Friday Lunchtime Lecture Series: Spirituality and Mindfulness in Psychotherapy: Promises and Perils, John Amodeo, PhD, LMFT

When
Fri, March 11, 2016
11:30 AM - 1:30 PM
Location
Corte Madera Town Center, Room 201 - 770 Tamalpais Drive, Corte Madera, CA 94925

MARIN COUNTY CHAPTER OF CAMFT

FRIDAY LUNCHTIME LECTURE SERIES

Friday, March 11, 2016

SPIRITUALITY AND MINDFULNESS IN PSYCHOTHERAPY: PROMISES & PERILS

John Amodeo, PhD, LMFT

Many of our clients have a meditation practice or are influenced by spirituality. But is their spiritual path one that leads toward healthy emotional development and connection or one that separates them from themselves and others? This talk will draw upon John Amodeo's latest book, Dancing with Fire: A Mindful Way to Loving Relationship, which Dr. Sue Johnson describes as “A must read for every intelligent person who aspires to live as an awake and vibrant human being.”

As he integrates meditation and mindfulness with attachment theory, we’ll explore with John Amodeo the importance of honoring and embracing our feelings and sacred longings rather than bypassing or minimizing them. According to the speaker, an emotionally healthy spirituality is one that deepens intimacy rather than one that isolates us. He will focus on the question of whether attachment leads to suffering, as some spiritually-inclined people suggest or whether it is non-attachment that is really at the root of human anguish. He will also illustrate how somatic approaches to therapy, especially Gendlin's Focusing, can help us mindfully engage with feelings in a way that connects us to ourselves, others, and life itself, and he will demonstrate how to bring mindfulness into the type of psychotherapy that we already do. It is John Amodeo's hope that, after the presentation and

demonstration you will better understand the concept of spiritual bypassing and be more aware of how clients may use this as a defensive mechanism, discover how Buddhist psychology recognizes the importance of embracing feelings and longings as part of one’s spiritual practice, and learn how Focusing is a somatic component of mindfulness and how it can be brought to bear in a psychotherapy session.

John Amodeo, PhD, LMFT, has been a marriage and family therapist for thirty-five years, and he is the author of Dancing with Fire: A Mindful Way to Loving Relationships. His other books include The Authentic Heart and Love & Betrayal. He also co-authored a chapter with Dr. Sue Johnson on EFT and Buddhism in The Emotionally Focused Casebook. He has conducted workshops internationally on relationships and couples therapy and has been a featured media guest on programs that included CNN, Donahue, and New Dimensions Radio. John Amodeo has private practices in San Rafael, San Francisco, and the Sebastopol area. Besides being a Focusing trainer, he has also trained in Somatic Experiencing for trauma.

Date: Friday, March 11, 2016

Time: Networking is from 11:30 to 12:00 p.m. Presentation begins at 12:00 pm and ends at 1:30 p.m.

Cost: Free for Marin CAMFT members, $10 for non-members.

Location: Corte Madera Town Center, Room 201 - 770 Tamalpais Drive, Corte Madera, CA 94925 (map)

Information: For more information about the Friday Lunchtime Program Series and about joining the Committee, please contact the Chair, Gabriel Rabu.

Continuing Education Goal: Marin CAMFT is committed to offering continuing education courses to train licensees to treat any client in an ethically and clinically sound manner based upon current accepted standards of practice.

Refund Policy: Requests for refunds must be in writing and received by the Director at Large for Programs no later than ten days before the program. There will be a $25.00 administrative fee to cancel registration for any program. The refund will be sent within ten days of the request.

Accommodation for Special Needs: The special needs of persons with disabilities will be accommodated. The Program Committee will endeavor to assure that continuing education program materials, content and venue selections will meet the special needs of the disabled and that reasonable accommodation will be made. A request for accommodation can be made to the Director at Large for Programs, who will work with the Committee and event venue to meet the need.

Marin CAMFT encourages those who attend its events to respect the fact that some individuals may have allergies to fragrances and pet dander. We ask that you refrain from introducing these elements into our meeting room. Registered service animals are welcome, of course.

Grievance Procedure: Marin CAMFT will respond to complaints in a reasonable, ethical and timely manner, when submitted by program attendees in writing to the Director at Large for Programs.

Anti-Discrimination Policy: Marin CAMFT shall not discriminate against any individual or group with respect to any service, program or activity based on gender, race, creed, national origin, sexual orientation, religion, age or other prohibited basis. Marin CAMFT does not require attendees to adhere to any particular religion or creed in order to participate in training. Marin CAMFT will not promote or advocate for a single modality of treatment that is discriminatory or likely to harm clients based on current accepted standards or practice.

CEUs: This workshop meets the qualifications for 1.5 CEUs for LMFTs, LCSWs, LEPs and LPCCs. These will be provided by Marin CAMFT (CEP # 56895), which is approved by CAMFT to sponsor CE for LMFTs, LCSWs, LPCCs and LEPs. Marin CAMFT maintains responsibility for this program and its contents Contact Laurie Buntain, Director-at-Large for Programs for more information.

Marin County Chapter of CAMFT

PO Box 9065 San Rafael, CA 94912-9065

(415) 459 3484 www.marincamft.org

Marin CAMFT is approved by the California Association of Marriage and Family Therapists (CAMFT Provider #56895) to sponsor continuing education for LMFTs, LCSWs, LPCCs, and LEPs