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Emotion Focused Therapy for Complex Trauma: 2-day experiential workshop with Antonio Pascual-Leone, PhD.

Psychotherapy clients with histories of childhood abuse and complex relational trauma are ubiquitous, and have notoriously high drop-out rates. These clients have been unable to heal past emotional injuries and often have difficulty handling exposure-based therapies, which usually are not designed for attachment related problems. Successful therapy requires helping clients access and explore painful feelings in order to modify maladaptive emotions. Emotion-Focused Therapy for Trauma (EFTT) is the only empirically-verified treatment for both men and women suffering from complex trauma, and one of the few research-based treatments for trauma outside of CBT. This workshop is based on the 2nd edition of a book by Paivio and Pascual-Leone (2023).

Objective

This 2-day workshop will:
• Present theory on treating complex trauma, PTSD, and survivors of child abuse.
• Identify steps in the process of resolving past relational issues, as well as key ideas about case formulation, and emotion focused theory for understanding trauma.
• Discuss selected research, particularly as related to the change process and implications for practice.
• Give video examples of expert therapists, and case vignettes, related to the treatment of complex trauma. Specifically, these will demonstrate the use of methods inspired by gestalt for dialoguing with imagined significant others in an empty chair.
• Provide hands-on practice in small groups and personalized supervision in the use of these emotion focused interventions.

Target Group

Therapists with basic knowledge about EFT

Content

• Trauma Theory and Emotion Theory
• Principals of emotion change
• EFTT Treatment Model
o Phase 1: The Therapeutic Relationship and Deepening Experi-encing
o Phase2: Self-Related Difficulties; Self-Criticism
o Phase 3: Working through Other-related Difficulties; Making meaning
o Phase 4: Termination
• Introduction to Imaginal Confrontation
• When anger is forbidden
• Self-Interruption – Markers of interruption
• Resolution through Grief & Sadness
• Self-Soothing
• Integrating EFTT into your practice: Discussion and Reflections
• Live Demonstration

Trainers

PhD. Antonio Pascual-Leone

Antonio Pascual-Leone is a professor in Psychology at the University of Windsor, Canada, where he is director of the Emotion Change Lab, and is honorary professor of Psychiatry at the University of Lausanne, Switzerland. He has published seminal contributions to theory and research of emotion focused therapy and is regarded as a world expert in emotional processing. He co-authored Emotion Focused Therapy for Complex Trauma (with Sandra Paivio; APA) now in its 2nd edition (2023). He has also sole-authored a trans-theoretical book on Changing Emotion (APA; in press/2025). His work is recognized by career awards from international societies (Society for Exploration of Psychotherapy Integration 2009; Society for Psychotherapy Research, 2014), as well as distinguished publication awards from associations in the US and Germany (American Psychological Association, 2010; Society for the Research and Treatment of Personality Disorder, 2016). He is a certified trainer (International Society of Emotion-focused Therapy), has given workshops in a dozen countries, and received awards for teaching and mentorship (2016; 2018; 2024) that recognize leadership in education and his innovation in teaching psychotherapy skills. His TEDx talk on resolving relational trauma has been viewed over 6 million times. He runs a private practice seeing individuals and couples.

Practical Information

Course Dates

May 7-8, 2026

Times

09:15 - 17:00

Language

English

Location

Ateliers Bollwerkstadt, Bollwerk 35, 3011 Bern

Costs

890 CHF

Recognition

One credit corresponds to a 60-minute unit. Recognition is according to the guidelines of the respective professional society.

Cancellation policy

Cancellation of the binding registration by the participant is possible up to 90 days before the start of the course. In this case, only the administrative costs (CHF 50.-) will be charged. In case of withdrawal of the registration less than 90 days before the beginning of the course, the full amount of the course will be charged. It is possible to designate a replacement person.

Contact

If you have questions, we gladly help you

Registration

Emotion Focused Therapy for Complex Trauma: 2-day experiential workshop with Antonio Pascual-Leone, PhD.

Ateliers Bollwerkstadt, Bollwerk 35, 3011 Bern

Registration deadline: 07.02.2026
The number of participants is limited. The course will only take place if there are enough registrations.