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Introduction to
the Diagnosis and Treatment of Chronic, Complex
Post-traumatic
Disorders
This program of the International Society
for the Study of Trauma and Dissociation
is intended for participation of: licensed mental
health professionals (psychiatrists, psychologists, clinical
social workers, mental health counselors, marriage and family
therapists, licensed profesional counselors, and others) who
are personally treating an adult with a chronic or complex
trauma history.
Meeting Frequency: six 2 1/2 hour sessions,
in sequence; may be given on separate days or grouped in
three all-day segments of two sessions each.
Course Format: Each of the six 2 1/2 hour
sessions is a combined literature discussion/lecture and
case discussion of cases brought by students. Case discussions
are not supervisory in their nature. Cases are used to illustrate
aspects of the curriculum, in general. The discussion may
naturally include material beyond that assigned for a given
class. The intention of this program is to prepare participants
to be able to learn “the language” of chronic
complex trauma and dissociation so that patients/clients
and the clinical literature become more easily understood,
to the advantage of all. This course is a preface to the
ISSTD’s Standard and Advanced courses in chronic complex
trauma, both of those courses to be offered in sequence after
the pilot year of this introductory program. It may also
be considered the logical prelude to the study of the dissociative
disorders. Participants in this introductory program can
expect the next course in the sequence to be ready at the
start of the next academic year, September 2009.
About the Curriculum: The course you are
about to take represents the collaborative efforts of a team
led by Donald Fridley, Ph.D., of Los Angeles and including
Lynette Danylchuk, Ph.D., and Richard Chefetz, M.D. Consultation
was also provided by Steven N. Gold, Ft. Lauderdale, and
Christine Courtois, Ph.D., Washington, D.C. In designing
the curriculum and choosing the focal points of study, our
intention has been to use texts that were authoritative,
clearly written, and representative of the theoretical and
technical basis for establishing the good practice of intensive
psychotherapy for chronic, complex post-traumatic disorders.
The DDPTP Directors believe that we’ve needed a course
that addresses chronic, complex trauma treatment, includes
gaining a working knowledge of dissociative process and dissociation,
but does not focus its attention on the treatment of complex
dissociative disorders such as dissociative identity disorder.
At the same time, we also believe that a solid knowledge of
dissociative processes and the post-traumatic states of mind
that are generated by dissociative mechanisms is a powerful
perspective from which clinicians can better serve their patients/clients.
We believe this perspective distinguishes our courses from
others that are offered elsewhere.
Introductory Course Description: This course
includes the following (this is a minimum dictated by the
curriculum) Instructors may supplement and add material,
but not take material away.
1. Review of the history of trauma studies, explore the effects
of abuse, terror, captivity, and neglect on the developing
mind.
2. Review diagnostic categories and symptoms of acute and post-traumatic
stress disorders and the dissociative disorders.
3. Survey the neurobiology of trauma and dissociation, and
the role of infant attachment in developmental trauma and dissociation.
4. Review trauma and the organization of a dissociative self.
5. Understand memory in the aftermath of trauma, phase/stage
oriented trauma treatment, and working with delayed recall
of memory of abuse.
6. Describe typical transference and counter-transference constellations,
vicarious traumatization, enactment and therapist self disclosure
and non-disclosure.
7. Learn how to identify and maintain clinical boundaries and
manage suicidal and parasuicidal behavior.
8. Survey the legal and ethical issues in trauma treatment.
9. Provide a brief overview of specialized treatment methods:
cognitive-behavioral treatments, hypnosis, EMDR, somatic approaches,
interpersonal, intersubjective, and psychodynamic approaches.
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