Abandonment Trauma: Treatment Strategies to Heal Inner Child Wounds and Restore Healthy Attachment

Credit

Program Information

All members of the PESI, Inc. planning committee have provided disclosures of financial relationships with ineligible organizations and any relevant non-financial relationships prior to planning content for this activity. None of the committee members had relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies or other potentially biasing relationships to disclose to learners.  For speaker disclosures, please see the faculty biography.

Speaker

Ellen Biros, LCSW, C-PD Related seminars and products

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Ellen Biros, LCSW, C-PD has over 25 years of experience working with individuals struggling with trauma, anxiety, substance abuse, depression, domestic violence, and personality disorders. She’s a Certified Personality Disorder Treatment Provider (C-PD) and specializes in working with survivors of narcissistic abuse and other manipulative personality disorders. Ms. Biros has trained thousands of therapists on a variety of issues including emotional manipulation, personality disorders, and covert abuse. She’s an adjunct faculty member at The University of Phoenix in the School of Social Work and was formerly an adjunct at Tulane University’s School of Social Work. Ms. Biros is the author of Recovering from Narcissistic Mothers: A Daughter’s Workbook.

 

 

Speaker Disclosures:
Financial: Ellen Biros maintains a private practice and has an employment relationship with the University of Phoenix. She receives royalties as a published author. Ellen Biros receives a speaking honorarium and recording royalties from PESI, Inc. She has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible organizations.
Non-financial: Ellen Biros is a member of the National Association of Social Workers, the Georgia Society of Clinical Social Workers, and the American Clinical Social Work Association.

 

 

Alternate Dates

Additional Info

Program Information

Please note: There will be a 70-minute lunch and two 15-minute breaks; one in the morning and one in the afternoon. Lunch and break times will be announced by the speaker and at their discretion. A more detailed schedule is available upon request.

For live CE credit, you must watch the live webcast in its entirety at its scheduled time and complete the CE quiz and evaluation within one week. You will have access for 90 days after the program for review.

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Objectives

1. Identify the concept of the inner child and its relationship to treatment.
2. Analyze the relationship between core abandonment beliefs and early maladaptive abandonment/instability schemas in adult individuals.
3. Determine the role of the expectation of abandonment as a contributing factor to the development of anxious and avoidant attachment styles in clients.
4. Use cognitive strategies to reframe negative thought patterns, beliefs, and behaviors related to the fear of abandonment and self-worth.
5. Choose DBT strategies to help clients address difficulties in handling interpersonal relationships.
6. Utilize graded exposure and desensitization to reduce abandonment-related anxieties.

Outline

Abandonment, Attachment, and Early Experiences

• Early childhood’s role in shaping the inner child
• Impact of attachment patterns on inner child development
• Recognize vulnerability, resilience, and a healthy inner child
• Formation of core beliefs from early experiences
• Link between self-identity and inner child health

Trauma and the Spectrum of Abandonment

• Differentiate between acute, chronic, and complex trauma
• Types of trauma and the impact on attachment
• Understand abandonment as a core psychological wound
• How abandonment influences personality development
• Impact of attachment on forming and maintaining healthy relationships
• Barriers to healthy relationships in adulthood

Recognize Signs and Symptoms

• Behavioral manifestations
• Cognitive and emotional symptoms
• Attachment-related behaviors
• Impact on self-esteem and identity
• Cultural considerations

The Abandonment Trauma Treatment Toolbox: CBT and DBT Strategies and Exercises to Repair Inner Child Wounds

• Principles and techniques for trauma and abandonment issues
• DBT skills training for emotional regulation and interpersonal effectiveness
• Tools to set healthy boundaries and reduce exposure to toxic people
• Cognitive exercises to challenge negative thought patterns about self-worth
• Cognitive restructuring exercises to rebuild trust and self-confidence
• Behavioral interventions for selfcompassion and fear of rejection
• Self-soothing techniques for abandonment triggers
• Graded exposure and desensitization for abandonment-related anxieties
• Research, risks and treatment limitations

Therapeutic Relationship and Therapist Self-Care

• Build a therapeutic alliance
• Strategies for managing countertransference and vicarious trauma
• Self-care practices for therapists

Target Audience

• Counselors
• Social Workers
• Marriage & Family Therapists
• Psychologists
• Physicians
• Case Managers
• Addiction Counselors
• Nurses
• Other Mental Health Professionals