UPDATE: EVENT CANCELLED DUE TO COVID-19 RESTRICTIONS
For More Information and To Register Click Here:
(Please also direct any enquiries to workshop organisers via this link)
ABOUT THE WORKSHOP:
Facilitated by James Bennett-Levy and Tobyn Bell
Compassion-focused therapy (CFT) is an integrative psychotherapy model that focuses on the cultivation and application of compassion for both self and others. CFT integrates cognitive-behavioural therapy techniques with evolutionary, developmental and social psychology; affective neuroscience; and Buddhist psychology. The approach was originally developed for clients with high-levels of self-criticism and shame and has a growing evidence-base for a variety of clinical disorders and presentations. Practicing compassion has been shown to have powerful effects on physiological, psychological and social processes, specifically in the regulation of threat-focused emotional experiences and the development of a caring orientation to suffering.
This workshop will introduce the core principles and practices of CFT which include an evolutionary functional analysis of emotions, a formulation of threat-based experiences and protective behaviours, the use of compassionate imagery to stimulate soothing and affiliation, and the development of the ‘compassionate self’. Participants will be guided in experiential exercises with a focus on developing compassion for both themselves and their clients. The workshop will also provide participants with an opportunity to formulate and address self-criticism using CFT interventions.
The workshop is suitable for therapists from any theoretical background. The workshop will include interactive teaching, practical exercises, self-reflection and group discussions. No prior knowledge of CFT is required.
In this workshop participants will:
Learn what compassion is (and isn’t)
Be able to apply an evolutionary functional analysis to emotions
Be able to identify common fears, blocks and resistances to compassion
Have an experience of key CFT exercises to train the mind in compassion
Learn how to apply compassion to themselves and their clients, with a specific focus on self-criticism
Price:
$325 Early bird (by May 31); $375 after May 31
Packaged together with 2-day workshop (Aug 10-12): $845 (see separate event listing - ‘Experiencing CFT for Ourselves’).
5 Day Lighthouse Week Special (Aug 10-14): $1175* Early Bird; $1415 after May 31st
Workshop prices are inclusive of morning and afternoon tea. We have found workshop participants like to have lunch in Byron cafes, so lunch not included.
* If you can, we particularly suggest you consider the 5-day Lighthouse Week:
– It provides deeper immersion and learning of the practices
– We develop a strong sense of community
– And you get to enjoy Byron at a delightful time of year
About the Presenters:
Professor James Bennett-Levy
James Bennett-Levy is Professor of Mental Health and Psychological Wellbeing at the University of Sydney’s University Centre for Rural Health in Lismore. Over the past 20 years, he has developed and researched a self-experiential approach to therapist training known as self-practice/self-reflection (SP/SR). He is Series Editor for Guilford Press’ SP/SR series which includes recent co-authored books: Experiencing Compassion Focused Therapy from the Inside Out: A Self-practice/Self-reflection Workbook for Therapists and Experiencing CBT from the Inside Out: A Self-Practice/Self-Reflection Workbook for Therapists. Previous co-authored books include the Oxford Guide to Imagery in Cognitive Therapy (2011), and the Oxford Guide to Behavioural Experiments in Cognitive Therapy (2004)
Tobyn Bell
Tobyn Bell is a psychotherapist specialising in Compassion-Focused Therapy in the UK. He is part of the training executive for the Compassionate Mind Foundation and is the co-author of the book: Experiencing Compassion Focused Therapy from the Inside Out: A Self-practice/Self-reflection Workbook for Therapists (Kolts, Bell, Bennett-Levy & Irons, 2018). Tobyn has published research on imagery, compassion and supervision, and delivers national and international training on compassion focused therapy, CBT, imagery and supervision. He is trainer, supervisor and program-lead at the Greater Manchester West CBT Training Centre (NHS, UK), and also a trained mindfulness teacher and registered nurse.