Many adolescent people who seek help may have gone through multiple traumas over the course of their young lives – broken families; absent, alcoholic or abusive parents; domestic violence and / or indifferent or even cruel caretakers.

While trying to survive these distressing and sometimes dangerous circumstances they find themselves in, these young people are also in a state of developmental transition. Transitions tend to make human beings anxious and defensive, and this presents a particular clinical challenge for the young person who is also trying to individuate and become an adult in a world fraught with indifference, abuse and physical, mental or emotional violence.

At this practice-based seminar, Prof. Briggs and Dr McGregor Hepburn will present and discuss some of the issues and clinical challenges in working with this group of young individuals. The webinar will include live role play to enable participants to see a senior clinician at work and there will be time for participants to bring their own clinical situations for discussion.

Course objectives:

• Theoretical understandings of adolescent and young adult development and states of transition
• Application of theory to clinical work – the TAPP model including the application of Time-limited Adolescent Psychodynamic Psychotherapy (TAPP)
• Specific techniques for helping young people in distress to understand and manage their feelings, especially involving:
  • Complex presentations of mental health diagnoses with psychosocial vulnerabilities
  • Difficulties in relationships
  • Need for second treatments
  • An external time-limit
  • Anxieties and difficulties around separation

The webinar is part of our newly launched Therapy Session Masterclass (TSM) Series and follows the format described below.

Therapy Session Masterclass (TSM) Series

“What would you have said to the client in this situation?” is a question that delegates often ask the speaker when attending training sessions hosted at nscience. While, as therapists, we can learn a lot from exposition and case illustrations, our learning can be significantly enhanced if we were to have the opportunity to watch senior clinicians and experts in their therapy sessions with clients – we can observe how they manage the narrative, how they respond to complex situations, what overall approach they follow and their individual format for therapeutic interactions.

With this approach in mind, we’ve launched the Therapy Session Masterclass (TSM) Series – a regular programme of evening sessions (each of which can be individually attended as a stand-alone event), moderated and led by Dr Jan McGregor Hepburn, where we will be inviting leading experts in Psychotherapy & Counselling – to let us observe them in clinical settings. Each of the sessions will have dedicated time for a demo therapy session (either video recorded or a live role-play), which will be followed by moderated interactions with delegates. Not only will delegates have the opportunity to see the invited experts in clinical settings but will also have a chance to quiz the expert on their choice of therapy methods.

As participants, we can also bring our own brief case vignettes that may be related to the topic at hand. A selection of these will be discussed by the invited expert.

© nscience 2022 / 23