All Webinars

Cognitive-behavioural therapy is widely considered the gold standard treatment of psychotherapy. However some clients don’t respond to standard protocols, and a number of approaches, still considered under the CBT “umbrella” have been adapted to meet the specific needs of different populations. Schema therapy is one such treatment that continues to show promise for what used to be considered “treatment-resistant” patients. Individuals struggling with personality disorders, addictions, and other impulsive and destructive
behaviours are amongst those considered to be the most challenging to reach, and many practitioners often feel ill equipped to deal with them.
 

Attend this full day workshop with internationally recognized personality disorders expert Dr. Jeff Riggenbach as he presents an integrated schema focused cognitive model for dealing with your most challenging cases. This unique, chock-full training will teach you practical strategies to implement with individuals struggling with BPD, addictions, Impulse control problems, and other emotionally dysregulated or Cluster B presentations. Leave this engaging workshop with a plethora of new tools in your toolbox that you can implement tomorrow to help you get unstuck and facilitate meaningful change that lasts. Moreover, leave with a renewed hope that you are now more equipped to deal with even the most clients that walk through your door.

Psychological functioning is shaped by experiences throughout the life span. The way each individual responds to life and internalizes these experiences represents their developmental trajectory. Incorporating a developmental perspective into treatment includes considering normal stages of development—as described by Erik Erikson—as well as disruptions such as adverse childhood events or traumatic experiences. This seminar will teach both developmental conceptualization and intervention  methods. Development can become the focus in psychotherapy in three different ways: (a) Life experiences impact current functioning; (b) Normal developmental challenges and transitions are the current focus; and (c) Developmental disruptions impact functioning.
 

In order to promote a unified approach to treatment, the seminar will highlight the way behaviors, cognitions, or emotions interact in the treatment of trauma and other developmental issues. Trauma and adverse childhood experiences can be described as disruptions to normal development. Trauma will be described on a continuum and a distinction will be made between shock trauma and stress trauma. Another distinction will be made between PTSD and complex trauma. Post-traumatic growth will be highlighted as a way of embracing adaptive thoughts, feeling, and actions after an adverse life event.
 

Psychotherapists cannot change the life experiences or developmental challenges that our clients have faced. However, psychotherapy can help clients respond to these events with more adaptive cognitions, emotions, and behaviors. Video demonstrations will show how a psychotherapist can explore the impact of a developmental disruption and foster more functional ways of thinking, feeling, and acting. 

This seminar is part of Level One of Training in Unified Psychotherapy (TUP), focusing on working interactively with cognition, emotion, and behavior. An essential part of a unified approach to treatment is understanding the developmental origin of dysfunctional thoughts, feelings, and actions and fostering more adaptive responses.