Events Calendar

This one-day interactive professional development training provides the trauma-informed information and skills needed by personnel working with people and families with experiences of domestic and family violence (DFV), past and current.

This one-day interactive professional development training provides the trauma-informed information and skills needed by personnel working with people and families with experiences of domestic and family violence (DFV), past and current.

This one-day interactive professional development training for legal and justice personnel acknowledges the significant risk of vicarious trauma (VT) and burnout in daily practice and distinguishes between them. In so doing it supports you, professionally and personally, to stay safe, healthy and resilient.

Help couples in your practice manage conflict and deepen intimacy! This is the first step in learning Gottman Method Couples Therapy. A truly inspiring workshop, Level 1 Training will give you new insights into treatment for couples who struggle, using research-based assessments and effective interventions.

This 3-day face to face course is an opportunity not only to be trained in the RISE UP model of supervision, but for personal growth and personalised feedback, which culminates in a formal assessment phase. It has a pre-reading component of up to 40 hours. Your presenter has extensive experience in private practice and supervision, affording you insight into cases and supervision issues

This workshop looks at trauma sensitive interventions and the key somatic tools that will help both the client and therapists to work effectively. The focus in not just on the trauma techniques for the clients but how the therapist stays in their therapists “seat” to be grounded, self-regulated and emotionally well, while working with trauma states in the client.

This Graduate Certificate in Bereavement Counselling and Intervention (GC BCI) is highly sought after qualification that will give practitioners theoretical and clinical skill to support patients and clients with both normative and complicated grief reactions. The course is post graduate level and a nationally recognised VET qualification designed for counsellors, social workers, psychologists and other allied health professionals wanting to specialise in bereavement counselling and intervention.

This two full day workshop is designed to encompass Focused Psychological Strategies which can benefit the quality and efficacy of casework relationships by adding a deeper Psychological dimension to social work and other practices.

Harnessing the fairytale of Snow White as a metaphor, this workshop provides practical strategies for the treatment of complex trauma. The concepts outlined are applicable to all trauma-related symptoms, behaviours and diagnosis.

* FPS Relevant *

Do you find working with couples a challenge? Would you like to feel more confident to be able to work with couples? Being an effective couple therapist requires us to develop skills that may not come naturally. This two day workshop teaches participants the fundamental skills of couple therapy and explores the challenges of working with adults who present with relationship problems and the particular issues they bring to the counselling room.

*FPS relevant activity *

** AASW Member discount **

Generalised anxiety disorder (GAD) is a chronic disorder characterised by excessive worry, accompanied by somatic symptoms such as restlessness, sleep disturbance, muscle tension and fatigue. It is one of the most common co-morbid disorders, particularly with major depression and other anxiety disorders. GAD is also frequently associated with chronic pain conditions, medically unexplained symptoms and sleep disorders. Estimates of lifetime prevalence range between 4.0% and 7.0%. Because of its frequently chronic course, GAD has the potential to create greater disruption in peoples' lives than other anxiety disorders. Historically, it has been less responsive to psychological treatment than other anxiety disorders, and until around 2000, studies reviewing treatment outcomes based on standard CBT interventions found limited improvements.

* This training may be considered Focused Psychological Strategies. Please refer to the DoH website for further information

The push to “let go”, to “get over your loss” and to “move on” have finally been accepted as unhelpful strategies when working through loss and grief. The Continuing Bonds Theory (Klass, Silverman & Nickman 1996) has paved new understandings for the importance of connecting with ones’ loss and developing a new relationship with the loss. Although physically absent, the loved one or what has significantly been changed, remains present and impactful in the life of the bereaved.

* This training may be considered Focused Psychological Strategies. Please refer to the DoH website for further information

This training will introduce participants to the Open Dialogue model of care (Finland) and the dialogical clinical practices that underpin and emerge from this model.
There will be a particular focus on the role of open network meetings in Open Dialogue, as well as working therapeutically with families and wider systems in a variety of clinical contexts.

* Discount for AASW members *

This is a rare opportunity to develop understanding and skill in the use of art as visual processing in therapy and particularly in trauma treatment and recovery. When clients find it difficult to talk about an event, situation, relationship, feeling etc. a nonverbal expression can open up expression and make way for therapeutic work. Trauma memory can be a visual reoccurrence or recollection, that is triggered unexpectedly at times and using art becomes a relevant approach regardless of a person’s artistic ability.

* This training may be considered Focused Psychological Strategies. Please refer to the DoH website for further information

The Society’s Postgraduate Training Course in Clinical Hypnosis content, structure, format and inbuilt exercises and assessment will provide social workers with the theoretical knowledge and practical skills that will enable them to effectively utilise clinical hypnosis in their specific professional setting. The Diploma course is unique in that it consists of online study modules undertaken in the home or office, but which are built into a framework of collegial face-to-face training days to promote actual skills acquisition.

This course will provide clinicians with an overview of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy. Participants will experience the difference ACT can make and will gain experience applying ACT to a variety of different clinical issues.

*This training may qualify for Focussed Psychological Strategies (FPS) CPD. Please refer to the Dept. of Health for more information.

As there has been a significant increase in demand for mental health services and a requirement for economical ‘less is more treatment approaches’, skills in brief, focused therapies are becoming necessary. With Psychodynamic Therapy noted for its emphasis on the unconscious, transferences, childhood patterns, and defence mechanisms, one might wonder how it could be adapted to be an effective brief therapy.

* This training may be considered Focused Psychological Strategies. Please refer to the DoH website for further information

This two-day workshop presents a highly practical and interactive workshop (case-based) for treating PTSD patients; the content is applicable to both adult and adolescent populations.

*FPS Relevant Activity

This 3-day face to face course is an opportunity not only to be trained in the RISE UP model of supervision, but for personal growth and personalised feedback, which culminates in a formal assessment phase. It has a pre-reading component of up to 40 hours. Your presenter has extensive experience in private practice and supervision, affording you insight into cases and supervision issues

Attachment consists of diverse lifespan phenomena. Studies have now expanded including all age cohorts: younger and older children, adolescents, adults and older adults. Both understanding and responding to attachment needs of each group requires knowledge of important differences and similarities, continuities and discontinuities. This seminar provides a unique overview of practical interventions applicable across the full attachment lifespan. For each age group, one evidence-based approach will be engaged whereby specific skills and activities are explored with a focus on applicability for practice. Although fewer practitioners work with every lifespan age group, awareness of the full spectrum remains valuable for understanding clients, their families and their relations.

* This training may be considered Focused Psychological Strategies. Please refer to the DoH website for further information

The concept of attachment difference within Attachment Theory has offered a truly valuable framework to understand many of the serious mental health care risks associated with childhood difficulties. This second 2020 attachment seminar extends this focus to addressing a relatively new set of adult differences identified as ‘attachment disorganisation’, something potentially influenced by ‘early and ongoing’ trauma and associated with adult personality disorders. In addition to clarifying current knowledge of ‘attachment disorganisation’ into adulthood, the seminar will also introduce more integrated approaches to treatment that include attachment and might also provide greater direction to our work.

*This training may qualify for Focussed Psychological Strategies (FPS) CPD. Please refer to the Dept. of Health for more information.

Most people have heard of emotional intelligence and many people know what it is, but far fewer people know how to use it to improve their performance, wellbeing and relationships. Particularly in times of stress, it can be easy to forget being emotionally intelligent. The good news is that spotting triggers and consistently responding in a more emotionally intelligent way can be trained!

*This training may qualify for Focussed Psychological Strategies (FPS) CPD. Please refer to the Dept. of Health for more information.

Narratively oriented therapists take the position that our lives are shaped by stories. We never see the world as it is, we always see through a narrative ‘lens’, we give value to certain aspects of experience and neglect other aspects, we are constantly interpreting what is happening in, to and around us. It is through the stories we have about ourselves, others and life in general that we make sense of things and navigate our way in the world. And how we see the world clearly shapes how we act in the world.

* This training may be considered Focused Psychological Strategies. Please refer to the DoH website for further information

Deepen your understanding of Gottman Method Couples Therapy and expand your strategies and interventions in your work with couples. Practice using Gottman Method interventions in group role-plays while receiving personal, supportive coaching from trainers. This workshop provides a wealth of information about relationship theory, observation, couple dynamics, relationship assessment, treatment planning, when and how to use interventions, and working with co-morbidities. All materials may be used in clinical settings.

Harnessing the fairytale of Snow White as a metaphor, this workshop provides practical strategies for the treatment of complex trauma. The concepts outlined are applicable to all trauma-related symptoms, behaviours and diagnosis.

* FPS Relevant *

Drawing on existential philosophy and existential integrative practice frameworks, this seminar aims to engage the participants through a blend of existentially-informed understanding of depression and associated moods and symptoms, experiential learning, and opportunities to experiment with embodied and creative ways of working with adolescents and adults living within the experience of depression.

*This training may qualify for Focussed Psychological Strategies (FPS) CPD. Please refer to the Dept. of Health for more information.

This interactive session will move beyond the limits of the Recovery Model and Trauma Informed Care to articulate key principles for supporting progress towards recovery from sexual violence in ways that are both effective and accessible. Participants will be equipped to immediately apply their learning in therapeutic practice.

*This training may qualify for Focussed Psychological Strategies (FPS) CPD. Please refer to the Dept. of Health for more information.

Internal Family Systems (IFS) therapy is one of the fastest-growing approaches to psychotherapy. It has developed over the past twenty years into a way of understanding and treating human problems that is empowering, effective, and non-pathologising with an understanding that symptoms are actually the coping mechanism of Parts (sub-personalities/ego-states) trying to protect us from pain. IFS is a powerful model of therapy that enhances mindful awareness and self compassion through getting to know our Parts in a methodical yet intimate way.

*This training may qualify for Focussed Psychological Strategies (FPS) CPD. Please refer to the Dept. of Health for more information.

The aim of this one-day workshop is to increase the awareness of the impact of co-occurring substance use and mental health conditions. The workshop will provide opportunities for participants to gain skills for supporting people to reduce the impact of AOD and mental health conditions on their lives.

*This training may qualify for Focussed Psychological Strategies (FPS) CPD. Please refer to the Dept. of Health for more information

Many couples seeking counselling are struggling with one or both person’s controlling behaviour. As clinicians we are required to accurately assess and respond to controlling behaviours. Most clinicians can correctly identify physically violent relationships as unacceptable but even physical violence within relationships can stem from different sources and require different approaches to be effectively resolved.

*This training may qualify for Focussed Psychological Strategies (FPS) CPD. Please refer to the Dept. of Health for more information

In recent years, Chair-Work and among other active interventions have experienced a revival in their clinical application. These methods have been utilised in a range of current therapies including Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) and Schema Therapy.

*This training may qualify for Focussed Psychological Strategies (FPS) CPD. Please refer to the Dept. of Health for more information

Relaxation Therapy is evidence-based, efficacious, non-invasive and cost efficient. Simple techniques such as deep diaphragmatic breathing, guided imagery and progressive muscle relaxation can increase physiological and psychological health. Relaxation can improve pain, sleep disorders, depression, anxiety, wound healing, cognitive function and post-traumatic stress disorders. Relaxation can increase alpha and theta brainwaves, decrease heart rate and respiration, reduce production of stress hormones such as corticosteroids and improve a range of immune functions

This training may qualify for Focussed Psychological Strategies (FPS) CPD. Please refer to the Dept. of Health for more information.

Most people enjoy being heard. If they engage in therapy, they need to be heard. Regretfully, the experiences of individuals are often unintentionally minimised and their realities denied, not only by family and friends but also by professionals. Not being heard, in turn, can increase a person’s feelings of aloneness and create a roadblock to their recovery.

*This training may qualify for Focussed Psychological Strategies (FPS) CPD. Please refer to the Dept. of Health for more information.

Help couples in your practice manage conflict and deepen intimacy! This is the first step in learning Gottman Method Couples Therapy. A truly inspiring workshop, Level 1 Training will give you new insights into treatment for couples who struggle, using research-based assessments and effective interventions.

Day One of this two-day workshop provides a historical look at the development in our understanding of Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD), which includes current epidemiological studies and clinical presenting features. Day Two takes a more in-depth focus on the four
modules, and the general therapeutic stance taken by a DBT practitioner.

*This training may qualify for Focussed Psychological Strategies (FPS) CPD. Please refer to the Dept. of Health for more information.

The emphasis of this two-day training program is upon imparting practical, accessible skills to use immediately with survivors of complex trauma (especially child abuse and neglect).

* FPS Relevant Activity *

How can we differentiate bipolar disorder from borderline personality disorder (BPD), obsessive-compulsive disorder from obsessivecompulsive personality disorder, or a cognitive lack of empathy from the emotional lack of empathy that is part of narcissistic personality disorder (NPD)? Although personality disorders are often talked about, their symptoms can be difficult to recognise - particularly by novice therapists who may be baffled by behaviours associated with personality disorders. This seminar will provide an understanding of the ten DSM-5 listed personality disorders, with an emphasis on: learning to identify the symptoms; understanding the lived experience of consumers; and learning to manage some of the difficult behaviours.

* This training may be considered Focused Psychological Strategies. Please refer to the DoH website for further information

This 3-day face to face course is an opportunity not only to be trained in the RISE UP model of supervision, but for personal growth and personalised feedback, which culminates in a formal assessment phase. It has a pre-reading component of up to 40 hours. Your presenter has extensive experience in private practice and supervision, affording you insight into cases and supervision issues

Are pain and suffering the same? In suicide prevention we listen for and validate any subtleties of pain that our clients deem to be unbearable. Nevertheless, suffering and pain is complex and often in reflection after having provided a counselling/support session one will ask themselves if they missed something?

*This training may qualify for Focussed Psychological Strategies (FPS) CPD. Please refer to the Dept. of Health for more information.

Do you find working with couples a challenge? Would you like to feel more confident to be able to work with couples? Being an effective couple therapist requires us to develop skills that may not come naturally. This two day workshop teaches participants the fundamental skills of couple therapy and explores the challenges of working with adults who present with relationship problems and the particular issues they bring to the counselling room.

*FPS relevant activity *

** AASW Member discount **

This workshop utilises two models of supervision to help supervisors tailor their supervisory approach with supervisees.

This course will provide the skills to effectively teach clients to regulate their nervous systems and emotions. Techniques for assisting hyper arousal and hypo arousal are taught and participants will directly experience these skills as well as taking away tools for conveying them effectively to their clients.

*This training may qualify for Focussed Psychological Strategies (FPS) CPD. Please refer to the Dept. of Health for more information.

‘I was fine until I retired’ or ‘I was okay whilst my kids were living at home’ are common statements we hear when we are trying to understand what life was like before a significant life-change. The transition process has thrown the familiar world into chaos and confusion. This course is for all who facilitate/counsel and support these negotiations of ongoing change and stress and want to build resilience in their clients in support of them making healthy, positive choices.

This training may qualify for Focussed Psychological Strategies (FPS) CPD. Please refer to the Dept. of Health for more information.

Mindful Self-Compassion is an outstanding workshop. The program consist of didactic and experiential training exercises in mindfulness and self-compassion, to improve professional skills and personal lives.

Rapidly expanding research shows that mindfulness and self-compassion are strongly associated with emotional well-being, lower levels of anxiety, pain and depression, better healthy habits such as diet and exercise, more satisfying personal relationships and enhanced self-care.

* FPS Relevant Activity *

In this two-day workshop, the first day gives theory and practice of group therapy. The term 'group therapy' can be applied to a variety of theoretically and practically different kinds of groups from the psychoanalytic to the CBT.

* This training may be considered Focused Psychological Strategies. Please refer to the DoH website for further information

The Adolescent Culture workshop will provide participants with the opportunity to engage and be a part of an informative and experiential/interactive session about young people today. This workshop will include discussions, activities and information on adolescent culture, highlighting what young people are experiencing, feeling, participating in and experimenting with. In addition, participants will walk away with a tool belt with skills and strategies to best engage with and motivate young people.

*This training may qualify for Focussed Psychological Strategies (FPS) CPD. Please refer to the Dept. of Health for more information.

In this two-day training we will explore the function and processes of dissociation and learn why mindfulness is so terrifying yet fundamental to healing. We will take a tour of the most primitive and most expansive areas of humanity in order to learn how to bring quality and peace to our own, as well as our clients, life.

CFT was developed for mental-health issues linked to shame and self-criticism, and for work with those who often come from difficult (eg. neglectful or abusive) backgrounds (Gilbert). The focus is not the content of the client’s problems but the affect and attitude the client takes towards themselves in their suffering. The absence or presence of self-compassion has potential to amplify pain or soothe emotional pain, respectively. Kindly & non-judgmentally relating to oneself & one’s emotional experiences is a worthwhile therapeutic target (Germer & Neff, 2013).
*This training may qualify for Focussed Psychological Strategies (FPS) CPD. Please refer to the Dept. of Health for more information

A growing body of research suggests that health professionals benefit from Mindfulness Based Interventions and Loving-Kindness Meditations that increase their Self-Compassion, since these practices can strengthen their relationships with clients, reduce the chances of burnout and increase overall wellbeing (Bellinghasu, Jones &Hutton, 2014). Applying Mindfulness and Self-Compassion practices in personal life, has the capacity to enhance professional effectiveness and increase longevity.

*This training may qualify for Focussed Psychological Strategies (FPS) CPD. Please refer to the Dept. of Health for further information

It is well known that trauma is re-enacted but the reenactment of trauma poses many clinical challenges. This is partly because unresolved trauma is often dissociated and non-verbal, expressed in domains other than spoken language.

*This training may qualify for Focussed Psychological Strategies (FPS) CPD. Please refer to the Dept. of Health for further information

Motivational interviewing is a collaborative, goal oriented style of communication with particular attention to the language of change.

*This training may qualify for Focussed Psychological Strategies (FPS) CPD. Please refer to the Dept. of Health for more information.

This two-day workshop presents a highly practical and interactive workshop (case-based) for treating PTSD patients; the content is applicable to both adult and adolescent populations.

*FPS Relevant Activity

This seminar aims to enhance counselling practitioner’s knowledge, sensitivity and awareness for working with transgender people. Some of the topics covered will be; awareness of language when referring to trans people, scales of sex and gender, the current DSM gender dysphoria diagnosis, referral requirements for treatment and the World Professional Association for Transgender Health standards. Specifically, this training addresses background information, terms & definitions, diagnosis criteria, the prevalence of gender diversity & aspects of assessment.

* This training may be considered Focused Psychological Strategies. Please refer to the DoH website for further information

The early 21st Century is presenting monumental challenges to both leaders and everyday people. Global threats of climate change, mounting numbers of refugees, declines in civility and respect for democracy and accelerating inequality, to name only a few! Such matters may feel ‘all too big’ to fathom, let alone respond constructively.

*This training may qualify for Focussed Psychological Strategies (FPS) CPD. Please refer to the Dept. of Health for more information.

The emphasis of this two-day training program is upon imparting practical, accessible skills to use immediately with survivors of complex trauma (especially child abuse and neglect).

* FPS Relevant Activity *

Participants are expected to bring to the workshop a de-identified case of a person in treatment for narcissistic issues. This will be shared in small peer groups and provide a focus for working clinically with such clients.

*This training may qualify for Focussed Psychological Strategies (FPS) CPD. Please refer to the Dept. of Health for more information.

Developed by Sue Johnson and Les Greenberg in 1985, Emotionally-Focused Therapy (EFT) is a short-term systematic intervention designed to reduce distress in adult love relationships while creating more secure attachment bonds

*This training may qualify for Focussed Psychological Strategies (FPS) CPD. Please refer to the Dept. of Health for more information.

With the development of neuroscience and its emphasis on the necessity of working with the body for effective therapeutic work, more practitioners are bringing work with the body into the therapy room. The most common method for doing this is to focus on the development of Insight. In this process, the therapist teases out themes, patterns and repetitions that are occurring at a level of body awareness or mindfulness. Insight develops and self-knowledge increases. However, as with traditional therapeutic approaches, other somatic interventions are available to deepen the therapeutic effectiveness of working with the body.

*This training may qualify for Focussed Psychological Strategies (FPS) CPD. Please refer to the Dept. of Health for more information.

Males make up approximately only 30% of therapy clients and when they do attend, it’s not uncommon for them to experience some struggle to engage with the counselling process. If attending as an obligation feeling pressured to attend, they may present with overt resistance and/or aggression. Many therapists feel underprepared to work with men and do not recognize how ‘therapy-as-usual’ can violate some models norms of traditional manhood.

*This training may qualify for Focussed Psychological Strategies (FPS) CPD. Please refer to the Dept. of Health for more information.

Western psychology focuses on how I am (thoughts, feelings, behaviour and so on) and who I am (identity, personality, etc.). These themes are central to most therapies. However, something is missing, something that has traditionally been the focus of the Eastern approach... and that is that I am, the fact of being, the enduring and underlying self that is so intimate, so essential, so unfailing that it is usually overlooked.

*This training may qualify for Focussed Psychological Strategies (FPS) CPD. Please refer to the Dept. of Health for more information.