Children who feel hurt and angry disconnect from their parents - parents who sense that disconnect feel discouraged when their child-rearing approaches aren’t working. Even when parents attempt to improve their relationship through parent-child therapies, they may find that the interventions focus on improving behaviors without considering the core issues underneath: attachment and trauma.
This workshop, hosted by Collectively Rooted, offers a different lens that focuses on the physiologic, nonverbal connection between parent and child to improve the relationship. Using principles from two attachment-based modalities---Dyadic Developmental Psychotherapy and Theraplay---learn how to enhance regulation, connection, and joy between parents and children as well as guide parents to do reparative work around family trauma.
You will discover how to
Up to 12 CE Credits Available**
Sign up now and start the 6 hour didactic program instantly. Then join Dafna for 4 weeks of live online active and practical sessions.
You will have the opportunity to learn through clinical case analysis, role playing, and practical exercises you can integrate in your practice and use on your own.
At the end of this course, you will receive a comprehensive e-Book on Integrated Attachment Family Therapy - a great reference tool to use as you continue to practice and apply what you have learned.
**6 CEs available for pre-recorded content & 6 CEs available for live sessions
In order to receive the CE credit for live sessions, participants MUST be present during each live Zoom session.
Do you need CEs? Add on for $50 more.
$225.00 USD
Program Only
Included features:
$275.00 USD
Program Only
Included features:
Need Assistance? Email: [email protected]
WEEK 1
In week 1, we will practice exercises for maximizing your social engagement system and participate in experiential exercise for learning about your own polyvagal map. In this session, you will
Learn techniques for transmitting trust and safety through body language
Learn how to overcome your defensive reactions to clients who cause you discomfort by using guided imagery and self-regulation techniques
See video of real client where parent and child have difficulty due to being mismatched in their nervous systems and how social engagement activities helped them become more attached and regulated
Map out your own polyvagal map so you can become familiar with your own nervous system
Learn to apply this same map with your clients
Watch lecture 1 to prepare for this week. This 90 minute lecture will cover:
I. Basic Tenets
Focus is on attunement, co-regulation and intersubjectivity between caregiver and child on non-verbal, physiologic level.
The dyadic relationship is the focus of the treatment, not the individual
Actively facilitating joy and connection in the dyad
Developing a coherent autobiographical narrative is key to healing
Working with parent’s own attachment history is key to facilitate healing
II. Using your Social Engagement System
Voice prosody
Melodic voice that express joy/pleasure in person’s company
Higher in the pitch range
Rhythmic voice
Matches the rhythm of the other person’s communications/vocalizations
Accompanied by open, curious face
Eye contact
Reassuring touch (pressing gently on hand, holding hand, hand on shoulder)
Gesture and posture
WEEK 2
In session 2, we will learn how interpersonal play between parent and child builds trust, safety and connection. We will practice activities from the 4 Dimensions:
Balloon between two bodies
Weather report
Slippery slip
Cotton ball war
Mirroring Game
Blow Me Over
Imaginary Ball Toss
In this session, you will
Learn about the 4 dimensions of Theraplay
Learn which type of child behaviors need which of the Theraplay dimension
Learn activities to use in sessions with your child and parent clients
Practice activities in dyads
Learn about the impact of pervasive shame and child misbehavior
Learn how to repair shame
Watch lecture 2 to prepare for this week. This 90 minute lecture will cover:
I. Theraplay Dimensions: Overview
Engaging, playful, relationship focused therapy that is interactive, physical and fun
Modeled on the natural patterns of healthy parent-child interaction
A “bottom-up” rather than a “top-down” model
Parents are actively involved in treatment and helped to become more sensitively attuned and emotionally available
Interactions lead to a sense of safety and comfort with closeness and create an ongoing healthy relationship
Repair of traumatic experiences and relational trauma
II. Theraplay Dimensions: Structure-Organization & Safety
Environmental regulation via organization, clear boundaries, and clear expectations
Relational regulation via pacing, choice of activity and level of arousal
Parent takes over this role as soon as possible
Balloon between two bodies
Your parents are trustworthy and can keep you safe
You don't have to manage on your own
III. Theraplay Dimensions: Engagement Connection, Joy, Co-Regulation of Emotions
Slippery slip
Messages to the Child
IV. Theraplay Dimensions: Nurture-Calming, Emotional Nourishment, Secure Base
Creating moments where the child can feel taken care of, secure, nourished and calm
Messages to the Child
Your parent can calm and soothe you and help you feel better
Your parent provides what you need
Even if touch and physical closeness were frightening in the past, they can now feel safe and good
V. Theraplay Dimensions: Challenge Recognition, Pride, Celebration of Self
Messages to the Child
You are strong and competent
You are capable of making good things happen
You can accomplish something that is a bit difficult with your parent’s help
VI. The Value of Practicing Playful Activities with Parents
Symptoms
How to respond to and heal chronic shame
Example of shame and repair
WEEK 3
In session 3, we will learn how to help caregiver and child create safe dialogues. We will practice PACE for when a child is angry/defensive and when a child is passive/withdrawn/depressed.
In this session, you will
Discover the power of the PACE attitude
Learn to encourage and extend dialogue even if the child doesn’t talk
Tools for titrating the intensity of interaction between parent and child to maintain optimal arousal
Practice a position of radical acceptance of client’s strong feelings
Learn how to identify toxic shame as a reason for misbehavior
Learn how to repair the pattern of the toxic shame response
Watch lecture 3 to prepare for this week. This 90 minute lecture will cover:
PACE Attitude for encouraging children to speak about their thoughts and feelings
Playfulness
Light, hopeful, open, spontaneous atmosphere, storytelling voice and tone
Acceptance
Unconditionally shown about all the thoughts, feelings, motives, urges under the behavior; Behavior still needs limits or consequences
Curiosity
Non-judgmental, non-evaluative, wondering, active interest in your child’s experience, can be tentative
Empathy
Doing your best to make sense of and feel what is going on for child - actively showing it so they can see and feel how they have an impact on you
Tips for creating safe dialogues between child and caregiver
Take child’s non-verbal communications as responses (shoulder shrug, intense gaze, shift of head, looking down, etc.)
Support child in “not knowing”
Ask if you can guess and they can give you a thumbs up or down, or a toe up or down
Let them hide under blanket or pillow, give them something to clutch like a big teddy bear or pillow
Don’t ask them for verbal confirmation. Non-verbal is enough.
If they don’t answer you, talk to yourself or a stuffed animal in the room, wonder out loud
WEEK 4
In session 4, we will practice responding to defensive parents to help uncover non-conscious fears and facilitate mentalization skills. We will practice role play for parents who make statements such as
Are you blaming me?
How I was raised has nothing to do with this!
I grew up this way and I turned out ok
I had it much worse growing up than he does
In this session, you will
Assessing when it is time to parent individual work
Working with angry and uncooperative parents
Helping parents stay open and engaged
Learn gentle ways to intervene and redirect a misattuned or critical parent
Guiding parents in helpful responses within session
Watch lecture 4 to prepare for this week. This 90 minute lecture will cover:
What lies underneath difficult child behavior
I. Possible non-conscious “core beliefs”
I am afraid I will explode eventually and ruin everything
If I say how I really feel, I will feel too foolish
I’m afraid that this behavior means that I am all bad
I’m afraid that if I keep doing this, you might not keep me, might not love me, might send me away
I’m so tired of trying to be “good” and I’m afraid I can’t do it, that I’m a failure, that it will always be this way?
II. Guide for working successfully with parents
III. Preparing parents for sessions to maximize emotional safety
You are going to ask them to email you about good and bad things during the week
YOU ARE GOING TO DECIDE WHAT/WHEN TO talk about the bad things in session
You’re going to deal with one subject/issue/event at a time so as not to overwhelm the situation
“Sometimes I’m going to have to interrupt you if there is too much information or bring up too many negative themes. How do you want me to do that?”
If you feel like I’ve insulted or slighted your authority, we can talk about that afterwards and I’ll adjust
Focus on inner life but I’m not taking what he says literally or believe it’s the whole story
When the child talks or when I talk for him, focus on PACE, like “I understand, thanks for telling me, that must be hard.”
Don’t give reasons, rationales, reassurance, etc. With handout about PACE
If you forget or don’t know what to say, I’ll help you
I’m going to coach you in session and that takes getting used to
IV. Case Study of working with punitive, unempathic parent
Dafna is a child and family therapist with over 20 years of experience. She is a certified trainer, supervisor, and consultant in Theraplay® and Dyadic Developmental Psychotherapy, and coauthor of Theraplay: The Practitioner’s Guide. Dafna has successfully treated children and their parents with a variety of backgrounds, including children raised in orphanages, with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder, exposed to domestic violence and community violence and children of parents with chronic mental illness and attachment wounds. Dafna provides trainings and consultations for psychologists and psychotherapists around the world.
Counselors, Social Workers, Psychotherapists, Marriage & Family Therapists, Nurses, Psychologists, Addictions Counselors, Occupational Therapists, Case Managers, Mental Health Professionals, Parents, Teachers and Caregivers.
This program is offered at the introductory level. It is suitable for graduate level learning and accessible for anyone with an interest in the subject.
Enjoy Dafna's conversation with 3 Experts on Attachment Therapy
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