A STEP BY STEP GUIDE ON THEORY AND PRACTICE OF ETI SELF-REGULATION

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Trauma is one of the most common injuries that brings clients to therapy and it is also one of the most difficult to treat.  Clients often seem to make good progress, then encounter sharp relapses or long plateaus. 

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This five-part series is for caregivers who have experienced the challenges of working with traumatized clients and seek additional tools for helping clients to stabilize their progress.

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Self-regulation is at the core of trauma therapy, for virtually all trauma survivors must deal with ongoing stress symptoms and complex emotions. (Read more about self-regulation and experiential strategies to expand it in my blog.)

Hence the series will highlight self-regulation and tools to help clients learn to self-regulate.  We will draw from the most recent advances and best practices in theory and practice of trauma therapy, with special attention to experiential tools for expanding it in work with clients, and apply them to real cases.

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The first part of each 3-hour session will include introduction and practice of experiential tools and the second part will focus on how to use these tools in practice, focusing on selected real life cases.

Objectives:

• Expand your tool-box for self-regulation in work with clients who are trauma survivors.

• Therapeutic adeptness in incorporating bottom-up experiential modalities (expressive arts and somatic/body-oriented approaches), top-down approaches (cognitive and behavioral approaches, narrative, mindfulness, and self-compassion), and in combining the two.

• Understanding how experiential self-regulation facilitates neurogenesis, neuroplasticity and vagal tone, and how to deploy tools for self-regulation in ways most likely to facilitate these.

• Experience collegiality and peer support in learning and exploring new modalities and applying them to real-life case situations. 

• For the duration of the five months, for participants who wish to do so to have ongoing collegial support by interacting with each other and the instructor via a closed group journal.

 

Target audience:

Mental health counselors, social workers, psychotherapists, psychologists and other clinicians working with trauma survivors. 

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Location: 

Silver Spring, MD, or Online

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Cost:

$750 for five workshops, payable in advance, or in monthly installments ($150 for 5 months).

Limited to 8 participants. 

No Refunds.

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Continuing Education (CE): 
Expressive Trauma Integration is approved as a sponsor by the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene Board of Professional Counselor and Therapists to provide Continuing Education credits (Category A CEUs).

 

The series provides 15 CEUs towards the requirements of Continuing Education in counseling in the state of Maryland. Certificates of Completion of the ETI Self-Regulation Series will be emailed to participants upon completion of the series. 

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Dates TBD

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​FAQ

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What is included in this series?
The series is designed to provide input and training on new approaches as well as case consultation in applying the approaches learned.  See the next item in this FAQ for a description of the format of each session.

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In addition to the monthly session, participants will have an opportunity, if they wish, to participate in an online text-based discussion for purposes of further reflection or brainstorming.

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What will take place in each face-to-face workshop?

Participants will learn new experiential tools for trauma therapy in the first part of the workshop.  In the second part, participants will discuss the tools in the context of real-life cases and their own clients.

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The first part of each workshop will incorporate a warm-up, a presentation on a particular problem and/or tools, and practice of Expressive Trauma Integration experiential self-regulation methods. The second part of each meeting will focus on how to apply these methods with clients, further practice as needed, and group processing of the whole experience.

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Do I need to be an artist or expressive therapist to participate or to apply these methods with my clients?

No. Experiential modalities are bottom-up modalities (targeting lower parts of the brain affected by trauma) that aim to enhance creativity, spontaneity, and movement in trauma survivors. Since trauma is a frozen moment in time, the antidote is movement. Sometimes it is playful movement (even with adults, not just with kids).  Sometimes it is a symbolic ritual kind of movement that helps clients shift a feeling of contraction (stagnation) to expansion.

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While we will use art-making, drawing, body-sculptures, and role reversal - our focus will be on the process of expression and experiencing "imaginal space", not on the end product. These are simple techniques that anyone can learn to use in clinical settings.

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What is experiential-self-regulation?

This is a particular form of self-regulation that focuses on body-awareness, grounding, and embodiment.

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What if I miss a workshop?

You will be missed. While there is a flow of content and group dynamics, we will do our best to communicate to you what you missed, and you can check-in on the online correspondence.
 

You are responsible for payment for all sessions even if circumstances do not allow your participation.  Also, you will not be able to get CEU's for the time missed.

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What happens upon completion of this series?

Upon completion, you will receive a 15 hour CEU and completion certificate, sent by email.

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