Self-Therapy/Self-Reflective Practice for Schema Therapy Practitioners 

with Rita Younan, Ruth Holt & Daniela Ho Tan 

About the retreat

In Schema Therapy, the therapist’s qualities are central to the therapeutic technique in providing limited re-parenting and a working model of a ‘healthy adult’. An important part of training for Schema Therapists (and therapists in general) therefore is self-reflective practice; to understand and manage the activation of our own underlying schemas and modes. This is especially important for therapists who routinely work with complex patients (e.g. complex trauma, eating disorders, personality disorders) and settings (e.g. prisons, inpatient wards, group therapy work) which can easily trigger our own schema-based reactions. Awareness and management of our own schemas and modes is therefore crucial to effective schema therapy and managing risk of therapist burnout. Participation in the workshop will include practice of new interventions to use with clients and give access to a deeper, ‘experiential’ understanding of schema therapy interventions.

There are three ways this workshop could be used for ISST Schema Therapy certification.

1. It can be counted as 3 hours (Standard level) or 6 hours (Advanced level) of the number of supervision hours required for ISST Individual ST certification or
2. Attendance could be used to meet the Group Schema Therapy certification requirement of 6 hours of group schema therapy self-practice. To meet this requirement one of the facilitators must be certified at the trainer-supervisor level in Group ST. Dr. Rita Younan meets the GST trainer-supervisor requirement.
3. It could also be counted for the 8 hours every 2 years of continuing education requirement to maintain ISST certification as a schema therapist.

The workshop hours can only be used for one of these three ISST requirements, however, they could additionally be used to meet other professional continued education requirements.

This two day workshop is based on the Schema Therapy Self-practice/Self-reflection workbook for therapists by Joan Farrell & Ida Shaw “Schema Therapy from the Inside-Out”. Attendance is beneficial for both new and experienced therapists.

Location

This workshop is being held at The Residence, Bintan Island on Friday August 22nd and Saturday August 23rd from 9.30 to 4.30pm.

Cost 

$769 SGD for all workshop materials and full catering for both days. 

Accommodation and Transport

The Residence, Bintan Island is easily accessible by ferry from Singapore. The ferry terminal in Singapore is called Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal (TMFT).

Bintan Resort Ferries: The ferry journey is estimated to be 55 minutes and the land transfer from Bandar Bentan Telani (BBT) ferry terminal to the resort will take around 75 minutes. Please visit www.brf.com.sg to book your ferry tickets.

If you are staying at The Residence, then complimentary shared land transfers from the ferry terminal to the resort are offered to all guests. Please email your ferry booking confirmation and details to reservation-bintan@theresidence.com at least 24 hours prior to arrival. 

There are many resorts available in the vicinity of The Residence if you opt to stay elsewhere. We recommend checking on Agoda for deals.

About Your Trainers

Dr Rita Younan is the director and founder of the Schema Therapy Institute Australia. Dr Younan works both in Individual and Group Schema Therapy and was the Director of The Schema Therapy Department at The Victoria Clinic, a private psychiatric hospital in Melbourne, Australia. In collaborating with the founders of Group Schema Therapy, Professor Joan Farrell & Ms Ida Shaw, Dr Younan developed an intensive 4-week inpatient program in Group Schema Therapy for Complex Trauma and subsequent outpatient program. Dr Younan has been provided with permission to empirically assess the feasibility and efficacy of this treatment program and recently presented the data as part of a Schema Therapy Panel at the 8th World Congress of Behavioural and Cognitive Therapies. Dr Younan was invited to present this data in Vienna, Austria at the International Conference for Schema Therapy as part of a panel devoted to Group Schema Therapy. Dr. Younan is also a member of the certification committee for Group Schema Therapy with the International Society of Schema Therapy. Dr Younan is a clinical supervisor/teacher for Australian Catholic University at the Post-Graduate level.

Ruth Holt is a Clinical Psychologist and Principal of Canberra Clinical and Forensic Psychology. She is a Certified Schema Therapist and Supervisor/Trainer for both Individuals and Couples. She works with individuals and couples with a range of presentations and conducts workshops and training in Schema therapy, clergy resilience, women’s mental health and abuse in relationships. Ruth has presented for the International Society of Schema Therapy, at the Australian Psychological Society’s Clinical College Conference, Moore Theological College and The University of Canberra. ​​Ruth is also a AHPRA board approved supervisor, supervising Clinical Psychology Registrars and postgraduate psychology placements with the University of Canberra, the Australian National University, the University of New England and Charles Sturt University.

Daniela (Dani) is a Vietnamese-Australian Clinical Psychologist, Advanced Accredited Schema Therapist and Board Approved Supervisor. Dani runs a private practice Mindwealth Psychology in Sydney. Dani is the founder of Project HoriZen, an initiative aiming to bridge the gaps between Western therapy principles and Eastern cultural values. Through Project HoriZen, Dani has facilitated workshops promoting culturally responsive practice across Australia. Dani recognises there is a lack of research focused on the experiences of Asian Australians and as such she is currently pursuing her PhD at the University of Sydney on “Cross-cultural applications of schema therapy in Asian heritage populations”. Dani has presented on this topic at various conferences. She is one of the Chairs of the ISST Culturally Responsive Schema Therapy Special Interest Group and is a member of the International Schema Therapy Instruments Consortium (ISTIC)

**Please note cancellations can be made up to one month prior to the workshop otherwise the cancellation is 50% of the registration fee. All cancellations incur a $50 administration fee.