can cause. We will explore the developmental and neurobiological underpinnings of shame and identity formation and consider how mindfulness-based practices can support the journey through experiences of appearance-focused distress.

Jeff Lane: “Are you looking at me?”

Jeff will explore how men see themselves and other men, how they get a sense of their identity as men and how this might play out in therapy with both men, women and couples. He will explore how men and women are portrayed in the media, art, comedy, music and advertising and will talk about the concepts of the male and female gaze.

Please note  that any mention in the videos about “handouts” or “printouts” by trainers, are in reference to printouts of the PowerPoint slides, which were made available to delegates who attended the LIVE workshop. These slides are included within the videos and are the property of the trainers. They are not available for download or redistribution with any video rental purchase.

The post Skin, Identity and the Gaze in Psychotherapy first appeared on Therapy Education Online.

In this presentation we consider how and why shame impacts on human identity and can come to be pinned onto the physical appearance; and the distress this can cause. We explore the developmental and neurobiological underpinnings of shame and identity formation and consider how mindfulness-based practices can support the journey through experiences of appearance-focused distress.

Trainer Feedback

“Nicole is superb – so compassionate, curious and warm. Her knowledge is fantastic but it’s her human touch and warm approach, and clear passion for her work that really make this magical.”

“The level of detail covered during the event and the follow up materials exceeded my expectations.”

“Nicole was incredibly informed, prepared, and knowledgeable on this subject and that shone through in how she delivered the training.”

“The event was engaging, informative, interesting, and packed with information and skills to take away for the therapist.”

“This was one of the best online workshops I have attended in a while. I left the day absolutely buzzing with enthusiasm and interest.”

“I think Nicole is exceptionally knowledgeable, her presence is calming and she manages the day with absolute precision.”

Please note  that any mention in the videos about “handouts” or “printouts” by trainers, are in reference to printouts of the PowerPoint slides, which were made available to delegates who attended the LIVE workshop. These slides are included within the videos and are the property of the trainers. They are not available for download or redistribution with any video rental purchase.

The post Shame, Identity and the Embodied True Self first appeared on Therapy Education Online.