Inland Empire Chapter of CAMFT

IE-CAMFT NEWSLETTER

April 2020

April 24, 2020 Featured Event

This is a Zoom event*

Grief in the Midst of COVID 19: What are we going to do to hold all of it?  How are we going to take care of ourselves?

Jill A. Johnson-Young, LCSW

The original presentation for this month was focused on the dying process and how it informs working with grieving clients. It also addressed how to approach grief with clients, how to create a safe environment, and how to make grief solution focused, not the forever experience for your client after a significant death.

That’s all vitally important information. We can do it another time. Right now we have COVID. We are working from home or closed offices. We are trying to make practices work or to meet the increasing needs of clients in our work sites. We are facing what has already occurred in Italy. These are just some of the issues coming up worldwide, all of which are already occurring on our East Coast:

• Funerals and memorial services that cannot be held or have to be done online- all without touching.
• Deaths occurring rapidly, and without loved ones being able to be there, to witness, to comfort, to say goodbye
• ·Family members who are sick after a death, and multiple family losses
• ·The impact of witnessing mass death across the country (and world)
• ·Not being able to get “home” if needed- wherever home might be
• · Medical, housekeeping, coroner and mortuary staff getting sick and fearing for their own lives as they care for others
• ·  “Essential” workers being exposed and not being able to remove themselves from the situation for financial and job security reasons
• Financial stressors and losses: offices for therapists, homes, apartments, jobs, security, retirement savings
• Unrecognized losses: graduations, proms, promotions for littles in Kinder and 6^th grades, pets for those who have to move, opportunities lost, plans that had to change, not being able to see parents or elders or grandkids or ?, medical issues that had to go unresolved, holidays, birthdays, weddings, anniversaries, not seeing friends, missing school, not being in plays or concerts or performances or competitions, and on and on and on. All of them.

This issue:

April Featured Event is a ZOOM event*

Announcements

President's Message

Welcome New and Renewing Members!

At Our Last Meeting

Upcoming Events

This presentation will focus on helping therapists:

1)    identify how to best meet the needs of clients who are coping with grief now and in the future, including all of the above losses.

2)   identify three ways to take care of yourself while in the middle of the crisis and afterward in grief work.

3)   Learn how to normalize and validate the importance of all the losses for clients who minimize their own losses.

Finally, we will do some intense grief prep to help those who are going to or will lose loved ones to this disease in a way that nobody has had to cope since the last polio epidemic or the flu pandemic of 1918.

I hope you will join me, come with questions prepared that I address with you online, and still be ready for some humor and hope. Because in addition to listening and holding space, humor and hope are our best assets.

Bio:

Jill Johnson-Young, LCSW is a dynamic and engaging local, national, and international speaker who loves teaching both professional and community groups about dementia, death and dying, and grief and loss. She’s known for her sense of humor and making people laugh while talking about the stuff nobody really wants to talk about, including therapists. She co-owns Central Counseling Services in Riverside, California, where she is also a clinical therapist. She is a certified Grief Recovery Facilitator after spending more than a decade with hospice as a medical social worker and as a director of social workers, chaplains, and grief staff. She holds a BA from UC Riverside and her MSW from the University of South Florida. Jill has authored three children’s grief books and an adult grief workbook with more in process, and created www.yourpaththroughgrief.com, a year-long, comprehensive grief support program. She also has a website, www.jilljohnson-young.com, which includes resources for therapists. In her spare time Jill facilitates a dementia support group in Riverside and is part of the Riverside Purple Cities Commission. Her book “The Rebellious Widow: A practical guide to love and life after loss” will be out in 2020.  Jill became a subject expert on grief after being widowed twice and marrying the funeral director who took care of both her late wives. She now spends quiet evenings with Stacie in the mortuary several nights a week. They share their life with three adult daughters, two grandsons, and three Oodles.  Her books can be found on Amazon.

https://www.facebook.com/grieftalker/,

https://www.facebook.com/Riversidedementiasupport/ 

https://www.linkedin.com/in/jilljohnsonyoung/.

Inland Empire Chapter of CAMFT is a CAMFT Approved CEU Provider Agency  Provider # 62278

CEU Hours: This course meets the qualifications for 2 hours of continuing education credit for LMFTs, LCSWs, LPCCs, and LEPs as required by the California Board of Behavioral Sciences

Certificates: Electronic certificates will be sent by email following participant’s completion of his or her electronic evaluation, but are sent in batches, not immediately upon completion of the evaluation.

Refund Policy:  If a participant is unable to attend and notifies IE-CAMFT 72 hours in advance of the training, seminar fee will be fully reimbursed.

Grievance:  If any aspect of the training is not to the full satisfaction of any participant, please notify the coordinator, CEU committee chair, or another IE-CAMFT board member.  We hope to resolve any issue immediately on-site.  If not resolved, the full IE-CAMFT board will review and resolve the issue.

IE-CAMFT wishes all participants to have an excellent learning experience.  Please notify the coordinator or other board member if you need special accommodations.  If possible, call Garry Raley at (951) 640-5899 in advance. 

Presenter Non-Appearance Policy

In the unlikely event that a scheduled presenter does not appear for a scheduled event, the following steps will be used to remediate inconvenience to attendees:

An announcement will be made to inform everyone that CEU credits cannot be provided due to inability to meet CAMFT standards for advance notice, etc.

The meeting will be held.  Attendees will be encouraged to participate for the purpose of professional development.

If an attendee has paid for the seminar, s/he will receive either a full refund or credit for a future presentation.

If the topic will be repeated at a later time, notice of the date and time will be provided to all interested parties.

Announcements

Due to concerns regarding COVID-19, we will be offering our courses online through Zoom rather than in person until further notice in order to minimize any potential spread of the corona virus through social contact. 

The invitations to join the seminars will be sent to registrants ahead of the seminars. Please download Zoom ahead of time; you may access the seminar by either clicking the link or clicking on the Zoom app, selecting "Go to meeting" and then entering the link you will receive in your reminder email.  It will prompt you to enter a password, which is included with the link.

*Disclaimer re Zoom:  We understand that using new technology is a challenge, and recognize that offering educational events through an online service such as Zoom presents a major change in the delivery of our seminars.  If the seminar is interrupted due to any technological issue on our end, we will either issue credit for a similar future seminar or refund the seminar fee.

We wish to make our attendees aware that while we acknowledge that it may present a challenge for some participants, IE-CAMFT is not responsible for any difficulty registrants may encounter getting online due to slow Internet speeds, high traffic, losing connectivity, downloading the application, etc.  As a CEU provider, we must abide by the guidelines of CAMFT as required by the BBS and, accordingly, cannot issue CEU credit if seminar registrants are not online for the full seminar time.  Thank you for your understanding. 

ALSO DUE TO NOT MEETING IN PERSON CURRENTLY, WE WILL NEED TO CONDUCT THE IE-CAMFT BOARD ELECTION BY EMAIL.  We will be sending out the board slate and a link to a voting form to our members shortly, which will record your votes anonymously.  When you receive it, please respond as soon as possible.  Thank you!

 President's Message:

Hello IE-CAMFT Members,

I have the pleasure of writing the president’s message this month even though I hold the Secretary position on the board due to the fact that unfortunately, our president, Carol Adkisson, is not feeling well enough to complete this task.  I know you all join me in wishing her a speedy recovery. I hope you and your family are healthy and well.

Spring is in full swing now, and yet we are living in an odd time. Now it seems that we are all staying in our houses and we are living through our first pandemic. It looks unreal, and when I look outside or go for a walk, everything “looks” the same, but it isn’t. As you know, this change in our living is causing significant stress for us, our families, and our clients. I do want you to know that I see you, I see you taking care of your clients, children, and neighbors. I see you debating on where to hold your therapy sessions, in the office, your home, or even in the closet (where is the privacy?). Then we must teach the clients to use telehealth. I see you worried about your future, your ability to sustain a practice, pay your bills, and take care of all the people in your life. Our world has changed, and we, too, must learn to adapt. We just are uncertain how.

We have become bombarded with ever-changing information, and yet we still go on. We are human healers and relational people and want to help others around us, but we don’t always know how. We must make tough decisions and, at times, with limited information.  I have great hope for our community, and I see other good acts being done. We must take notice of those positives as some days that is all we have. However, I am confident that we will weather the storm and come out the other side.  Luckily, we have a very timely topic this month, "Grief in the midst of COVID 19: What are we going to do to hold all of it? How are we going to take care of ourselves?"

Part of the changing landscape is what IE-CAMFT is doing. We are now having online seminars instead of in-person ones. We had our first one this past month and another one coming up on the 4^th Friday of the month, April 24^th. This process is easy, and you can take part from the comfort of your home or office and even in your PJs if you like. Please do sign in early, and you must be present until the end. CEU time requirements are in place.  Also, you need to complete the seminar evaluation form in order to get your certificate.  The certificates are emailed in batches, so the earlier you complete yours, the sooner you will receive it, as most people submit theirs right after the seminar.

Here are a few suggestions to make your experience optimal.   

• 1.  Download and install the Zoom application ahead of time.
• 2.  Log in 15-20 minutes early and sign in. That way, you have time if a problem arises.
• 3.   Have only one browser window open during the conference call. We don’t need to see your email, and you will have a better connection.
• 4.  Make sure you are in a quiet place, and if you can’t be, or your dog starts barking of your child starts to cry, please mute yourself. In fact, everyone will be able to hear better if everyone but the presenter mutes themselves.
• 5.  Wear earbuds or headphones as that helps with unwanted feedback and makes everyone’s experience better.
• 6.    If the quality of the video becomes a challenge, you can stop the video and continue with audio-only.

Lastly, if you are a struggling private practice, you may be eligible for a COVID-19 ECONOMIC INJURY DISASTER LOAN.   The CARES Act is the $2 trillion was signed into law to provide immediate relief by those impacted by COVID-19 If you are a group practice this may be especially helpful as this act also creates a $350 billion Paycheck Protection Program where businesses can apply for low-interest loans equivalent to 2.5 months of operating expenses or $10 million, whichever figure is lower. As an added benefit, part or all of these loans would be “forgiven” if an employer maintains the same number of employees for the first eight weeks after the origination of the loan as they did in the year or months before COVID-19.  You can also find more information at SBA.gov. 

Please take care and be well. 

Respectfully,

Sherry Shockey-Pope, LMFT,

Secretary, IE-CAMFT

Welcome New and Returning Members!

April Shorters, Erica Solis, Hortencia Diaz, Yuliana Nemes, Devon Pytel, Jessica Sanchez

Thank you for renewing!

Ava Denise Phillips, Janine Murray, Frank Robinette, Yoon Young Kim,  Jeanne Joslin, Ohara Sadek, Wendy Ferguson, Delseta Robinson, Annette Compton, Martha Wethey

Renewal Reminders:  Sarah Bergeson, Esther Arredondo, Mary Stanley, Irma Obregon, Lisa Axelrod, Wendy Durkee, Araceli Rosas, RoJean Talmadge, Karisa Quick, Natasha Revilla, Danielle Bowen, Jenna Hardy, Betty Odak, Lisa Erazo, Jacquelyn McDonald, Ezekiel Moseley, Julie Chappa, Marelis Marrero, Stefanie Sherbon, Melissa Casebier, Terry Fowler, Tamara Gonzalez, Jose Ramirez, Carolyn Edwards, Paulette Douglas, Michelle Donaldson, Suzanne Snyder, Catherine Hayes, Carolyn Howell

At Our Last Meeting:

An Introduction to the Havening Techniques: Better Living through Neuroscience

Kathryn (Kate) Grace Truitt, Ph.D.

Current literature in neuroscience is charting pathways to help understand new approaches to mental health and wellness. The Havening Techniques (HT) utilizes this information to craft protocols and procedures to alter the landscape of the brain and thus change behavior. It has become clear that the limbic system, which regulates our emotional state, is a major contributor to our expression of the world around us. Access to the limbic system has been elusive. HT represents a breakthrough in the rapid and effective treatment of stress-related physical and psychological conditions. Havening uses touch, attention, and imagination to trigger electrochemical changes in the brain (limbic system) that alter how memories are processed and therefore responsiveness to stimuli.

There are five basic applications of HT:

1.    Reducing allostatic load/relieving negative stress

2.    Boosting resilience/access to positive emotional states

3.    Enhancing achievement motivation/goal orientation

4.    Reducing present moment distress

5.    Depotentiating traumatically encoded memories

Havening Techniques are an exquisitely simple, easy-to-apply and infinitely flexible set of tools that may be adapted and integrated into any therapeutic philosophy, healing profession, and scope of practice.

Course Outline:

Brief questions are allowed throughout the course of the lecture with dedicated time at the end for formal Q&A

      b.    Differentiation of Traumatically Encoded Events from PTSD and acute trauma

      e.     Impact on Information Processing: AMPA receptors on the lateral nucleus of the amygdala and the trauma filter

      c.     Introduction of the role of working memory in paralyzing rumination and empowering healing

      d.    Group CPR for the Amygdala practice

4.      Questions and Answers

Objectives: 

Participants were able to discuss:

·         1) The underlying principles of traumatic encoding and their downstream consequences

·         2)  Potentiation and depotentiation of the lateral nucleus of the amygdala and why this is important

·         3) Experiencing the potential of self-care to reduce vicarious traumatization

·         4) Easy intervention for autonomic nervous system regulation and keeping the brain within the window of tolerance at a synaptic level - CPR for the Amygdala – for themselves and their patients

Bio: Dr. Truitt is a Licensed Clinical Psychologist who is committed to understanding brain’s ability to transcend and transform the complex and beautiful relationship between nature and nurture. Utilizing her training as a neuroscientist and a clinical psychologist, along with her M.B.A. in Healthcare Administration, Dr. Truitt has passionately dedicated her life to advancing the treatment of Trauma and Stress-Based Disorders. Her clinical practice, scientific studies, and trainings are specialized in the treatment of PTSD/Complex Trauma, panic disorders and anxiety, phobias, as well as other stress-related disorders. Her research focuses on brain health during the recovery process, treatment outcomes, and psychophysiology. Dr. Truitt consults nationwide for trauma treatment programs, leads research initiatives, and provides trainings on trauma as well as personal empowerment through her training organization, Viva Excellence. She is also CEO of her group practice, Dr. Kate Truitt & Associates, A Psychological Corporation, in Pasadena, CA where she and her team specialize in the most effective and cutting edge treatments empowering people to Live Their Excellence. Dr. Truitt founded and currently sits as the Chairman of the Board for  the Amy Research Foundation, a 501c3 organization to advance research into the innovative treatment realm of neuroscience based mental health treatment.

Interview with Dr. Kate Truitt

Upcoming Events:

Maternal Betrayal:  Analysis & Therapeutic Interventions - May 22, 2020

Brainspotting: Trauma Therapy that Works!  - June 26, 2020

NO SEMINAR IN JULY - Board Retreat