Empowerment Through Connection

Empowerment through Connection: The Role of External Regulators in Trauma Integration

Training conducted by:

Lisa Dion, Founder & President of Synergetic Play Therapy Institute

Ludmila Golovine, President & CEO of MasterWord Services, Inc.

Type of Event: In-Person

Location: 5506 Lawndale St, Houston, Texas 77023

Date & Time: Saturday, July 27th - 9:00AM - 4:30PM CDT

Description:

Research in neuroscience and interpersonal neurobiology underscores the critical role of the professional as the external regulator, necessary not only to support the client in navigating the intensity of their experiences for integration but also to mitigate the impact of secondary traumatization. This workshop delves into this imperative during trauma integration for two primary reasons: Firstly, the child (or adult) relies on borrowing the professional’s regulatory capacity to confront their traumatic thoughts, feelings, and sensations in a session. Secondly, the professionals’ adeptness in self-regulation amidst intensity enhances their presence and attunement with the client, simultaneously safeguarding the health and longevity of their own nervous system. Thirdly, the role interpreters play when facilitating communication for Limited English Proficient and Deaf and Hard of hearing patients and the interpreter’s role in external regulation dynamic during the encounters.

Without the professional's capability to act as the external regulator for the intensity arising during trauma integration, both the client and professional face risks of emotional flooding and high levels of dysregulation in their nervous systems. Over time, this can significantly impact a professional’s endurance in the field, as well as their ability to remain attuned and present with clients.

This engaging and informative workshop equips participants with an understanding of the essential components of becoming an external regulator for trauma integration, including what the client's brain seeks in the environment to signal safety, a deeper comprehension of autonomic nervous system activation, and strategies for professionals to develop their capacity as external regulators while mitigating the risk of secondary traumatization. This workshop will also explore an in-depth understanding of the complex dynamic of a therapeutic encounter and strategies for managing difficult interpreting encounters when working with survivors of trauma. This workshop is for social workers, therapists, interpreters etc.

Learning Objectives:

The Participant will:

1. Examine what it means to become an external regulator for trauma integration.

2. Define what regulation is and how this understanding impacts the professional’s ability to co-regulate during intense play and stories.

3. Identify 2 things a professional can do to develop their capacity to become an external regulator.

4. Identify what the client’s brain is scanning for in the environment to indicate a neuroception of safety, allowing the client to feel safe enough to do trauma work.

5. Explore how a client borrows the professional's regulatory system in a session.

6. Examine what emotional flooding is and what to do when it happens in a session.

7. Formulate actionable strategies to navigate challenging scenarios that may arise in the context of trauma-informed, multicultural, and multilingual therapy.