Hi. This website is mainly a place for me to share what I’m learning about therapy, trauma, and the practice of presence. Some of what I write is for therapists and some is for the people who sit across from us, though we’re all walking the same path and working on the same stuff. I hope you find something of value…
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Today's Touching Training
I led a training for a group of dedicated people who work with the most difficult adolescents in the city--the teens who run, cut, spit, and fight.
Curbside Supervision
a brief snippet of supervision on how to talk to an angry then remorseful patient
Helping my Interns Sit in Mystery
This is how I tried to teach my interns how to sit in the mystery of therapy.
Training Video Redux: Motivating Others with Compassion
This is a redo of a training video on using compassion to motivate others.
Dealing with Angry Ghosts in Psychotherapy
Though many therapists are trained to believe that they need to suppress or control feelings of anger, I think it is incredibly important to use them in therapy because they often reveal important patterns in the patient’s life--ghosts of relationships past. When these feelings go unexamined, they can harm the patient because they can slip out in hurtful ways. But, when examined, they can be some of the most healing moments in therapy.
What is the true nature of trauma work?
I think the most important skill--one which is very difficult to teach--is the ability, willingness, and courage to stand emotionally naked but steady in front of another human being and bear witness to that which is unbearable. To allow oneself to be fully moved by the devastating horror that trauma represents without being overwhelmed by it.