Risky Behavior: Treating Self-Endangering Behaviors from an Attachment/Trauma Perspective

Presenter: John Briere, Ph.D

Based on recent research and his book-in-progress with Guilford Press (Risky Behavior: Treating Trauma, Attachment Disturbance, and Self-Endangerment), Dr. Briere will present an integrated theory and treatment approach to self-endangering behavior, including intentional self-injury, suicide “gestures,”, compulsive sexual behavior, bingeing and purging, compulsive shoplifting, and four other distress reduction behaviors (DRBs). It introduces the Compensatory Avoidance Model, an evidence-informed perspective that explains the frequent comorbidity of multiple dysfunctional behaviors in the same individual, but argues against traditional psychiatric constructs like Borderline Personality Disorder, Impulse Control Disorders, or Behavioral Addiction. Instead, this nonpathologizing approach stresses the role of early child abuse and neglect, attachment disturbance, emotional regulation problems, and triggered implicit memories in the development of what are ultimately coping strategies.

This workshop will offer several assessment tools for evaluating DRB antecedents, risks, triggers, and functions, and provides clinically useful information on developing motivation to reduce or stop DRBs, building emotional regulation skills, processing implicit attachment memories and schema, and titrated exposure to explicit trauma memories. Three clinical tools will also be presented: Mindful Breath Training, The Trigger Grid (adult version), and “RAIN” for triggered states.

John Briere, Ph.D., is a Professor of Psychiatry and Psychology at the Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, and Director of the USC Adolescent Trauma Training Center of the National Child Traumatic Stress Network. A past president of the International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies, he is recipient of the Award for Outstanding Contributions to the Science of Trauma Psychology from the American Psychological Association and the William N. Friedrich Award for Outstanding Contribution to the Field of Child Psychology, from the Mayo Clinic. He is author or co-author of over 140 articles and chapters, 15 books, and 9 trauma-related psychological tests. At USC, he teaches and consults in the burn unit, inpatient psychiatry, and emergency services.

Mindfulness Training

Presenters: Pauline Skeates and Sandy Fabrin

Enjoy life more! Mindfulness has been proven to be one of the most effective tools for reducing stress, anxiety and depressive symptoms. This 6 week training (one evening per week) is for anyone who wants to retrain their brain to become calmer, more in control and happier. 

• Become better at managing stress and resolving conflicts 
• Learn to reshape your thoughts to be more positive 
• Learn how to overcome emotions and simply enjoy life more 
• 6 weeks / 2 hours per evening 
• In a small and safe group 
• Includes course notes and mindfulness exercises 

Why learn the practice of mindfulness? On average, we spent around 47% of our day lost in thought. Thinking about the pressures of work, the stress of raising a healthy family or dreaming about things in the future. Mindfulness is a scientifically proven method of caring for one of the most valuable assets we have, our mind. It is one of the most effective tools for reducing stress, anxiety and depressive symptoms. This 6 week training (one evening per week) is for anyone who wants to retrain their brain to become calmer, more in control and happier.

Pauline Skeates (B Couns, RGON, Dip NPU, Cert IFT, Cert RF) is the director of Insight-International and developer of Insight Focused Therapy (IFT). She leads the work internationally and in New Zealand as well as being the founder and director of the busy Auckland therapy centre Insight Counselling Services. She is the proud mother of three adult children and ‘GG’ to her three beautiful grandchildren. Her years of experience and her vibrant and informative teaching style have earned her a reputation as a speaker in many countries around the world. 

Sandy Fabrin (B Couns, RGON, Cert. IFT, Family Court Reg, NZCCA, ACC Reg) works in private practice with Insight Counselling Services. Her particular interest is to use creative means for therapeutic ends, facilitating a healing process incorporating principals of Insight Focused Therapy. Sandy tailor fits her therapeutic approach to suit the needs of each individual. Her approach can also incorporate Art Therapy. For those specifically interested in Art Therapy, Sandy offers individual and/ or group sessions. Sandy is the mother of four relentlessly creative, adult, children.

Insight Focused Neurotherapy Course

Presenters: Pauline Skeates and Sandy Fabrin

Neuroscience and Mindfulness in Therapy. Mindfulness trains our ‘mind’ to harness the ‘brain’s’ natural capacity for structural re-configuration. Current research shows that the practical application of neuroscience principles in therapy, enhances positive psychological change and growth (Siegel, Davidson, Singer et al.). The data is so compelling; we can no longer ignore it. Learning how to harness the restructuring capacities of the brain is a new wave of therapy. It’s not Rocket Science, It’s Brain Science! 

Invest in your own well-being and also discover a therapeutic process for helping others. 
Insight Focused NeuroTherapy (IFnT). IFnT is an integrative model of therapy which draws from the latest salient discoveries in neuroscience research and mindfulness studies. These, together with concepts from; Attachment Theory, Coherence Theory, Developmental Theory, and Polyvagal Theory have been integrated into a cohesive and practical, therapeutic process. IFnT employs the findings of neuroscience and provides the necessary components and processes needed to utilise the brain’s innate capacity to change, at a structural and functional level. This is known as neuroplasticity – neurological restructuring as a result of input from the environment. The IFnT process, with its focus on mindful acceptance, kindness and compassion, calms the reactivity of the fight and flight response and down-regulates anxiety. Mindfulness fosters the formation of ‘mind-space’, a perspective that allows us to see beyond the automated patterns of behaviour which are driven by negative core beliefs, perceptions, and inherited epigenetics. The IFnT process leads people to discover new insights bringing freedom from beliefs and memories that have kept them limited and caught in patterns of unhelpful thoughts and behaviour. A large body of research points to the effectiveness of mindfulness in promoting neuroplasticity, leading to a greater well-being and better quality of life (Davidson, Williams, Kabit-Zinn, Siegel). 
IFnT Training 

IFnT training is beneficial for all health professionals and also for those seeking personal growth. The course encompasses ten days of training throughout the year on various Saturdays. We offer a supportive, encouraging and safe learning environment, where you can interact with like-minded people. The course is held in the lovely ‘Brick Barn’, in Grey Lynn, Auckland. Morning and afternoon tea and a healthy substantial lunch, will be provided. The training will be led by Pauline Skeates the creator of IFnT and co-facilitated, by experienced therapist, Sandy Fabrin. IFnT training comes highly recommended by therapists, doctors, Psychiatrists, creatives, pastors, social workers, business people and individuals. 

Pauline Skeates (B Couns, RGON, Dip NPU, Cert IFT, Cert RF) is the director of Insight-International and developer of Insight Focused Therapy (IFT). She leads the work internationally and in New Zealand as well as being the founder and director of the busy Auckland therapy centre Insight Counselling Services. She is the proud mother of three adult children and ‘GG’ to her three beautiful grandchildren. Her years of experience and her vibrant and informative teaching style have earned her a reputation as a speaker in many countries around the world. 

Sandy Fabrin (B Couns, RGON, Cert. IFT, Family Court Reg, NZCCA, ACC Reg) works in private practice with Insight Counselling Services. Her particular interest is to use creative means for therapeutic ends, facilitating a healing process incorporating principals of Insight Focused Therapy. Sandy tailor fits her therapeutic approach to suit the needs of each individual. Her approach can also incorporate Art Therapy. For those specifically interested in Art Therapy, Sandy offers individual and/ or group sessions. Sandy is the mother of four relentlessly creative, adult, children.

Using ‘Resistance’ to Generate Creative Solutions in Therapeutic Contexts

Presenter: Johnella Bird

Attending this workshop will assist you avoid the reactivity trap while providing you with an opportunity to use the reactions you have to strengthen and protect yourself and others. We all recall moments in our professional or personal life where our or some-one else’s ‘BUT-----‘followed by a silent or loud ‘NO’ has stalled, damaged or even ended a therapeutic super-vision or management relationship. The endless dance of reactivity following or preceding this ‘NO’ will end when we develop the capacity to use the reactions we and others have in relationships, as the first rather than the last signpost in a discovery process. In this workshop, I will discuss and demonstrate the capacities to respond with creativity rather than deferring, expelling or punishing either the other person or our-self. Through-out the workshop I will focus on the key processes out-lined below. However, this will be ‘performed’ through interviews and exercises where we will address these serious issues with lightness and humour.

• Going beyond definitive constructions of self or the other i.e. ‘I am a great listener’, or he is ‘a bully’ to a discovery process where we use the experiences I have of myself and the other as a beginning point in a process.
• Acknowledging the appearance of strong emotions and experiences as this is the only legitimate place to begin the process of discovery. This includes, fear, shame, disgust, guilt, anger, love, need, jealousy. 
• Managing the power differential rather than disappearing it or using it to confirm your or the other’s construction of events. 
• Identifying areas of vulnerability for one or both participants. 
• Developing ways to manage reactivity. 
• Developing the capacity to use ‘Intentions’ as the beginning point in a process. 
• Conceptualising the dynamic nature of all relationships. Without this ability, the reactions we have remain mysterious to our-selves and others. 
• Contextually positioning and exploring the experiences of all relationship participants. 

Specialist Training in Working with Couples

Presenter: Brenda Rawlings

Couples work can be dynamic, stimulating and highly effective using the structured processes inherent in Imago. Experience the depth and beauty of this work in creating connection between couples. At the same time enable increased passion, greater differentiation, and freedom from painful attachment cycles. 

This professional training in Imago Relationship Therapy, enables therapists to work effectively with couples. Health professionals will leave this training skilled in holding couples safely and constructively, able to listen to each other empathically, move out of their negative cyclic interactional patterns and rediscover joy. 

This training gives an overview of Imago theory and clinical practice. It offers an indepth understanding of relational dynamics from both an attachment and developmental perspective, incorporating developments from both clinical research and neuroscience. This module introduces therapists to the Relational Paradigm, and what it means to view couple dynamics through this lens. Students will be introduced to the practice of the Imago Dialogue through both clinical and experiential work and receive an introduction to the impact of neuro-biological functioning on couple relationships, the need to integrate the positive (including the Appreciation Dialogue), and clear steps for relationship repair which promote safety and connection. 

This is a 2 day training (Days 1&2) and can be taken independently without proceeding further with the additional 10 days of training (Days 3-7 and Days 8-12). 

Brenda Rawlings MNZAC, has been specialising in working with couples since 1998 and she presents Imago Clinical Training for Counsellors, Psychologists and Psychotherapists in both New Zealand and Australia. Her trainings have also been well received internationally. She was Dean of the Imago International Institute (USA) from 2012 to 2017 and recipient of the Harville Hendrix Award for Clinical Excellence. She has also participated in trainings in most major couples modalities and brings this expertise into this dynamic two day training. 

Transforming Suffering: understanding the origins of shame, blame and guilt

Presenter: Johnella Bird

A workshop with a focus on using experience to develop a relational understanding of the origins of shame, blame and guilt. Whenever something goes wrong in our lives we inevitably search for an explanation. This search often leads us to an investigation of ourselves or others, such as, ‘What did I do wrong?’ or ‘What did you do wrong?’ People with trauma/abuse histories can conclude this search with a seemingly unshakable resolve that ‘I am bad, wrong or fundamentally flawed’. I have found that these life defining ‘truths’ gather strength whenever it is confirmed in several locations, such as, family and significant societal institutions. In this workshop I will discuss, demonstrate and invite you to participate in a relational narrative orientation founded on 5 principles. When our therapeutic work centralises these principles, the people we work with are resourced to contextually position identity shaping experiences. In turn, this positioning allows for the construction and discovery of life sustaining narrative threads.

This workshop will assist you to work effectively with people struggling in the following ways:

• People who continue to ‘go back’ to a relationship where a partner is violent. 
• People who never feel ‘thin enough’ and consequently their existence is under threat. 
• People who struggle to use or incorporate evidence of resilience or success. 
• People who seem hyper-vigilant to the ‘mistakes’ they make or the ‘mistakes’ the practitioner makes within the therapeutic relationship. 
• People who continue to believe the explanations given to them by the person who has assaulted them.
• People who have held a longstanding secret. 

Making Change Stick in the Work with Children, Young People and Families

Presenter: Johnella Bird

The workshop series consists of 3 one day workshops on 21 May, 6 August and 5 November 2018. Participation in a consultation group held between workshops is highly recommended. Practitioners often avoid working with families. This avoidance is based on a number of fears, such as the fear of being overwhelmed by the number of people with conflicting opinions, the fear of the child being silenced by the adults present, and the fear that parents and/or the young person will say things that are hurtful and damage an already vulnerable relationship.

In these workshops I will support you to feel more confident when working with families. I will do this by demonstrating the following:

• A systemic, relational enquiry process that provides family members with a new perspective.
• Ways to playfully engage with young people in the Family context.
• A process to assist you to address blame and shame.
• Ways to orientate the conversation toward discovering and using family and individual resources to address problems.