On Demand - Playful EMDR Summit

Course overview

EMDR and Play Therapy: Bridges to Processing with Younger Children Presenter: Ann Beckley-Forest, LCSW, RPT-S, EMDRIA-Approved Consultant This workshop, will explore how play therapy and EMDR can play well together using experiential exercises, cases and discussion of the theoretical and practical integration of EMDR in a prescriptive play therapy setting with children 8 and under. Trauma informed prescriptive play therapists guide play in the avenues which will support establishment of emotional safety, improved regulation and digestion of the sensory, somatic and thematic elements of the traumatic experiences of the child. Integrating play therapy with Francine Shapiros Adaptive Information Processing (AIP) model with a flexible approach to the EMDR protocol holds promise in using play to enter the memory network and promote healing. This integrative workshop will elaborate on the concept that using the core therapeutic powers of play is the preferred avenue to access and reprocess with EMDR the implicit memories involved so often in complex trauma in children. This session will be practical and experiential and include options for using storytelling, art, and the childs own post-traumatic play metaphors as the safe space for EMDR processing, as well as how to integrate caregivers into the work. Presenter Bio: Ann Beckley-Forest, LCSW, RPT-S, is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker in private practice in Buffalo, New York. Her specialties include attachment and child and adolescent trauma, and she also works with adult survivors. She is certified in EMDR and is an EMDR Approved Consultant and Trainer and a faculty member of the Child Trauma Institute, as well as a Registered Play Therapist and Supervisor and Approved Provider of play therapy continuing education through the Association for Play Therapy. She provides consultation in person and remotely, and gives trainings locally and internationally. Her primary interest is in the intersection of play therapy and EMDR and has published on this topic including as co-editor of EMDR with Children in the Play Therapy Room: An Integrated Approach (2020). Learning Objectives: Participants will be able to: 1. Discuss 2 ways that post-traumatic play can be supported and understood through the Adaptive Information Processing model which is the basis for EMDR therapy. 2. Describe 3 essential considerations in integrating EMDR into a play therapy setting to a holding space for post traumatic play, assessing the trauma target in the play, and bridging to trauma processing with the EMDR protocol from the play. 3. Summarize how the EMDR storytelling method can be combined with a child-responsive play therapy approach to heal attachment wounds and preverbal traumas while structuring caregiver support in the session. Wednesday, November 2, 2022 Playful EMDR Applications of the Polyvagal Theory Presenter: Jackie Flynn, LMHC, RPT, EMDRIA-Approved Consultant In this training, we playfully navigate the autonomic nervous system in support of effective EMDR therapy with strong fidelity. While this training is designed to specifically support child therapists in delivery of EMDR Therapy, knowledge gained will benefit clinicians with their work with clients across the life span. Through Play Therapy applications, we experientially learn how to apply tenets of the Polyvagal Theory TOGETHER as a foundation for developmentally appropriate EMDR Therapy for clients regardless of age. At the end of this training, participants will have a foundational understanding of practical application of Play Therapy in EMDR sessions to heal trauma in even the most complex circumstances. Presenter Bio: Jackie Flynn is an experienced Certified EMDR therapist and an EMDRIA Approved Consultant, Approved Provider for the Association for Play Therapy, EMDRIA Approved Advanced trainer as well as a education consultant, author and internationally known speaker. She earned a certification from ILS, Integrated