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Newly Certified Supervisors

Congratulations to Gabriela Pessoa Mendes | AEDP Certified Supervisor | Posted by Dr. Karen Kranz, R. Psych. Senior Faculty | Posted April 15Th

Kari Gleiser and I are delighted to announce that Gabriela Pessoa Mendes of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil is now an AEDP Certified Supervisor.

Gabi brings an embodied AEDP presence to her work as a supervisor. AEDP lives in Gabi. With each supervisee she brings a presence of safety, openness, curiosity, and care as she is genuinely deeply interested in her supervisees and their development. Through being seen and heard, her supervisees have a transformative experience which facilitates supervisee’s self-at-best and therapist-at-best to emerge. Working experientially with supervisees, Gabi enables supervisees to have an experience of themselves that transforms their work with patients.

Kari Gleiser writes, “Gabi has been a pillar of the Brazilian AEDP community and will continue to offer her open heart, her wise mind, her caring guidance as a certified supervisor. Gabi is deeply committed to helping others learn and practice AEDP, while also growing into their best selves. Her generosity of spirit shines through as she shows up fully to help her supervisees stretch their clinical abilities, their emotional/relational growth edges and their receptive capacities. I’m thrilled that Gabi is joining the ranks of AEDP certified supervisor!”

In the words of her reviewers:

“Gabriela brings deep kindness, authenticity, and skill to this work. She demonstrates how she engages and promotes the growth of the whole person, clinically and personally. Gabi brings the model to life for her supervisees, giving them an in vivo bottom-up experience, somatically, emotionally, and cognitively. Gabriel’s supervisees are extremely fortunate to have her as a teacher and a mentor. I am sure that her relationships with them support great personal as well as clinical growth and healing.”

In Gabriela’s own words: “I’m feeling fulfilled, grateful, excited and heart open to the new that’s coming.”

Please join Kari and me in welcoming Gabi to the growing community of AEDP Certified Supervisors.

You can reach her at gpessoam@gmail.com

Congratulations to Bob Yip Mang Sau | AEDP Certified Supervisor | Posted by Danny Yeung MD, AEDP Senior Faculty, and Esther Poon, AEDP Adjunct Faculty | Posted April 11

Bob Yip AEDP Certified Supervisor Announcement

On behalf of Ms. Esther Poon (AEDP Adjunct Faculty) and myself, it is our honour and privilege
to share with you that Mr. Bob Yip Mang Sau has received a “total pass” for his “lovely work” in
becoming an AEDP Certified Supervisor.

Please note the shimmering comments from the reviewers of Mr. Yip’s supervisor certification
paper:

Reviewer 1:
I am struck by Bob!s earnest striving and love of the model that he clearly communicates to his
supervisees. What comes across in his paper are his efforts to embody the model in supervision,
such that supervisees have an experience of AEDP. The excerpts of moments with his supervisees
show his care towards them and their clients and understanding of the AEDP model. I am so
glad the larger community will now be able to learn from him as a Certified Supervisor.

Reviewer 2
Bob Yip is a definite pass on his supervisor certification. His paper is a marvelous, thoroughly
metaprocessing (his word) of his journey of becoming a supervisor. He covers his key learnings
up front – in which he identifies how supervision is a relational and experiential process and how
that leads to transformation and growth in the therapist/supervisee which ripples to the therapist/supervisee’s clients. He also identifies how to situate the experiential and relational work within the overall theory of AEDP and begins with breaking the work with supervises into four
states, showing examples of how working with the supervisee in each of the four states con-
tributes to their learning by meeting them where they are.

His transcripts of sessions provide poignant examples of his process of supervising, helping a
supervisee to see something in a bottom-up way – or how to challenge a supervisee who is missing key aspects of the work with their client. His gentle, non-shaming yet firm direction comes across as supportive and helpful. His use of affirmation and acknowledgement is celebratory and delightful in guiding supervisees whose work is unfolding on track. Bob’s sensitivity to the process of learning AEDP integrates learning and applying the model of AEDP to the supervision process and his paper is chock full of citations to bolster his perspective. which feels very integrated and inspiring. Bob’s supervisees are lucky to have someone who has clearly given a lot of time and preparation to cultivate his AEDP supervisor self.

For those who may be unfamiliar with Mr. Yip, he is “Bob Sir” to the Hong Kong AEDP community. Mindful of the classic “To Sir With Love,” Bob Sir is the embodiment of seniority (nothing to do with age), richness of experience, wisdom, compassion and lovingkindness. When one of us (Danny) was made aware that Bob Sir was participating in Hong Kong’s Immersion Course, the immediate response was the tremulous “OMG! Yip Mang Sau is here!?!” Why? The therapeutic work Bob Sir and his organization was a momentous inspiration for us to dream about providing healing through therapy.
Bob Sir’s extraordinary genuine modesty and willingness to engage in the whole AEDP training
process quietly, unassumingly and resolutely is worthy of the deep respect from the Hong Kong
AEDP community. Furthermore, the fact that he rose above a life threatening health issue to get to where he is today is a testament to the embodiment of transformance in the core of his being.

Bob Sir definitely deserves this acknowledgement not because of his renowned status in counselling field in Hong Kong, but his genuineness, openness, humility, hard work, and great integration in AEDP. It has been our great honour to be able to share our learning with him and encounter him because of AEDP. He is our model and a good friend we could turn to.

With this, please join with us to celebrate Mr. Bob Yip’s significant milestone and his outstanding contribution to the Hong Kong and international AEDP community, past, present and future.

Esther Poon MFT
Adjunct Faculty, AEDP Institute
Danny Yeung MD
Senior Faculty, AEDP Institute
Chair of International Development

Congratulations to Joanna Marcela Berrio Kipnis, LCSW | AEDP Certified Supervisor | Posted by Jenn Edlin, MFT, AEDP Senior Faculty and Jeanne Newhouse, NCPsyA, AEDP Senior Faculty | Posted April 1

Dear Community,

It is our deep pleasure to announce that Joanna Berrio Kipnis is now officially an AEDP Certified Supervisor. Joanna (ella/she) is a Colombian therapist with an online practice. She works with supervisees worldwide, leads supervision groups, with a special interest in leading BIPOC supervision groups, and sees clients located in NY and Colorado.

Jenn Edlin shares the following:
I have had the privilege of knowing Joanna and her work over many years. When I met her, she was a member of the Denver community, participating in a Core Training, and she stood out to me for her warmth and solidity with her clients. She has continued to grow, practice, and learn as a therapist and now as a supervisor, as well as to integrate her cultural traditions and spirituality, all of which shows up as increased nuance and capacity in her work with clients, individual supervisees and supervision groups.

Watching Joanna work with her supervisees and reading her paper bring for me a feeling of delight seeing AEDP shining through in a seamless integration of theory with the person Joanna is. Joanna’s warmth and wisdom beckon her supervisees forward as if crossing a visual cliff toward greater AEDP mastery. I have learned so much from her bravery, kindness, and seeing the best in each person who comes to her for help, not to mention through discussing the nuanced application of AEDP theory together. I’m delighted for our community to now be able to grow with and learn from her heart and mind in a supervisory capacity.

Jeanne Newhouse adds:
I had the distinct privilege of working with Joanna while she pursued certification as an AEDP Supervisor.

Meeting with Joanna and witnessing her skillful work with supervisees both in groups and with individuals was a rich experience for me.

Joanna has a very firm grip on this model and was always able to weave theory into the supervision sessions. She made lots of space for her supervisees and navigated the necessary work of Self of the therapist for each person she worked with.

Her deeply kind and caring presence made for an atmosphere of safety and therefore helped to facilitate the growthful work I observed.

Joanna has a strong commitment to working with the AEDP BIPOC community to ensure that ongoing training is accessible, and we worked together to help set the wheels in motion that have now launched. Thank you, Joanna!

I am thrilled to welcome Joanna to the growing community of BIPOC supervisors around the globe.

Joanna has the following to say about her AEDP journey:
I’ve been a student of AEPD for well over a decade. I have come to respect, to love and to integrate AEDP principles in my professional and personal lives as a way of being with others, not just as a model. The AEDP transformational framework is not just at the heart of my clinical work with clients and with supervisees, it’s also foundational in the anti-oppression work I do. There is power and healing potential when I can be a grounded, authentic, loving, supportive and fully present Other, who can offer a corrective emotional experience, and who can lovingly and with patience invite my clients and supervisees to connect with their core, transformative experiences.

My work and my personal life have been transformed by the AEDP model and the AEDP community, where I feel at home and feel seen in all of who I am. I’m immensely grateful to Jennifer Edlin who has walked along side me for so many years. You are the reason I continued on my path to become an AEDP supervisor; thank you for so fiercely believing in me. And thank you for introducing me to Jeanne Newhouse! I’m filled with warmth, care, and gratitude for Jeanne Newhouse! Thank you for your loving presence, for both the practical and wise guidance that helped me navigate the challenges of being a supervisor. I’m also grateful to the many mentors that have supported and encouraged me along the way: Amie Karp, Lia Jones, Ben Lipton, Ron Fredrick, Diana Fosha. And gratitude to my supervisees who also trusted me to walk alongside their own AEDP journey. It’s exciting to experience that this is the culmination of so many years of dedication to this model and community, and the beginning of a new AEDP journey for me.

We want to end with a heart-filled congratulations to Joanna on this milestone.

With warmth,
Jenn and Jeanne

Congratulations to Shari Eliot, LCSW | AEDP Certified Supervisor | Posted by Jeanne Newhouse AEDP Senior Faculty and Kate Halliday AEDP Senior Faculty | posted March 18

Dear Community,
It is with great pleasure that I announce that Shari Eliot is now an AEDP Certified Supervisor.

Shari had been an enthusiastic member of the AEDP community for many years now. Shari pursued the model with passion and dedication. First becoming a Certified Therapist and then working solidly in the model for several years moving toward the track of becoming a supervisor.

Shari is a very experienced and capable therapist. She has been supervising therapists both in an
agency setting and in private practice for a long time, so she is no stranger to helping to train
therapists for the deliberate practice of their work.

Kate Halliday, Shari’s other supervisor writes:
My experiences with Shari have always left a felt sense in me of having been in the company of
an immensely kind, gentle, and authentic companion. I imagine (and have had the privilege of
seeing in her recorded supervisory sessions) that her supervisees feel that way too. Shari’s wise
Self-at-Best has a light and tender touch; she’s full of good humor, and comfortably navigates the
interweaving territories of teach/ supervise/ and treat. The effects of her skilled support are
apparent in the ways her supervisees blossom and grow over months of work with her.

It has been a real delight for me to accompany Shari on this final stretch of her process gaining
certification as a supervisor in AEDP. All the accolades and recognition from her reviewers ring
true to me; she deserves every one of them.”

Of her work in supervisor training Shari’s reviewers shared this…
Thank you for giving me the pleasure of reviewing Shari Eliot’s AEDP Supervisor Certification paper.  I am happy to give my whole-hearted approval.  Shari came to AEDP as an already skillful supervisor and it is lovely to see in her paper how she has developed even greater effectiveness and skill as an AEDP supervisor. Her passion for AEDP and the depth of her knowledge of the AEDP model are clear throughout her work.    
 
Shari embodies the AEDP model in her affirming, relational, curious, experiential approach to supervision. She teaches the essential and advanced aspects of AEDP with expertise: moment-to-moment tracking of non-verbal experience/ gestures; relational work; navigation of choice-points; self-supervision utilizing video; various possibilities for interventions in hard-to-read moments; deepening affective experience; fostering emergent transformation; developing the capacity to use awareness of self-states in moment-to-moment tracking and in choosing interventions. We will be truly fortunate to have Shari in the community as an AEDP Certified Supervisor!

I know that Shari will be a wonderful AEDP supervisor and a great addition to our roster. In
addition to individual client work, Shari’s desire to bring AEDP to group therapy will be a real
contribution.

Welcome Shari, to the community of gifted AEDP Certified Supervisors!

Please feel free to offer your congratulations to Shari at seliot@rcn.com

Warmest regards to all!
Jeanne Newhouse AEDP Therapist, Supervisor and Senior Faculty Member
Kate Halliday AEDP Therapist, Supervisor and Senior Faculty Member

Congratulations to Simone Levey, Ph.D | AEDP Certified Supervisor | Posted by Dr. Karen Kranz, R. Psych. AEDP Senior Faculty and Kate Halliday, LCSW, AEDP Senior Faculty| posted March 18

It gives me great pleasure to announce that Simone Levey is now an AEDP Certified Supervisor.
Simone is a knowledgeable and skillful AEDP Therapist and Supervisor. Her attachment based gentle approach helps alleviate anxiety and fosters supervisees’ learning and curiosity about themselves and their clients. 

Simone works with the self-of-the-therapist, helping supervisees to develop confidence in their therapist-selves, to understand AEDP therapy and techniques, and to embody their AEDP way of understanding clients, therapy, and health, in other words, the 9 + 1-ness of AEDP.  
Simone skillfully tracks moment-by-moment supervisees’ videos, attuning to the client and therapist in the video, the supervisees watching their work, as well as their supervisor – supervisee relationship. 

From Kate Halliday,
It was my privilege to be Simone Levey’s supervisor as she began the process of building towards Certification as an AEDP supervisor. Simone’s kindness and her dedication to being a real force for helping her supervisees inhabit the stance and skills of the model shone from her right from the start. She’s careful, and intelligent, and her suggestions as she sits with people’s work are strategically designed to build their confidence and help them grow.

Simone is a great asset to her community in Toronto, and to the AEDP community at large

Some of what Simone’s reviewers said:
Simone’s kindness, care, compassion, solid knowledge of AEDP theory and technique, and +1 AEDP Spirit shines through her work. Simone’s supervisees are lucky to have Simone as a Certified Supervisor! 

Simone shows deep thoughtfulness and care in working with her AEDP supervisees. Taking the AEDP stance, Simone affirms her supervisees, approaches them with compassion and openness, and privileges the positive by helping them to see what is going well in their sessions. 

Some words from Simone:
I am the co-founder of a multidisciplinary clinic for mental health, called RENNI
(www.renni.ca), located in Little Italy, Toronto. Our team consists of psychologists,
social workers, psychological associates, acupuncture practitioners, registered
massage therapists, general yoga practitioners, as well as Trauma Center Trauma-
Sensitive Yoga (TCTSY) yoga instructors. We offer in-depth integrative care to support
children, adolescents, adults, couples, families, and groups. We specialize in a number
of areas including trauma and some of our clinicians are currently also training in AEDP
with the AEDP Institute. I offer AEDP supervision (virtually throughout Canada and
internationally as well), and seminars there and we plan to provide workshops and other
trainings in AEDP for our clinicians and the Toronto community. My hope is that RENNI
can become a home in Toronto for AEDP clinicians to learn, consult with one another,
and spend time together as a community. Please feel free to reach out if you live in
Toronto and you’re interested in joining our growing team of AEDP clinicians, or if you
just want to connect with us!

Simone welcomes supervisees living in Canada and around the world. She just started a second supervision group on Mondays at 9:30 EST, and has space for 2-3 more participants.

Please welcome Simone to the growing community of AEDP Certified Supervisors.

You can write to her at simonelevey@renni.ca

Newly Certified Therapists

Congratulations to James McCracken LCSW | Posted by Ben Medley LCSW, AEDP Senior Faculty | Posted April 8

Dear AEDP community,

I am thrilled to announce that James McCracken LCSW is now a certified AEDP therapist! Congratulations, James!

I have had the pleasure of knowing and supervising James since he attended the AEDP Immersion course in 2019. From the get-go, James impressed me with his energy and dedication to learning AEDP. James brings an empathetic and compassionate lens to all his clients, determined to help alleviate their suffering and distress. His embodiment of the AEDP stance is evident in his clinical work and his relationship with his clients. James offers a steady presence that helps make it possible for clients to access difficult affective experiences, all while undoing their aloneness and facilitating new experiences of transformation and change. It has been a pleasure and a joy to work with James and to watch his clients heal and grow.

Since 2019, James has also been an active member of the AEDP community. In the time that I have known James, he has completed Essential Skills, started an AEDP reading and discussion group, worked as an experiential assistant for Essential Skills courses, and, more recently, acted as a lead assistant in AEDP Immersion courses. Outside of AEDP, James has also been active with the International Centre for Excellence in Emotionally Focused Therapy as a practitioner and supervisor, has worked as a clinical instructor at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine and co-founded a group practice in North Carolina in which he supervises and mentors other therapists (and introduces them to AEDP!).

In AEDP supervision, James has also worked with AEDP Supervisor Judy Slivan. Here’s what Judy shared in congratulating James:

“James is the rare clinician whose AEDP journey began with a solid experiential and affective foundation. We were lucky to have him as a member of a weekly AEDP supervision group before family expansion changed his time commitments.

Supervising James’ work and his calm, warm, gifted presence as a group member was pure joy. His AEDP skills grew to demonstrate the skill base needed to dyadically attune, process affect, and un-do layers of complex trauma using AEDP 4-state work. He was able to usher in transformations in his sessions with clients and was also a safe and caring partner to other clinicians in our supervision group. James enhanced the shared learning of the other AEDP therapists, and developed solid affective-receptivity in vulnerably sharing his work as well. Congratulations James and I hope you will find ways to savor this momentous achievement of Certification in your AEDP journey. “

The reviewers of James’ certification videos and transcripts add:

“James is a skillful AEDP therapist who conveys a clear sense of how deeply he sees, hears and cares for his clients. His solid grasp of the AEDP model, mindful moment-to-moment tracking and discerning choice of interventions allow his clients to feel safe and in good hands. James is a knowledgeable and competent AEDP practitioner. He facilitates healing and transformation for his clients through work that is powerful and deeply human.”

And:

“James’ ability to be present with his two patients was striking. I experienced him as calming, affirming, re-assuring, and supportive. James listened well, validated his patients, made left brain sense of right brain experience through platforming, and then helped his patients go deeper. James self-disclosed his own life experiences when he felt it would undo alonness and de-shame the moment.”

The AEDP community is fortunate to welcome James as a certified AEDP therapist. I am happy to celebrate this achievement with him and the AEDP community!

If you would like to personally congratulate James, please email him directly at James@nctherapists.com.

Sincerely,
Ben Medley LCSW
Senior Faculty
The AEDP Institute

Congratulations to Elizabeth M. Schwenzfeier, PhD | Posted by Kate Halliday, LCSW, AEDP Senior Faculty | Posted April 8

Dear AEDP Introducing Elizabeth (Beth) Schwenzfeier to our community as a newly Certified AEDP clinician is a real delight.

Beth was already an accomplished therapist when she began her AEDP training in 2016; as she describes in her own statement, her spirit responded immediately. The devotion and persistence Beth has brought to the study of the model has felt like a spiritual practice for those of us lucky enough to accompany her. As one of her reviewers observed, “Her care comes through over and over as she lends her nervous system to her clients to go places they couldn’t go alone.” From the first moments of engagement in early sessions, to the middle of work with severely traumatized people, Beth shows up and meets her clients with compassion and emotional intelligence.

Both her reviewers remark on Beth’s trust in the process of the model; for an already-competent therapist, the work of “unlearning” and “not knowing” is often a real challenge; Beth demonstrates how this is entirely possible, from the inside out.
The AEDP community at large, and the Charlottesville Va. community in particular, are very lucky to have Beth with us, with her big heart and mind in service of healing.
Enthusiastically,
Kate Halliday, Senior Faculty

Here is Beth’s own statement as she absorbs the news of her success in certification:
AEDP Journey Statement
I went to Immersion in 2016 feeling disillusioned with my work as a psychotherapist. I could almost always help my clients understand the reasons for their psychic pain, and sometimes they changed behaviors to function better in their lives, but often they didn’t actually feel better, not deep down. In my experience as provider and recipient of therapy, I didn’t see or experience the healing and freedom I wished for my clients and myself. Talk therapy had started to feel like a scam.
I had heard of AEDP and other experiential therapies and wondered if they were more effective. I signed up for a week of Immersion in Durham, NC, not only because of my burnout, but also because it would be held just after attending a family reunion that I expected would be emotionally very challenging. I figured a week of professional training would be bolstering.
I cried through much of my Immersion week – tears of relief, amazement, grief, and gratitude for seeing that psychotherapy can bring about true healing. When I saw Diana Fosha’s work with her patients, I thought, “WOW…I need to learn to do that with my clients!” What I loved most was learning that we all have a core self that we can come home to, even if we are discovering it for the first time, and that this core self doesn’t want to settle for surviving, it wants to thrive. How incredibly hopeful and reassuring.

Through supervision, many subsequent trainings, and my own AEDP therapy, I grew personally and professionally in ways I had thought were literally impossible. My therapist-self became increasingly invigorated as I began helping my clients transform and heal, too. To me, the transformance process feels miraculous and sacred, even though it’s also backed by science. I love practicing AEDP because it requires authentic presence. Over the course of my training, I sometimes found this aspect freeing and refreshing, at other times, terrifying and daunting, but never boring, and always worth the effort.

I am grateful for the many incredible AEDP therapists who were integral in making my certification possible. Wendy Summer and Dave Waters organized a Core Training group that I was so fortunate to participate in. Sharing my client sessions with a group of colleagues and AEDP faculty was really scary, but letting myself and my work be seen was life-altering. I still don’t love sharing my sessions, but my wonderful current supervision group provides unconditional support as I continue to work on this. Liz Perkins was my EA for ES2, and then kindly agreed to supervise me individually. I had been undecided about pursuing certification, but Liz helped me realize that I could, and wanted to. I am deeply grateful to Kate Halliday, my other supervisor for certification; I met Kate shortly after Immersion, so she has accompanied me on this eight-year journey. With Kate and Liz I learned to follow the AEDP model while being my authentic self.

I am so grateful to be a certified member of this passionate community. This work is endlessly fascinating and enlivening!

I hope you’ll join me in congratulating Beth. Her email address is emschwen@comcast.net.

Congratulations to Laura Montgomery, MSW, RSW | Posted by Jeanne Newhouse, NCPsyA, AEDP Senior Faculty and Idit Ronen-Setter, MFT, AEDP Certified Supervisor | Posted April 3

Dear AEDP Community,

It is with immense pleasure that Idit Setter and I announce that Laura Montgomery is now an AEDP Certified Therapist.

Laura began her learning of AEDP first through reading a transcript of Diana’s in a book. This
piqued her curiosity and inspired her. She went on to take the Immersion course in 2017 and
followed it with a mix of AEDP learning including Core Training and lots of supervision. Laura
has also assisted in many online AEDP courses since 2020.

I was introduced to Laura by Idit and she and I began our work together. I was immediately
impressed by Laura’s skillful tracking and her ability to respond succinctly and powerfully in the
moment as well as her slow steady presence and her deeply kind way of constantly facilitating the work, even with very challenging clients.

Laura made the interventional language of AEDP her own always seeming to know exactly where she was going. I had the privilege of learning from Laura as she learned from and with me.

Of her work her reviewers wrote…
As AEDP therapists the quality of our work has to change significantly as our clients move,
sometimes quite swiftly, between states. Laura does a magnificent job tracking her clients and
walking with them through the AEDP map. When her clients are in state one, Laura is affirming,
directive, active, anxiety regulating and knowledgeable (wiser, older, attuned other), she has the
courage to usher them towards being more affective. When her clients are in state two
experiences Laura is slowed down, attuned, stretchy. She creates space for her clients’ affective
experiences. And then in states three and four Laura privileges the positive and the
transformance, allows ample space for metaprocessing and for new narratives to emerge and then
be felt in the body. It’s beautiful, connected work that really exemplifies a deep understanding of
how to track and respond to clients.”

In Laura’s words:
It still feels somewhat surreal to be writing this, as I continue to let this honour land within. I
deeply grateful to Idit Setter, my first AEDP supervisor for suggesting I was ready to start the
certification process, and for her steadfast belief in me. I am also grateful to Jeanne for her
always honest, skillful and unwavering belief in me. I am also grateful to myself for being able
to navigate the resistance to this process, my endurance and also to celebrate myself along the
way. Also appreciation for my clients for their willingness to share themselves in this vulnerable
way and to the AEDP community. I deeply appreciate this foundation, and look forward to continuing to grow together with this vibrant and dedicated community.

The AEDP community is once again enriched by the skillful, authentic presence of Laura in it.

Welcome Laura.

If you would like to congratulate Laura please do so at laura@psychandsoultherapy.com


For all 2024 AEDP Institute-sponsored events please click here

Immersion May, 2024- Certification Course
Presented by:  Jerry Lamagna, LCSW and Guest Presenters
Designed for: All Levels
Required for AEDP Certification
May 8 – 11, 2024 (Wednesday – Saturday) and May 17 -20, 2024 (Friday – Monday) | 11:00 am – 3:30 pm Eastern Time USA
Level: Open to all levels
Learn more and Register
SEMINAR SERIES:  Treating Eating Disorders with AEDP: Bringing Top-down Interventions into our Bottom-up work 
Presented by: Martina Verba, LCSW, DSW, Certified AEDP Therapist and Supervisor
Sponsored by the Institute | does not count for certification purposes
Dates: 4 Wednesdays | June 5, June 12, June 19 and June 26 
Times: 4:00 PM – 6:00 PM EST
Level: Open to all levels
Learn more and Register
ADVANCED SKILLS COURSE: Presence & Bravery in Action: AEDP interventions to awaken emotional resilience after loss, endings, and death. Full Program: Four Half Days (2 Didactic, 2 Experiential)
Presented by: Kate Halliday, LCSW
Sponsored by the Institute | Counts toward AEDP Certification 
Dates: Friday – Monday, June 7 – 10, 2024
Time: 11:00 am – 3:30 pm EST USA
Level: Open to AEDP Level 2 Therapists
Learn more and Register
SEMINAR (ADVANCED):  Presence and Bravery in Action: AEDP interventions to awaken emotional resilience after loss, endings, and death. Didactic only: Two Half Days
Presented by: Kate Halliday, LCSW
Sponsored by the Institute | does not count for certification purposes
Dates: Friday + Sunday, June 7 + 9, 2024
Time: 11:00 am – 3:30 pm EST USA
Level: Open to AEDP Level 2 Therapists
Learn more and Register
ESSENTIAL SKILLS June 2024 (WILLOW) – Certification Course
Presented by AEDP Institute Faculty: Richard Harrison, PhD, Sigal Bahat, MA, Karen Pando-Mars, MFT, Mary Androff, MD, Benjamin Lipton, LCSW
Sponsored by the Institute | Required for AEDP Certification
Dates: Five 4-day Modules: Friday – Monday June 21, 2024 – January 20, 2025
Times: Module 1, 3, 4, and 5 12:00 – 4:30 PM EST | Module 2  11:00 AM – 3:30 PM EST
Level: A Level 2 Certification Course | Designed for Immersion Grads
Learn more and Register
SEMINAR Live Online and Live In-Person in NYC: The Triangle of Social Experience: A new representational schema to help ground clinical work with the trauma of oppression and the experience of internal liberation
Presented by: Ben Medley, LCSW
Sponsored by the Institute  
Dates: Saturday, June 22, 2024
Time: 9:00 am – 5:00 pm EST USA
Learn more and Register to come In-person (seats are limited!) or attend Live Online

For all 2024 AEDP Institute-sponsored events please click here


In-Person Events Taught by AEDP Faculty and Supervisors

SEMINAR Live Online and Live In-Person in NYC: The Triangle of Social Experience: A new representational schema to help ground clinical work with the trauma of oppression and the experience of internal liberation
Presented by: Ben Medley, LCSW
Sponsored by the Institute  
Dates: Saturday, June 22, 2024
Time: 9:00 am – 5:00 pm EST USA
Learn more and Register to come In-person (seats are limited!) or attend Live Online
HOT Topics in AEDP™, with Diana Fosha, PhD, Kari Gleiser, PhD, & Ben Medley, LCSW, with Molly Eldridge, LICSW
July 29-August 2, 2024 | Presented by the Cape Cod Institute: Live In-Person or Live-Online

HOT Topics in AEDP™
Diana Fosha, PhD, Kari Gleiser, PhD, & Ben Medley, LCSW, with Molly Eldridge, LICSW
July 29-August 2, 2024

Presented by the Cape Cod Institute: Live In-Person or Live-Online

Learn More & Register https://www.cape.org/courses/2024-aedp-diana-fosha


Supervision Online

Now It’s Easier than Ever to Find a Supervisor!

Check out the list below. If you don’t find a match, simply send an email to findasupervisor@aedpinstitute.org, providing details about the supervisor or type of supervision you are seeking. Your request will be received by every actively supervising Faculty member, Certified Supervisor, and Supervisor in Training. Those who have availability and meet the criteria you outline in your email will respond directly to you. Feel free to correspond with as many prospective supervisors as you’d like until you find the right match!

Supervision Offerings with AEDP Faculty, Certified Supervisors and Supervisors in Training

Individual and Group Supervision (Online), Liza Greville, LCSW, Certified AEDP Supervisor | April 8

Group 1: Where are We?: Tracking the 4 States – June 4, 11, 18, 25 from 10:30 – 12:00EST. Balance of didactic + participant tapes to practice tracking markers of the 4 State map, in order to build a left-brain understanding of the reasons why we might select various interventions.

Prerequisite: IMM, and all levels of experience welcome!

contact Liza for more information
liza@lizagreville.com

AEDP Based Group Therapy Consultation Group…New Group Forming, posted by Shari Eliot, LCSW, Certified AEDP Supervisor | April 3

I’ve facilitated groups for most of the 30 plus years I’ve been in practice, and I love it so much.

I find it exciting to see the ways in which groups help people grow and change. A group member
once said it this way to me – “the thing I love about group is that I’m always learning something
new about myself even if what’s being said doesn’t directly relate to my experience.” When I
began learning AEDP in 2015, it struck me that it’s therapeutic aims are a perfect fit for group
therapy. It was then I began applying it to the groups I facilitated and noticed it’s effectiveness.
In this Consultation group, we will explore how we as group therapists can make use of our
AEDP skills in order to facilitate the unique ways that group processes work with and enhance
our natural developmental and healing capacities.
We will meet monthly on Zoom, time TBD.
If you are interested, please reach out to me, Shari Eliot, for more details. seliot@rcn.com

Beginner’s Mind Consultation Group… NEW Group forming, posted by Judy Silberstein, LCSW-R, Certified AEDP Supervisor

Beginner’s Mind Consultation Group…NEW Group forming
2 spots open..
Finishing ES1..and want to continue growing? AEDP collaborative learning is a
transformational experience like no other!
Begin or continue videotaping while developing and strengthening your personal AEDP
therapeutic presence. We will focus on how to videotape comfortably, and to self-
supervise while watching your own videos.
If you aren’t taping you can present a case as your client and me as therapist so you
can get a bottom up sense of how to make it more AEDP-ish.
..add to your AEDP skill set while honoring the many skills you already have.
..learn to be an attuned micro-tracker!
..create portrayals..
..explore the felt sense of all 4 states until they become second nature
..AND enhance your critical consciousness by expanding the AEDP container to include
the larger social context.
I have been an AEDP supervisor for a decade and have a heart centered approach to
this work, leaning into the somatic/emotional connection within ourselves, with our
clients and with each other as we co-create OUR group.
Fridays noon – 2 PM EST, bi-weekly on Zoom.
Starting in February!
Fee for group is $100 US/ per meeting. I offer a reduced fee if needed.
Groups are 4-6 persons to foster AEDP learning intimacy.
All hours count toward certification.
As always, please reach out to me with questions you might have and to explore if this
is a good fit for your learning needs.
With warmth and care,
Judy Silberstein, LCSW-R
pronouns: she/her
Certified AEDP Therapist, Supervisor 
Certified Bioenergetic Therapist, Supervisor
judysilb@gmail.com

Balance AEDP Supervision with Marc Cecil, Ph.D., Certified AEDP Supervisor | Posted April 3

“Balance AEDP” Supervision with Marc Cecil, Ph.D., Certified AEDP Supervisor

Recently, I named my new laptop computer, "Balance." Funny name for a computer, but
it said it all to me. My laptop is a tool I sit in front of many hours a day, and I wanted to
see it as something in my life that helps to keep me in balance rather than a source of
stress and frustration. 

Since I’m not a computer, when I sit with a patient or supervisee, I want to create a
container where I can be viewed as someone who can help them find balance inside
themselves. I want them to know that I believe in them, and that we all have the power
inside to heal and to facilitate this process in others.

Like the see-saw I loved to play on as a kid, or the mobile of the family in my office, it
takes a special balance to make life work, let alone be a therapist. Our work is about
balance and finding the courage to be different, i.e., to be ourselves in our own human
way, so we can help our patients do the same. I believe you can all do that, and, if
you're not sure, I'll help you. It is our calling. 

If my words speak to you, just send me an email and tell me what you are looking for in
supervision, individual and/or group, and what finding this balance would be like for you.
This is an important decision that goes way beyond trying to figure out how to get
enough hours for certification.

I imagine joining you on this journey and helping you discover the amazing healing gifts
you have inside. And, of course, I'll be at your side, doing the same – finding the
balance. 
With warmth and care,

Marc

Marc A. Cecil, Ph.D.
Licensed Psychologist
Certified AEDP Supervisor
Certified EMDR Consultant
CSRT Supervisor in Training
Rutland, Vermont
802-236-9512
mcecilvt@aol.com

Individual Supervision with Supervisor in Training Shelley Carr | Posted April 3

I am offering individual supervision, based in the UK but working internationally.   I will be working towards supervision certification so all supervision hours accrued with me will count towards your therapist certification once my certification process is complete. Please feel free to get in touch and have a chat about your requirements at shelley@shelleycarrtherapy.com. 
Warmly
Shelley


Shelley Carr 

Group & Individual Supervision Online with Michael Mondoro, Certified AEDP Supervisor | posted March 25

Group & Individual Supervision Online with Michael Mondoro, Certified AEDP Supervisor (Eastern Time Zone)

Group 1: Transforming Trauma with AEDP & Intra-Relational Parts Work: 1st & 3rd Monday of the month, 1p-2:30p EST (30 minute didactic presentation + 1 hour consultation). This is an opportunity to connect with new colleagues and continue to grow in your work with relational trauma, PTSD, and complex-PTSD. Learn new skills in applying intra-relational parts work to your AEDP practice. I will teach and demo or show tape of an AEDP-IR parts work skill each week and a participant will present tape of their work and receive group support and feedback (Prerequisite: AEDP Essential Skills 1 course).

Group 2: Essential AEDP: Friday, bi-weekly, 10a-11a EST (1 hour consultation with didactic aspects woven-in). This is an opportunity to undo aloneness, deepen your AEDP knowledge and interventions, receive group support and feedback, and build your AEDP network of colleagues (Prerequisite: AEDP Immersion course).

Although all will benefit from these experiences, if you are aspiring to be an AEDP Certified Therapist, both groups counts towards the certification group supervision requirement.

Contact: mmondorolcsw@gmail.com or www.michaeljmondorolcsw.com

Supervision opening with Liza Greville, LCSW, AEDP Certified Supervisor | posted March 25

Option 1: 4-6 session modules designed as complements to ES1 modules, with focus on integrating learning and applying skills in one’s own practice.

Option 2: Ongoing supervision available, as well as assistance with preparation of certification transcripts

liza@lizagreville.com

Individual or Group supervision with Yuval Moses, Certified AEDP Supervisor | posted March 25

1. Individual supervision in person in NYC or on zoom
2. Zoom AEDP supervision group on Wednesdays 9-10 EST. The group focuses on supervision on tape and between rounds of clinicians showing tape a didactic session is offered to satisfy both right and left brain needs.

The email to contact me is yuval@yuvalmoses.com for supervision.

Consultative Individual Supervision with Judy Silvan, LICSW, AEDP Certified Supervisor | posted March 25

Consultative Individual Supervision: I offer a 16-20 session consultative “supervisory-client experience”. This AEDP package is called “consultative therapy and supervision”, and is available to all AEDP trainees, as an adjunct to your growth edge as you learn to provide AEDP. Hours count for your certification hours.

http://judysilvanpsychotherapy.com/
judysilvan@mac.com

AEDP Group & Individual Supervision |posted by Eileen A Epstein PhD,LCSW LCSW-C LCSW-R, Certified AEDP Supervisor | posted March 25

-Currently offering group & individual supervision for all levels including beginners and advanced AEDP therapists. Please contact me for further information.

I have openings for group and individual supervision. I also have openings in my Consultation & Study groups. Grow your knowledge, understanding, and skills with like-minded and supportive colleagues.

Please contact me for more information. All supervision is thru Zoom.

eileen.epsteinphd@gmail.com
Eileen Epstein
Pikesville, Maryland, USA

Monthly Supervision Group with Kelly Prothero, LCSW, Certified AEDP Supervisor | Posted March 25

I’m excited to announce that I am offering a time-limited (6 month commitment) supervision group starting this fall for a small group of clinicians (6 participants max).

My intention is to create a warm, welcoming space for participants to expand and refine their AEDP skills, discover one’s own unique therapeutic presence and build connection and community with others.

Each session will focus on one of the following themes and topics:
* Finding ease and traction when working in State 1
* Refining attunement: what does THIS moment call for?
* Pressuring with empathy: the healing power of one’s therapeutic presence and stance
* Healing trauma through child parts work and portrayals

Format:
Fall 2023 – Spring 2024
Meet once a month for 2 hours via zoom (Pacific time zone)
2 participants present a 45 minute video tape of clinical material
Fee: $100 per group session

All hours count toward AEDP certification for licensed clinicians

Please feel free to contact me with any questions. kellyprothero1@gmail.com

Supervision post with John Wiskind, LCSW, MPH *Supervisor in Training, AEDP Certified Therapist | posted March 25

Individual Supervision
Sliding scale available
Contact Supervisor for Availability
john.wiskind@gmail.com


These trainings are not Institute-sponsored and do not count towards AEDP certification.


Melanated clinicians are welcome to co-create a supportive community through witnessing shared experiences and insights. Informed by the spirit of AEDP

Meetings are held via Zoom on the second Saturday of the month. The next meeting is scheduled for April 12, 2024, at 9:30 PST/ 12:30 EST
For more information, feel free to contact: Loseca Austral:loseca.austral@gmail.com (NY, USA), or
Ajen Busher:jennifer@ajenbusher.com (CA, USA)
To be added to the invitation list, please contact Loseca Austral


Join us for the first ever Emotions Education 101 Workshop in an Australian (and other country) friendly time zone!  The workshop will be Friday May 17th and Saturday May 18th 8am -3pm Australian Eastern Standard Time.  Special price $460 Australian / $300 USD (save $200!) Check your time zone here!

It is appropriate for ALL people with emotions – both clients and therapists! You can find out more and register here!  Please feel free to contact Heather Sanford with any questions sanford.he@gmail.com.


Live interactive half-day workshop designed for mental health professionals, physicians, nurses, coaches, and educators who want to offer Emotions Education 101 classes at their practice, agency, school, or workplace. – Info and registration | posted March 25

Hilary Jacobs Hendel, LCSW (She/Her) is an AEDP Certified Therapist / Supervisor and is the Author of “It’s Not Always Depression” (Random House)


Transcription Services and Other Posts

Spoiler title

Do you want to continue learning AEDP experientially and in community? I am experimenting with a new kind of offering- a stand-alone AEDP Practice group that is not connected to any specific didactic training.

As an Experiential Assistant at AEDP trainings, I have had the privilege of leading many small groups through AEDP practice sessions. These are the groups of 3 people where each person rotates through the role of therapist, client, and witness. The beauty of these groups is that the focus is on the learning of the therapist, giving you an opportunity to stretch, take risks, and try new things. Unlike a paid therapy session where we focus on the experience of the client, in an AEDP Practice Group, the experience and growth of the therapist is centered. This is a low-pressure way to play, puzzle it out, see what’s going well, notice your impact, and bring your enthusiasm for AEDP.

I wanted to find a way to continue these groups outside of formal AEDP trainings and continue practicing together. I will not be providing didactic training or showing video, but I will suggest an AEDP principle to focus on and provide a prompt for the practice sessions. I am not certified in AEDP and these groups will not count towards the AEDP certification process. As a facilitator I will hold space, manage time, provide feedback about what’s working and suggestions (when desired). I will also zoom out to track the arc of each mini session and note the choice points, AEDP interventions, and key moments.

NOW FORMING A NEW AEDP PRACTICE GROUP

6 sessions of 90 minutes each- must commit to full series
Each group will have 3 participants and 1 facilitator

EVERY OTHER TUESDAY 4:30-6:00pm Pacific Time

June 4, June 18, July 2, July 16, July 30, Aug 3

$105 per session, $630 total*

*Sliding scale available upon request for BIPOC and prelicensed clinicians, and/or those who work in agencies with multiply marginalized populations.

QUESTIONS? WANT TO SIGN UP?
The first step is to sign up for a free intake phone call through my website: https://carolynmoorecounseling.com
Please make a note that you are interested in the AEDP Practice Group.

If you are unable to make this round, but want to join an interest list for future rounds, please email me at: carolynmoore@yahoo.com

ABOUT ME:
I have been studying AEDP for 11 years and have worked 1:1 with an AEDP supervisor for 5 years. I am a Level III AEDP practitioner but am not AEDP-certified. I have a lot of experience leading small experiential groups and get excited about the profound learning and support that is possible. One of my gifts is helping therapists feel seen, notice what’s working, and helping therapists feel their impact on their clients.

Office Space Available - in Peaceful and Inviting Los Altos, CA bldg | posted by Carrie O'Leary April 17

I’m looking for a practitioner or two who is ready to be in community with me and other trauma-informed practitioners in-person in Los Altos, as a four office suite has come open to lease in town in a beautiful, landscaped, and peaceful complex at an affordable price.

I’m a Level 3 AEDP therapist, and PCIT, IFS, and EMDR trained. I feel deeply moved, inspired, and grateful for this work.

I work with adults, families, couples and children. I prefer a diverse mix, as the novelty and change helps me stay connected to the warm and regulated Self state with more ease. I also like to joke a bit with my colleagues and clients (reasonably!), which is another reason I’d like to find an office mate or two.

Details:

The office would be available in June, but the timeline for joining me is flexible, based on your availability.

The offices range in price from $1250 to $1450. There is an ensuite bathroom, a small community space to connect, have tea and a snack and reset, and a welcoming waiting room.

The costs of these offices include all utilities, landscaping, janitorial, wifi, and maintenance.

In addition, it is my intention to create a space for community and warmth within our shared space, and would welcome your input and needs in how that looks.

If you are interested in talking further, please reach out to me!

Warm regards,
Carrie

Carrie O’Leary
Los Altos, CA, USA
408-717-3105
carrieolearylmft@gmail.com
www.carrieolearylmft.com

Audio/video transcription services to therapists working on certification materials|Posted by Eleanor Rogers | ongoing post

Transcriptions North
I am pleased to offer audio/video transcription services to therapists working on certification materials, or preparing for presentations, supervision, or other training. I bring attentive eyes and ears to your work in order to accurately capture the content of your sessions. Completed transcripts include time stamps, verbatim dialogue, and tracking of non-verbals. 
Files can be sent via a secure platform that offers USA, and EU / UK GDPR data privacy compliance, and in particular meets Canadian federal and provincial data privacy compliance – PIPEDA, PIPA, FIPPA, ATIPPA, PHIPA. Files may also be mailed as DVDs or USB drives. 
Located in British Columbia, Canada, I am a Registered Clinical Counsellor and Canadian Certified Counsellor with AEDP training. For information on fees, file formats, and procedures, please email me at eleanor@creativecurrents.ca. References available on request.

Psychedelic Balcony: Seeking volunteers for (45 min) interviews on guided psychedelic experiences | Posted by Courtney Rennicke, Ph.D.| April 3

Dear AEDP community, 

I am seeking volunteers who might want to bravely share their guided or therapeutic psychedelic experiences as part of a masters thesis I am completing on psychedelics and systems psychodynamics.

My thesis is exploring how to reimagine some concepts in systems psychodynamics through the collective experiences of guided, therapeutic journeys and lens of psychedelic research and is tentatively titled, “The Psychedelic Balcony: Phantastic Object or Simply Fantastic”.

I am not able to offer a stipend for this interview and conversation (45-60 minutes) but am putting out the ask in the spirit of ongoing community mutual support, ongoing integration of guided psychedelic experiences, and network building. 

Anyone interested in speaking with me can back channel me at: CR@rennickeassociates.com

Thank you for your support, 

Courtney Rennicke, Ph.D.

home

True Other Transcription | posted by Karen Batka, MBA, MA, LMFT | ongoing post

ANNO: True Other Transcription Services
Dear All,

It is my pleasure to offer you a unique and specialized audio/video transcription service – True Other Transcription – used by many therapists
in preparing micro-analysis for certification/training/skill enhancement and manuscript purposes. Your work comes alive as I efficiently and accurately witness, capture and track moment-to-moment verbal AND non-verbal transformational processes within sessions enabling left-brain access of material you (and your clients) might otherwise miss.

Videos of your work with individuals, couples or group trainings can be conveniently and confidentially uploaded into a secure, HIPAA compliant Inbox or mailed to me as a DVD or thumb drive. Soon after, you receive the completed transcript (including time codes and true verbatim) as an email attachment – either in grid format (with space to add your process and intervention notes) or script format (preferred for manuscript work).

Since 2012, I have transcribed over 1,000 hours of AEDP clinical videos and welcome the opportunity to save you precious time and increase value by bringing your work to life. I am a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist in California and North Carolina and AEDP Institute member with AEDP training. Please contact me (Karen Batka) by phone (415.488.5565 EST) or email (Karen@karenbatka.com) for additional information regarding fees, supported file formats or references.

Warmly,
Karen

Karen Batka, MBA, MA, LMFT
415.488.5565 EST
True Other Transcription
undoing aloneness through accompaniment…word-for-word



“AEDP 2.0” is a Bestseller!

Did you know that the book, “Undoing Aloneness and the Transformation of Suffering Into Flourishing: AEDP 2.0″ made the APA (American Psychology Association) bestsellers list for 2023?

Congratulations to Diana – who wrote several chapters in the book and is the book’s editor, and congratulations to all 13 AEDP Institute Sr. Faculty and Faculty Emerita who collaborated to make this the incredible book it is. Here’s the list of authors, chapter by chapter:

Diana Fosha, Karen Kranz, Gil Tunnell & Jenna Osiason, Yuko Hanakawa, Benjamin Lipton, Karen Pando-Mars, Ron Frederick, Ben Medley, Eileen Russell, SueAnne Piliero, Jerry Lamagna, Kari Gleiser, and Danny Yeung



Poetry, Art, Music, Culture, History and Story Telling by AEDP Members


“As members of the AEDP Vision Collective, we believe it is critically important to be culturally competent psychotherapists as it relates to self-awareness, cultural humility, and the commitment to understanding, racial trauma and developing affective therapeutic interventions to support the psychological well-being of populations of African ancestry.”  read the Vision Collective’s Celebration and Call to Action here


The Gift of Synchronicity By Marc Cecil

The Gift of Synchronicity By Marc Cecil

Who am I to sit with someone who is hurting after a lifetime of trauma and help them find a way to heal? Will I be able to join them in putting together the pieces of a puzzle where I might represent a piece that has been missing, or that makes it hard for the puzzle to come together?

So many difficult questions. But somehow, I find the courage to keep moving forward. Many clients tell me that they feel seen in a way they have not felt before, while others have a harder time. Either way, I am grateful that they are giving me the gift of knowing them, but I am even more delighted when they give this gift to themselves.

For example, with my client, Rosie, we discuss how she is treating her adult daughter like a child. I gently ask her, “What is the hardest part about letting your daughter grow up?” She looks perplexed, perhaps a little angry, even sad. And, after holding her gaze for what seems like a lifetime, she wipes her tears, and says, “I guess that means I’m an adult now and need to have my own life.” I respond, “I’m so glad you can see that. That’s a hard one for many of us to learn.”

It’s great when the water is flowing steadily in the right direction, but sometimes it feels like nothing is happening, or the water is so rough that we are even moving backwards. I try to remember that that’s just the way life is, and that healing works in a similar manner. And then, one day, a new door begins to open, often unexpectedly, making it possible to see the light inside more clearly.

Contemplating the meaning of this work, I take a long run along the lake near my home in Vermont on a chilly Sunday afternoon in late November. Out of nowhere, I see a man standing alone dressed up as Santa Claus, playing a beautiful classical melody on his violin in a way I have never heard before, but seems very natural for him.

Staying on course to get my best time, I don’t slow down to enjoy the music, only realizing now that like this special Santa, I also need to be myself as a therapist, not trying so hard to do what is always expected, but rather, making space for the unexpected in my work and life.

Now, if feeling discouraged and stuck when working with Rosie or other clients, we slow down and just turn the picture a little, looking at it from a different angle. After a pause, sometimes, sprinkling in a few heartfelt words, while encouraging them to find their own, they begin to notice the light inside, revealing their specialness in a way we have only seen glimpses of before.

This work shows me that being a psychotherapist is not just about learning a specific set of skills and techniques. Instead, I like to think about what we do as an art, where we are on this journey together and are creating a picture of our humanness as both a client and therapist. I often tell my clients, “They are rewriting a story which helped them survive but is keeping them stuck in the past, making it difficult to see who they are now and the person they are becoming.”

At the same time, I am keenly aware of how a parallel process is happening inside of me. In a dream, a wise person tells me, “Many have not always appreciated themselves or been valued for the blessing of being able to see things beyond their years.” I reply, “Boy, that hits the nail on the head. But it has taken me a while to grow up, and, I don’t have that many more years left.” I feel their kind voice saying, “Don’t worry, we are not a unitary self. It’s what’s happening in synchronicity that tells us whether we are heading in the right direction.”

In the spirit of the holiday season, and the special therapy approaches woven into our hearts, I encourage you to slow down and make some space for your own questions and reflections. When we take the time to experience what that’s like, we can imagine the whole world lighting up and changing for many of us at the same time.

I still don’t know the answers to my original questions, and many more are arising, but I rest easier knowing that I can trust myself and the process of healing, and it will take me wherever I need to go.

I look forward to crossing paths with you along the way, even if we never actually meet. But if we do, I have no doubt it will be special, and new doors will open in our lives, as well as with so many others we touch with our hearts.

I call this the gift of synchronicity, which I believe can, and is, becoming a reality. You may not see it coming, but, when it arrives, soak in the love and joy, knowing that it is just a part of your client or you that has come back home.

Much joy and hope this holiday season, and into the new year and beyond.

Marc A. Cecil, Ph.D. is a licensed psychologist and Certified AEDP Supervisor and Therapist, in addition to being a certified EMDR consultant and CSRT supervisor in training. Marc lives nearby the sacred shores of Lake Bomoseen, and his office is in Rutland, Vermont. He invites you to join him in noticing your own moments of synchronicity, as you become the therapist and person you were always meant to be. Marc welcomes your comments and feedback at mcecilvt@aol.com.

©️Copyright 2023 Marc A. Cecil, Ph.D. All rights reserved.

The Rainbow connection By Marc Cecil

The Rainbow Connection By Marc Cecil

I tear up when I think about my patient, Joy. She came to see me after being diagnosed with a rare form of cancer, feeling overwhelmed and struggling to keep herself above water, let alone finding the drive to keep moving forward.

I quickly discovered that Joy was a bright light to many in her life, a devoted mother, wife, and friend, who wanted nothing more than to live long enough to be with her children one more day. That was the glimmer of her core self that helped her remember why she was alive and why we were doing this work together.

I grabbed onto this light and never let it go, letting her know that I saw who she was at her core, and that it was far more powerful than the illness that was trying to hijack her. Although she tried every possible treatment, Joy decided that she wasn’t going to “fight cancer,” as she knew that this would put her at war with her body rather than working with it. She would often share her frustrations about the corporate fund raisers only wanting to focus on the more curable cancers, as they believed no one wanted to give money to a lost cause.

Nevertheless, I could see in her eyes and hear in her voice that the transformation was happening. We would then metaprocess what it was like to know that she didn’t need to fit into that mold and had her own voice that was much stronger. Joy realized that she was all about “living with cancer,” and, I mean living!

Continuing the spiral of transformation, Joy knew her truth even more and celebrated that she was no longer alone in the world, like she felt as a child, and so many other times over the years. In the process, she discovered that she could take back her power to be herself and speak out for others, even though she never knew when the medicine would stop working.

Joy was expected to only live for 2 years but she made it five. None of her doctors could explain it, but we both knew that having cancer was not a death sentence. In fact, it actually helped her find a reason for living and to face some of the immense loss and trauma she tried to bury inside.

With all of our courage, each enhancing the other’s, we focused our work on some of the many things that contributed to her cancer, not just the medical, but the psychological, which consumed her body and sense of self. And, in time, Joy began to give herself permission to feel, truly knowing her humanness and value. She found her beautiful core self, and with it, more of a reason to live.

The last time we met, only a few days before she passed, I sensed that we both knew that we were saying goodbye and would not see each other again. Usually not at a loss for words, I didn’t quite know how to express what she meant to me. But, knowing what it would mean to her to disclose my feelings, I played her a song I thought would touch her heart with what was also in mine.

It’s been 5 years now since Joy left us, and I just heard that song again when scrolling through social media. The lovely young woman in front of me was wearing a cap covering her head, and the glow on her face reminded me of Joy, who loved to sing and had a beautiful voice.

In that moment, I remembered that before Joy passed away, she told me that she would find a way to let me know that she was okay. I’m sure you’ll recognize this tune first made popular by a famous frog, starting with the double-barreled question, “Why are there so many songs about rainbows – what’s on the other side?”

When I listen to this song now, I feel Joy’s beautiful spirit telling us all to believe in ourselves and to have hope during the darkest times. These words have given me much solace during recent days, and, in thinking about other times during my life, the darkness encompassing so many people around the world, including many in this community.

If you knew Joy, you would also know that she embodied the spirit of AEDP, and that her great soul lives on in my heart, as well as in many others. I’m sure she would appreciate you sharing this message, like I am doing now. It is my way of telling her and others how grateful I am that she was in my life and how much her truth means to all of us.

Most of all, I encourage you to welcome the joy, sitting hand-in-hand with the loss and grief, not covering it up, but making space for it, enabling the meaning that got implanted to help you survive, to realign. Be patient and drink in the light, letting it join with the glorious core self of who you have always been and deserve to be.

In the end, we may not know the answers to all of life’s mysteries, but, perhaps, we don’t need to, as long as we have touched the core of ourselves and others in our heart. That’s the power of transformation and healing we all have inside of us.

I would love to hear about what that’s like for you. Then, we could bask in the joy on the other side of the rainbow. That’s “the rainbow connection – the lovers, the dreamers, and me.”

Marc A. Cecil, Ph.D. is a licensed psychologist and Certified AEDP Supervisor and Therapist, in addition to being a certified EMDR consultant and CSRT supervisor in training. Marc lives nearby the sacred shores of Lake Bomoseen, and his office is in Rutland, Vermont. You can email Marc at mcecilvt@aol.com to let him know how his words settle inside, and where they take you. He would love it if you join him in sharing your own heartfelt creativity that arises inside of you and your patients, spreading the “spirit of AEDP” throughout this community and into the world around us.

©️Copyright 2023 Marc A. Cecil, Ph.D. All rights reserved.


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Older posts – worth reviewing!

Congratulations to five AEDP Certified Supervisors who were just appointed as
Hong Kong Adjunct Faculty Members: Cammy, Esther, Judy, Wing and Victoria.

Sr. Faculty member Dr. Danny Yeung recently traveled from his home in Canada to Hong Kong to teach AEDP Immersion to 80 therapists. This was the 15th Hong Kong Immersion he has taught. The AEDP community in Hong Kong is thriving!

We are hugely grateful to Danny who has done so much to build the Hong Kong community. And Danny would be the first to remind us that he has not achieved this by himself. While many people and organizations have been involved, five AEDP Certified Supervisors have contributed tremendously, and over many, many years, supporting and participating not only in the 15 Hong Kong Immersions but in the intense work of designing and teaching the Hong Kong version of Essential Skills. This latter responsibility is one that the Institute is now formally recognizing with appointments to Adjunct Faculty. So, it is with great pleasure that we announce the appointments of the following five people to Adjunct Faculty – Hong Kong:

Cammy Cheung, RSW
Esther Wai Yee Poon, MFT
Judy M. Y. Wong, MFT
Kwok Wing Wu, MPsych, Reg. Clin. Psychol.
Victoria Cheung Ng Kwok Yee, DMin, RP

Please read about each of the new Adjunct Faculty Members on our Faculty webpage here.

and join us in congratulating them and welcoming each of these community members them to this important role.

What a wonderful way to start the year of the Dragon! Congratulations and deep gratitude for all you have done and continue to do to support AEDP.