EFFT Clinician Training: Early-Bird Pricing Ends May 17th
Event date: -
Event type: Single day (a day or less)
**Attending this workshop meets criteria towards certification as an EFFT Clinician/Therapist/Advanced Therapist (if desired). The workshop will still count as 2 days of “in-person clinician training” so long as you have your video on during the workshop and participate in the breakout activities. For more info about certification, click here
Workshop Description
** This is an interactive live-stream event using Zoom, an online meeting platform.**
Parents and caregivers often feel helpless when their child (no matter the age) is experiencing a mental health issue such as depression, anxiety, psychosis, or an eating disorder. They are also often left out of treatment: sometimes because the child requests this; sometimes because the parent requests individual treatment for the child; and sometimes due to agency protocol. Yet family members, if provided with the opportunity and the right tools, can often have the biggest impact on a child’s healing. This is where Emotion-Focused Family Therapy comes in.
Emotion-Focused Family Therapy (EFFT) is an innovative treatment model, rooted in a deep and unwavering belief in the healing power of families. The goal of EFFT is to support and empower caregivers to adopt a primary role in their loved one’s recovery, regardless of the loved one’s age, level of motivation or involvement in formal treatment themselves. The clinician’s role is to help caregivers to master the skills, tasks and feelings involved in four main domains:
- Becoming their loved one’s behaviour coach, by supporting them through the interruption of symptoms and maladaptive behaviors;
- Becoming their loved one’s emotion coach, by supporting them to approach, process and manage stress, emotions and emotional pain;
- Facilitating relationship repair and healing possible wounds from the child and family’s past in order to help loved ones to let go of the weight of old injuries, and
- Working through and resolving the fears and obstacles that surface in the caregiver during this challenging and novel journey.
This final component is critical since, throughout the course of treatment, some well-intentioned caregivers can struggle to support their loved one’s treatment. They may even engage in behaviours that enable their loved one’s symptoms, creating challenges for even the most experienced clinicians. For this reason, the EFFT model includes a module for clinician and team challenges as well.
*Note: these techniques can be used in individual therapy with caregivers; having the full family present is not necessary*
This two-day interactive workshop will introduce participants to the fundamental principles and techniques of EFFT. Through discussions, case examples, demonstrations, and small and large group exercises, participants will also have an opportunity for hands-on practice and skill-building.
Background/experience in family therapy is not necessary.
About the Presenter
Adele Lafrance, Ph.D., is a Clinical Psychologist and Associate Professor in the Psychology Department at Laurentian University. She is co-developer of Emotion-Focused Family Therapy (EFFT) and developer of Emotion-Focused School Support. As founding co-director of Mental Health Foundations, Dr. Lafrance provides consultation and training for clinicians, school boards and mental health agencies worldwide.
Dr. Lafrance currently leads multiple research projects in the areas of EFFT and mental health (including eating disorders), and has published extensively in the field of clinical psychology. Along with colleagues, she is writing the clinician manual on Emotion-Focused Family Therapy for the American Psychological Association. She has developed and researched a supervision model for clinicians and she offers supervision and training for individual clinicians and organizations across Canada and Europe. She also maintains a private practice of psychotherapy and integration support. Dr. Lafrance is perhaps best known for promoting family-focused care for children, adolescents and adults struggling with mental health issues.