Avoiding the Mistakes Therapists Often Make Patricia Papernow Although divorce and marriage rates are generally falling, they’re skyrocketing among those over 50. That’s why so many of us are seeing an influx of later-life uncouplers and recouplers in our offices. In this workshop, learn how to effectively manage the competing needs of all the players in these families: theRead More…
Transforming the Sexual Narrative Suzanne Iasenza When couples come to therapy with problems involving desire, arousal, and orgasm, therapists often fall into the trap of thinking of them as somehow broken and in need of fixing. Instead, this workshop offers an approach that guides couples from a state of disconnection to becoming a sexual-discovery teamRead More…
Strategies for Change Terry Real We’ve all met troubled men who are irresponsible, oppressive, or emotionally absent. Treating them requires a range of strategies. In this workshop, you’ll learn how to effectively work with issues of shame and grandiosity, as well as toxic engagement and disengagement. You’ll focus on how to identify and develop differentRead More…
Using Emotionally Focused Therapy to Strengthen Sobriety Michael Barnett Even the most talented couples therapists are often unprepared to handle the explosive impasses and icy freeze-outs that present themselves when toxic addictive processes permeate already unstable relationships. The traditional “sledgehammer” approach of harsh, shame-based confrontation only tends to fuel the problem. And behavioral and insight-orientedRead More…
Enhancing Between-Session Interventions David Treadway Who ate the homework? While many couples therapists assign their clients homework, few couples comply. And too often, rather than engaging with their clients’ resistance, most therapists let the matter drop, ignoring the important insights and useful conversations homework can elicit. This workshop will demonstrate how to engage and motivateRead More…
Deciding When It’s Really the Issue Marty Klein Pornography use is a complex topic about which almost everyone has opinions. While many people fear and misunderstand porn, it’s important for therapists and clients alike to know the facts about its actual content, how it’s made, why people use it, and what the typical effects ofRead More…
How to Revive Erotic Passion Michele Weiner-Davis One out of every three couples struggles with mismatched sexual desire—a formula for marital disaster. When one spouse is sexually dissatisfied and the other is oblivious, unconcerned, or uncaring, sex isn’t the only casualty; a sense of emotional connection can also disappear. As therapists, we’ve been taught thatRead More…
How and When to Intervene Evan Imber-Black When couples come to us, they seldom present with one simple problem. Rather, they often enter therapy with multiple and layered dilemmas, requiring that the therapist make continual therapeutic choices regarding the shape of questions, direction of the interview, length of an interaction, time-frame for exploration (past, present,Read More…
The Path to Recovery Michele Weiner-Davis Without a concrete road map for helping couples heal from infidelity, it’s easy for therapists to get lost in the labyrinth of emotions. Using video clips, this workshop will provide a comprehensive, step-by-step plan for dealing with different phases of recovery, from the crisis of discovery through forgiveness. LearnRead More…
We’re Older. Are We Better? Daniel Siegel & Bessel van der Kolk On the occasion of the Symposium’s 40th anniversary, two of the most influential figures in our field reflect on the most important advances of the past four decades as well as the prospects for improving our therapeutic effectiveness in the future, with aRead More…
When Is Enough Enough? Parts 1 & 2 Terry Real We’ve all encountered couples for whom therapy is a last-ditch attempt before calling it quits. But how do we, as therapists, decide whether to throw our weight behind the relationship or let it end? This session explores the impact our own values, childhood experiences, and oldRead More…
How We Can Help Our Clients and the World at the Same Time Parts 1 & 2 William Doherty Let’s face it: we therapists have had an ambivalent relationship with commitment, often opting for Polonius’s individualistic admonition “to thine own self be true.” But now that we’re coming out of an historic era where weRead More…
The Changing Face of Committed Relationships Tammy Nelson More couples today than ever before are negotiating their monogamy in new and creative ways, including open marriage, polyamory, group marriages, transgender relationships, and a variety of intentional partnerships. As therapists, we need to understand these new developments, the challenges they bring, and the skills required ofRead More…
Strategies for Surviving and Thriving Patricia Papernow Stepfamilies begin with such high hopes, but all too often they find themselves stuck in toxic cycles of tension and conflict. Although 42 percent of Americans have a close stepfamily relationship, few therapists ever receive solid training in helping their clients in stepfamilies to meet their intense challenges.Read More…
The Brave New World of Relationship Dilemmas Alexandra Solomon Today’s emerging adults are navigating a brave new dating world of hookups, friends with benefits, and other ambiguous relationships, facilitated and amplified by new technologies and digital platforms. Often these digital natives crave connection and foresee marriage and children in their future, even if their currentRead More…
A Radical Approach to Healing Interpersonal Wounds Janis Abrahms Spring Forgiveness has been held up as the gold standard of recovery from interpersonal injuries, but in real life, hurt parties often find that they can’t or won’t forgive, particularly when the offender is unrepentant or dead. In this workshop, you’ll learn to reframe the healingRead More…
An Emotionally Focused Approach Parts 1 & 2 Kathryn Rheem Volatile, emotionally escalated clients can be among the most challenging cases couples therapists regularly work with. Such clients can often be set off by seemingly negligible events, making sessions difficult for both partners and their therapist. Typically, core issues of attachment distress are at theRead More…
Challenging Some Common Myths Parts 1 & 2 Marty Klein If you ask clients what they want from sex, they’ll usually tell you pleasure and closeness. But that’s typically not what they actually focus on during sex. Instead, they’re thinking about how they look, what they sound or smell like, what their partner is thinking,Read More…
Enhancing the Impact of Couples Therapy Parts 1 & 2 Susan Johnson & Daniel Siegel Understanding the neurobiology of the brain not only explains how change happens, it also translates into more effective psychotherapy. In this dynamic workshop, a psychotherapist and a neuropsychiatrist offer a dialogue demonstrating the relevance of neuroscience to the process ofRead More…
Getting Beyond Myths and Stereotypes Tammy Nelson Working with some clients’ edgy erotic behavior can challenge a therapist’s own values and deeply held beliefs about sex and relationships. This workshop will include videos, live demonstrations, and small-group discussion about unconventional sexual practices to help therapists face their own preconceived notions and countertransference issues around eroticismRead More…
