Daniel Shaw

Saturday, 17th May, 25

10.00 a.m  to 12.00 p.m (AEDT)

Daniel Shaw introduced Traumatic Narcissism Theory in 2014, with the publication of his book Traumatic Narcissism: Relational Systems of Subjugation, in which he described the many ways that individuals are harmed in relationships with the person he termed the ‘traumatizing narcissist.’ Understanding the relational system of the traumatizing narcissist allows clinicians to help patients more clearly understand the nature of the subjugation trauma they have suffered. In this webinar, Shaw will focus on defining the terms and purposes of the theory, and he will explain how it can be integrated into any therapeutic modality when working with victims of subjugation trauma.

Dr Joan Haliburn

Saturday, 7th June, 25

11.00 p.m to 12.30 p.m (AEDT)

Personality disorders are among the most prevalent and serious mental health conditions, yet they remain one of the least understood. These disorders can significantly affect the severity, treatment response, and prognosis of co-occurring mental or physical health issues. Despite their impact, many individuals with mental health concerns are not diagnosed with a personality disorder upon discharge from inpatient care, highlighting a critical gap in clinical practice. A personality disorder is characterized by persistent patterns of thoughts, emotions, and behaviors that diverge significantly from cultural expectations. This webinar will delve into personality disorders, presenting the latest knowledge on these complex conditions. Using case examples, participants will explore the role of trauma, attachment, and other factors in the development of personality. Attendees will gain insight into the three clusters and ten types of personality disorders and learn how these disorders often coexist with other mental health conditions, affecting both severity and treatment outcomes.

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Prof Andrew Moskowitz

The American psychologist Philip Bromberg, more than any other contemporary thinker and clinician, built a bridge between dissociation and contemporary psychoanalytic thinking and theory. Through his writings and teachings, Bromberg emphasized the core relevance of dissociation to the interpersonal psychology of Harry Stack Sullivan and relational psychoanalysis. He quipped that Janet’s ghost had come home to haunt Freud – who had famously eschewed dissociation for repression. Bromberg argued forcefully for a central role for trauma and dissociation in normal personality, and for pre-emptive dissociation in personality disorders – which maintained interpersonal distance in order to prevent psychological pain. He also believed that effective therapy required the activation of parts of the therapist’s self that could engage with the client’s parts (essential for the enactments he viewed as necessary for therapeutic progress) all the while respecting the other (normal) dissociative parts that were in the background; in addition, Bromberg insisted on – in striking contrast to classical psychoanalysis – the necessity of periodic therapist disclosures in order for therapy to be effective. And in his use of dreams in therapy, as in many of his teachings, he echoed – without apparently realizing it – the writings of another major historical figure who locked horns with Freud – Carl Jung.

Dr Nick Bendit

Despite the fact that we know psychotherapy is effective across a wide range of mental health disorders, the mechanism of change is unknown. Each model of psychotherapy has a different theory about how change occurs, yet these theories do not explain why different therapies usually end up with similar outcomes. In this webinar, Dr Nick Bendit will outline a hypothesis that is central to all models, whether they recognise it or not, as a mechanism of change, mediated through the therapeutic relationship, which helps the client to experience emotions and thoughts that were unmanageable previously, and therefore avoided in a wide variety of ways. Different models address this with different techniques, implicit and explicit, but at the core is the safety and human contact of the therapeutic relationship. This, combined with the therapist modelling that emotions are important, tolerable and make sense, allows the client to explore their internal emotional world in a new way. A new relationship to their internal emotional and cognitive world is gradually built, allowing the client to live their life with more control, freedom and comfort.

Dr Nick Bendit

Dissociation is an area of mental health that few practitioners know much about. It is shrouded in mystery and controversy, but in the last 10 years there is an increasing literature of the science and clinical practice of dissociation. In particular, complex dissociation appears in clients with severe borderline personality disorder and clients with dissociative identity disorder. This Online Course will introduce you to dissociation, discuss cognitive neuroscience of dissociation, clinical syndromes in dissociation with both PTSD and BPD subtype, Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID) and treatment of Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID).

Dr Paul Martin

This online course explores the dynamics of separation, grief, and mourning as integral aspects of normal development, focusing on their role in shaping an individual’s experience of loss. It provides a comprehensive understanding of various types of loss, the factors that amplify or alleviate the pain of grief, and the adjustments individuals must make in response. The course also examines how to assess potential pathological responses to loss and mourning, along with psychological treatments for both normal grief and complicated bereavement. Key topics include assessing grief, death and mortality across the lifespan, the connection between attachment theory and mourning, stage theories of grief, the psychodynamic perspective on loss, the neurobiology of the grieving brain, psychotherapy and treatment options, and an anthropological view of loss, grief, and mourning.