Coming Events
Workshops / Trainings
Workshops and trainings below are geared for clinicians, caregivers and the general public as noted. Time zones also vary according to the host.
Emotion-Focused Family Therapy (2-day core training)
Join us for a virtual 2-day EFFT core training. The essence of EFFT is to increase the positive role of caregivers in their child’s recovery, regardless of their age, level of motivation or involvement in formal treatment themselves. The clinician’s role is to support parents and caregivers to increase their involvement in specific ways - including recovery coaching, emotion coaching and via therapeutic apology.
The model also involves a module for clinicians to support caregivers to identify, understand, and transform “emotion blocks” that lead to therapy-interfering attitudes or behaviors. This final component is critical since throughout the course of treatment, some well-intentioned caregivers can struggle to support their loved one’s treatment. They may even engage in behaviors that enable their loved one’s symptoms, creating challenges for the most experienced clinicians. For this reason, the EFFT model includes a module for clinician and team challenges as well.
Click here for more information and to register
$375 USD
March 4 & 5, 2021 - 9:00am CST - 4:00pm CST
Facilitated by: Dr. Adele Lafrance, C. Psych. & Elizabeth Easton, C. Psych.
Emotion-Focused School Support (2-part training)
This 2-part training is intended for clinicians and educators interested in supporting their school-based colleagues with the framework and strategies of Emotion-Focused School Support (EFSS). The primary primary goals of EFSS include supporting school staff in: 1. regulating child/adolescent emotion with a focus on “return to learning”, 2. preventing emotional escalations, and 3. de-escalating outbursts in progress. EFSS also includes a module that includes an adaptation of the skills above to respond effectively and with compassion to challenging parental dynamics, such as anxiety, shame, resentment or criticism, including those who present with other-blame for their child or adolescent’s difficulties. The finale module of EFSS involves opportunities for school staff to identify their strengths and growth edges when faced with emotional situations with students, their caregivers and even with colleagues. Participants will be provided with a sample facilitator presentation in PowerPoint format for their future use upon completion of the workshop.
Click here for more information and to register
March 10 & 11, 2021
4:30pm MT - 7:30pm MT both days
Facilitated by: Dr. Adele Lafrance, C. Psych
Emotion-Focused Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy: Theory and Practice
EF-KAP is a therapeutic model developed as an extension of ketamine-assisted psychotherapy (Lafrance & Robison, 2020). Every aspect of the treatment is guided by emotion theory as it is well understood that problematic emotion processing plays a key role in the onset and maintenance of mental health issues. As such, EF-KAP aims to support the affected individual to make contact with, attend to and work through affective experiences, developing mastery with emotion processing over time. The development of skill and confidence with emotions also makes symptoms less necessary to cope with stress and distress, including patterns of avoidance.
To further support the healing process, a family member or close other is recruited to support the client throughout the treatment protocol in specific ways. Doing so facilitates the optimization of a recovery-friendly environment outside of the therapy office, strengthens meaningful relationships, and potentially extends healing and growth beyond the client and into the system.
This workshop will provide a review of ketamine and ketamine-assisted psychotherapy followed by a step-by-step overview of the EF-KAP model, including an optional experiential activity. Research data, clinical vignettes and video clips with EF-KAP clients will also be shared.
Click here for more information and to register
March 12, 2021
10:00m EST - 5:00pm EST
Facilitated by: Dr. Adele Lafrance
Emotion-Focused Chair Work: From Self-Criticism and Avoidance to Assertion and Forgiveness
One of the psychological markers of anxiety, depressed mood and other emotion-based difficulties relates to difficulties with emotion processing, referring to the capacity to attend to, label, regulate and move through emotions. When external stressors overwhelm our internal capacities, the human organism seeks out ways – consciously and unconsciously – to get relief, including via thought and behaviour patterns like self-criticism, self-interruptions and avoidance patterns. It can also become difficult to connect with healthy assertion and forgiveness, states essential for mental health.
This workshop will introduce powerful and efficient emotion-focused interventions for the transformation of self-criticism and emotional self-interruptions in therapy, as well as the cultivation of assertive anger and forgiveness. Using chair-work and informed by theory and techniques from EFT and EFFT, participants will be provided with scripts and opportunities to observe the interventions in action via video or demonstration. Opportunities for practice may also be available.
Click here for more information and to register
March 19, 2021
10:00m EST - 5:00pm EST
Facilitated by: Dr. Adele Lafrance
*NEW TIME* Emotion-Focused Family Therapy (equivalent of 2-day core training)
In light of our need to isolate, we are now offering a virtual 2-day EFFT core training. The essence of EFFT is to increase the positive role of caregivers in their child’s recovery, regardless of their age, level of motivation or involvement in formal treatment themselves. The clinician’s role is to support parents and caregivers to increase their involvement in specific ways - including recovery coaching, emotion coaching and therapeutic apologies. The model also involves a module for clinicians to support caregivers to identify, understand, and transform “emotion blocks” that lead to therapy-interfering attitudes or behaviors.
This final component is critical since throughout the course of treatment, some well-intentioned caregivers can struggle to support their loved one’s treatment. They may even engage in behaviors that enable their loved one’s symptoms, creating challenges for the most experienced clinicians. For this reason, the EFFT model includes a module for clinician and team challenges as well.
Click here for more information and to register
April 14, 15, 28, 29, 2021
6:30pm EST - 9:30pm EST
Facilitated by: Dr. Adele Lafrance
Advanced Emotion-Focused Family Therapy (3-day training)
This advanced training is suited for those clinicians with a minimum of two days prior training in Emotion-Focused Family Therapy*. Dr. Lafrance will be facilitating the third day of the training focused on Therapeutic Apologies.
Click here for more information and to register
$675 CAD (+ Paypal fee)
April 19 – 21: 9am PST - 4pm PST)
Facilitated by: Natasha Files MSW, RSW & Adele Lafrance, C. Psych
What to Say When Nothing Seems to Work: EFFT Caregiver Workshop for Eating Disorders
Does your child or loved one—young or adult—suffer from an eating disorder Inspired by Emotion-Focused Family Therapy – and with a healthy dose of humor - this evidence-based workshop will introduce practical skills and scripts to use with your loved one in order to increase cooperation, respond to resistance and other strong emotional reactions, including expressions of worry, hopelessness, and even silence. The workshop will focus on one of EFFT's most powerful and foundational tools, emotion coaching, for use with adolescent and adult sufferers. This workshop will be specifically focused on emotion coaching for eating disorders and will cover the most common challenging aspects of caring for a loved one with an eating disorder. Parents, caregivers, and clinicians welcome.
Click here for more information and to register
$125 USD
May 8, 2021 - 9:00am CST - 1:00pm CST
Facilitated by: Dr. Adele Lafrance
When Clinicians Get Triggered: An Emotion-Focused Workshop for Transformation and Growth
Join us for a half-day workshop inspired by theory and practices from emotion-focused modalities. It is normal for clinicians to be impacted by our work with clients and/or their family. When this occurs, our access to our instincts or fund of knowledge is temporarily "blocked" by nervous system activation. Our personal life can also be affected. This workshop will offer a container for clinicians to engage in self-care practices while engaging in personal and professional development. Tools, techniques, and supervision interventions will also be reviewed to support clinicians to regain access to their clinical intuition on their own or with peers.
*This workshop is recognized by the International Institute for EFFT for one day of in-person training.
Click here for more information and to register
$150 USD
May 22, 2021 - 9:00am CST - 1:30pm CST
Facilitated by: Dr. Adele Lafrance