Emotionally Focused Family Therapy (EFFT) is an attachment-based approach combining systemic and experiential interventions, which is foundational in helping parents and children who are struggling with remaining securely attached.

This 2-day workshop will focus on the emotional experience within a family and the problem patterns that block family members from accessing the resources they would otherwise share.

A primary goal of EFFT is to reduce problematic behaviour by creating new patterns of emotional accessibility and responsiveness, which promotes healing and fosters a family’s resilience to the everyday and unexpected challenges of life.

The workshop will combine didactic instruction, experiential exercises, and case examples to demonstrate the practice of EFFT to process parental blocks to emotional accessibility and responsiveness while keeping children safe.

Participants are encouraged to bring examples from their casework to explore the application of EFFT to their own work.  When possible, live demonstration sessions are included.

Who is this for?

Psychologists, Psychotherapists, Counsellors, Professionals working with families or in schools and social care, including student therapists.

Learning Objectives

1. Conceptualise family distress using theories of emotion and attachment.
2. Identify the stages and markers of change in the EFFT approach.
3. Identify therapist practices that promote a working alliance with parents and children.
4. Practice key interventions common to processing attachment related affect.
5. Delineate key practices of EFFT from EFT work with couples.
6. Practice enactments used to restructure new patterns of interaction promoting new levels of safety and security in the family.
7. Explore the relationship of secure attachment to family patterns of resilience.

Course Structure

• Day 1 – Introductory Workshop + Didactic Training – EFFT Approach, Key Interventions and Case Conceptualisation
• Day 2 – Didactic Practice Exercises – Family Distress, Patterns and Resilience
• Day 3 (optional) – For participants who have completed Days 1 & 2, an additional day will be offered employing specific strategies for working with step-families and other family constellations.

This course will take place at Resource for London, 356 Holloway Rd, London N7 6PA

Trainer

Gail Palmer – MSW, RMFT

ICEEFT Certified EFT Supervisor and Trainer