Bridgepoint Psychology Center

Hour 1: Treatments for traumatic stress can be less effective with diverse, real-world patients, particularly those who have more severe symptoms, co-morbid conditions, or complex traumatic stress. To meet this challenge PTSD treatment research has increasingly begun to focus on evidence-based strategies organized into modular approaches to best address diverse and more severe symptom presentations. This movement away from monolithic, one-size-fits-all treatments offers an opportunity to revisit the use of hypnotic interventions to augment/enhance the specific ingredients of a customized, patient-focused approach, particularly regarding complex traumatic stress.  This one-hour training will explain the ways that hypnotic interventions have been used to enhance and augment evidence-based treatment strategies in clients with complex traumatic stress. 

 Hours 2 and 3: The stressors and challenges associated with clinical work can result in negative responses in therapists, particularly those who work with complex traumatic stress. Stress responses such as burnout, compassion fatigue, and vicarious traumatization are associated with reduced empathy for patients, lower quality of care, impaired physical health, decreased morale and job satisfaction, and higher work absenteeism and turnover. These responses may be heightened in the context of external stressors such as the pandemic and political unrest.  Professionals must be able to address these stress reactions not only in their patients, but also in themselves. Recommendations for professional self-care and coping strategies to prevent stress-related conditions often include short-term, materialistic, and transactional approaches such as taking a vacation or getting a massage. However, these strategies may not be realistic choices in the face of crisis-related workload increases. Furthermore, there is little objective evidence of their effectiveness in preventing burnout or other stress reactions, particularly over time.  Interventions for patients and the self of the professional should ideally address the whole person, including physical, psychological, emotional, interpersonal, and spiritual domains. 

This 2-hour workshop will describe ways to identify stressors and needs in professionals or patients, and effective hypnotic interventions to reduce stress reactions and increase perceptions of thriving in each domain of functioning. 

The lecture portion (first hour) will focus on:

 1) increasing participants’ awareness of safe, practical, evidence-based/evidence-informed treatment approaches for complex traumatic stress and how to use hypnosis to augment them

The workshop portion (second and third hours) will focus on:

 1) helping participants identify their self-care needs and preferences, as well as broad self-care and coping approaches and strategies that have been associated with decreased levels of burnout and increased stress management; 

 2) Selecting the best individual and systemic strategies to foster and facilitate thriving in professionals and their patients that they can adapt for use in their own work setting.  

Participants will gain the knowledge, skills, and resources they need to work confidently and effectively with individuals with complex trauma, and to use effective self-care strategies to help manage and decrease burnout and stress in themselves and their clients.