Abstract:

Imagery Rescripting is a powerful change technique within Schema Therapy. At the core of the intervention are methods allowing for greater therapeutic bonds and the provision of corrective emotional experiences between the client and practitioner.

Imagery work however can frequently be challenging for schema therapists. Clients can provide difficult circumstance to rescript. In turn, the unscripted nature of the process can elicit unforeseen issues. As a result, the confidence and capacity of the therapist can greatly influence its use within practitioners.

The workshop will look at specific ways Schema Therapists can build upon skills in imagery work including…

•        Ways to use imagery rescripting to strengthen the Healthy Adult
•        Specific ways to manage different antagonists in imagery rescripting
•        Troubleshooting atypical situations and client responses in imagery work.
•        Strategies to increase the client’s confidence when they are confronting antagonists.
•        Strategies to keep the client within an appropriate emotional “window of tolerance”
•        Discussion of new advances in research

Video material (Van Der Wijngaart & Hayes 2017) and live demonstration will also be used in session to demonstrate skills as well as time for attendees to practice skills.

About the Presenters:                   

Travis Atkinson:

Travis Atkinson, LCSW, is the Director of the Schema Therapy Training Center of New YorkSTTCNY. He is an Individual and Couples Advanced Certified Schema Therapist, Supervisor and Trainer. Travis trained with Jeff Young, the founder of Schema Therapy, starting in 1995, and worked as a staff member of Jeff Young's Cognitive Therapy Center of New York for many years. He helped Jeff Young create the Schema Therapy Institute of New York, and served as faculty member for several years. Travis is also certified as an Emotionally Focused Therapist and Supervisor, training for many years with Sue Johnson, the founder of Emotionally Focused Therapy. He also completed an extensive program at the Gottman Institute in Seattle, Washington, earning his certification as a Gottman Method Couples Therapist. In addition, Travis completed extensive training in group therapy, and is a Certified Group Psychotherapist.
 
Since 2014, Travis has served as Media Coordinator on the Executive Board of the International Society of Schema Therapy (ISST), and was the chair of ISST's Schema Couples Therapy Special Interest Group (2014 - 2017) and chair of the Committee (2016 - 2017). He has trained therapists internationally for more than 15 years, and is the author of “Healing Partners in a Relationship” in the Handbook of Schema Therapy (Wiley: 2012). Travis is the Director of the Loving at Your Best Program, running a couples center in Midtown Manhattan focused on Schema Therapy.