Child Inclusive Practice Post Parental Separation

In this informative workshop Stacey will explore the dynamics and processes of working in a child inclusive manner in a post separation context. This workshop follows on from working with high conflict separation delivered in Halifax 2013. The area of parental separation is a complex mix of differing personalities, differing parental styles and often, high conflict. As a practitioner it can often be overwhelming to navigate these situations whilst maintaining confidentiality and boundaries of the conflicting parents as well as the children’s. Added to this, we need to be the child’s advocate, for younger children, we are often their voice in communicating their needs and wishes, with respect to maintaining neutrality and the child’s best interest.

Counsellors Helping Teachers And High School Students (and Others) To Stand Up To Grumpy Adults

Counsellors in schools are in a unique position to use their knowledge and skills to help not only the students they see but also the school staff as a whole. For instance, counsellors are well positioned to offer coaching to teachers, both inexperienced and experienced, on ways to defuse potentially tense interactions with the parents/guardians of their students, such as managing the “grumpy” parent during parent-teacher interviews. This interactive, fast-paced workshop, which includes supportive and creative practice sessions, offers a step-by-step process to manage challenging adults (e.g. adults who trigger us) in a win-win manner that counsellors can share with teachers, senior high school students, and other interested parties. This author-designed workshop has been presented successfully to counsellors in community agencies and to teachers in professional development sessions. Research from our workshops revealed encouraging trends towards increasing participants’ levels of confidence in standing up to verbally aggressive people, their perceived levels of ability to handle such conflict, and their levels of fear/anxiety about being in such situations. Most importantly, the data also indicated a positive shift in participants’ beliefs in their abilities to defuse these situations. An extensive handout package will be provided to attendees.

Creativity In Play Therapy: Moving Beyond Techniques

Play is the natural language of childhood. In play therapy the therapist uses this language to communicate with the client through the play process. For those interested in using play therapy, numerous manuals containing a multitude of play therapy techniques are available. These manuals give a solid start to the beginning therapist and allow us to gain confidence in the play room. As we become more comfortable with the play process, many of us want to move beyond the safety found in the structure of the manuals and explore more options. Come and explore you own creativity. Learn to use your knowledge of play, therapy, and child development to create personalized, meaningful therapeutic experiences for your client. Together we will explore the development of clinical creativity and look at ways to use your creativity as a therapeutic tool. Dress comfortably and come ready to play.

Pathways Within A Gendered Future: Counselling Transgender Clients

This half-day workshop will provide relevant and practical information regarding assessing and counselling transgender clients. The focus will be on the most likely transgender adolescents and adults who will find themselves in a clinician’s office: (a) male-to-female transsexual individuals, (b) fetishistic crossdressing males (c) female-to-male transsexual persons, and (d) gender queer individuals. The workshop has the following learning goals: 1. Become familiar with the Ecological Model of LGBTI Identity. 2. Learn to assess and intervene with children, adolescents, and adults questioning their gender. 3. Find out what distinguishes mild-to-severe gender dysphoria. 4. Become aware of the new DSM-V criteria for gender dysphoria. 5. Through lecture, roleplays, and discussion, develop greater knowledge and skill sets to work effectively with transgender individuals. 6. Become aware of the complexity of gender identities, the International Standards of Care, and the process that individuals go through who are physically transitioning. 7. Learn about surgical options.

Informed Clinical Supervision In Practice: Integrating Foundational Concepts And Competencies To Optimize Process And Outcomes

This one-day workshop is designed to integrate foundational concepts and competencies in clinical supervision. It is based on the premise that informed supervision emphasizes thoughtful intentionality and is designed to accommodate both a framework structure and responsive flexibility. Workshop participants will engage in reflective discussion and practice as they articulate a philosophy of change in counselling and supervision, demonstrate preferred supervision model(s), anticipate ethical and legal considerations, contemplate cultural and other diversity issues, and consider the design and communication of a risk management plan for preventing or responding to supervisory challenges. This intermediate-level clinical supervision workshop builds on concepts presented in the introductory-level workshop and fosters consolidation of prior learning via applied demonstration in a professional learning community context with counselling and psychotherapy colleagues.

Silence As A Communication Tool

We’ve all been in conversations in which there were moments of silence. Some moments were comfortable, some caused discomfort. We often take it upon ourselves to quickly fill the silence with any kind of idle thought, random comment or passing idea. Participants learn types of silences and how different people use silence. In this interactive workshop participants learn techniques for self-awareness to become more comfortable with silence. They also learn communication skills to create moments of silence in conversations.

Working With Families Of High Conflict Divorce: Conceptual Frames, Ethics, And Competencies

High conflict post-separation families pose a great challenge to counsellors. Children experience elevated substance misuse, school problems, earlier sexual activity, antisocial behavior, emotional problems, poorer relationships with parents, and loyalty binds. Parents preoccupied conflict and litigation with a former spouse have less time and energy to devote to their children, and fewer financial resources. With parental time, energy, and resources diverted to litigation, children typically pay the psychological price. Practitioners who work with children of high-conflict parents are often themselves conflicted. These children often require therapy and one parent’s compelling narratives of the misdeeds of the other parent can be inviting. On the other hand, high conflict parents are often the most litigious and child custody matters lead to more ethical complaints than any area of practice. Accordingly, many practitioners avoid these families altogether, leaving children underserved. In this workshop, Jeff will: - review the literature on high conflict post-separation parenting - describe how to position therapy for maximum effect and minimal ethical risk - provide steps to develop a treatment focus - discuss how to invite parents to understand the distress of their children - suggest how to decide who to see when

Addressing The False Dichotomy: Career Counselling Is A Mental Health Intervention!

Although it’s widely accepted that employment factors and career certainty are related to increased well-being and positive mental health outcomes (Hinkleman & Luzzo, 2007; Walker & Peterson, 2012; Herr, 1989), career counselling is rarely considered to be an integral part of mental health intervention. Career intervention is an effective and often vital aspect of many forms of counselling, especially those aimed at enhancing mental wellness. Counselling may fail to address ways in which individuals experiencing mental health-related concerns are impacted by career-related issues. Unemployment, underemployment, and work-related stressors are just a few examples of environmental causes of mental health symptoms. Further, individuals experiencing chronic mental health issues may benefit from counselling that includes career interventions (eg: self-exploration; career/life-role planning, career research, resume writing; etc.). Beyond addressing the false dichotomy between personal counselling and career counselling, this interactive session discusses career intervention as a key component of effective mental health counselling. A current model demonstrating the relationship between mental health and career outcomes is presented along with case-studies showing different forms of career intervention and their impact. Assessment strategies for determining appropriate career related interventions are suggested along with strategies for developing the competencies associated with effective career intervention.

Delivering Counsellor Education Online: The Cybercounselling Course

This pre-conference workshop will highlight best practices in delivering online counsellor training using the Cybercounselling training that I have delivered for the past 15 years. We will focus on developing community in an online environment, means to ensure process reflects content and enhancing student engagement. The workshop will also provide details of the Cybercounselling course itself and use it to illustrate methods for teaching therapeutic techniques online.

Facts About The Forgotten Generation: What You Need To Know About Adolescent And Young Adult Cancer

Receiving a cancer diagnosis is difficult at any age, but when you face this challenge as a young adult it is different and comes with different issues. From fertility, relationships, career and school, etc. young adults facing cancer often have to do it in isolation. Understanding their unique issues and offering appropriate care to this popula9on can significantly reduce the anxiety and impact cancer has on them.

The objectives of this session will be:

o To provide evidence based informa9on about the unique issues facing the young adult cancer population

o To describe current AYA oncology models of care in Canada

o To learn more about Young Adult Cancer Canada's programs and services

oTo offer opportunities for discussions on how the health care system can address the needs of the population and the health care system.

The session will allow for exchanges, questions and discussions.