The workshop will take place on Saturday 8th May (10.00am- 4.30pm) and is appropriate for training and practising counsellors, psychotherapists, counselling psychologists and other mental health professionals.
Existential therapy is a diverse, vibrant, and wonderfully rich tapestry of understandings and methods that has the potential to make a valuable contribution to the work of any counsellor, psychotherapist or psychologist. It is one of the oldest forms of therapy, yet still one of the most innovative and radical. Existential therapy is orientated around the development of a deep relational bond with the client, which allows the client to explore the most fundamental aspects of their existence. This includes questions like: ‘What is the meaning of my life?’ ‘What choices can I make?’ and ‘How do I face the limits of my circumstances?’
This workshop introduces participants to the basic principles of existential philosophy and therapy, and looks at how practitioners of all orientations can integrate these ideas and practices into their own work. The workshop combines self-development exercises, theoretical input, practical exercises, and small and large group discussion.
By the end of this workshop, participants will be able to:
· Understand the core principles of existential philosophy
· Understand the principal aims and forms of existential counselling and psychotherapy
· Apply existential understanding of freedom and choice to their therapeutic practice
· Apply existential understanding of limitations to their therapeutic practice
· Apply existential understandings of meaning and purpose to their therapeutic practice
· Session 1: Introduction to existential philosophy and therapy
· Session 2: Working with freedom and choice
· Session 3: Facing the limitations of existence
· Session 4: Helping clients find meaning and purpose in life
Mick Cooper is an internationally recognised author, trainer, and consultant in the field of humanistic, existential, and pluralistic therapies. He is a Chartered Psychologist, and has facilitated workshops and lectures around the world, including New Zealand, Lithuania, and Florida.
Mick’s books include:
Existential Therapies (Sage, 2017)
Working at Relational Depth in Counselling and Psychotherapy (Sage, 2018)
The Handbook of Person-Centred Psychotherapy and Counselling (Palgrave, 2013).
His latest work is Integrating Counselling and Psychotherapy: Directionality, Synergy, and Social Change (Sage, 2019).
Mick’s principal areas of research have been in shared decision-making/personalising therapy, and counselling for young people in schools. In 2014, Mick received the Carmi Harari Mid-Career Award from Division 32 of the American Psychological Association. He is a Fellow of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy and the Academy of Social Sciences.
Date & Time: 8 May 2021, 10.00am - 4.30pm