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I) Support Groups for Life Transitions

Life always is changing, bringing us gains and losses. Many of the transitions in life are met with the emotions of grief and loss. We can mourn losing a job, losing a relationship, losing our youth or losing the comfort of a life as we know it. This support group will recognize and deal with life transitions and finding transition in his or her life difficult and challenging would find comfort in this group. This group will enable participants to overcome the stress and emotion of transition and provide strategies one can use to cope with this challenging time. The group will run for a period of six weeks exploring a different type of loss each week. Participants are encouraged to begin the support group on the first week. (TOP)


Facilitator: Gayle Horn, M.Ed., L.P.C
Fees: $210.00
Date: Tuesday, January 19, 2009
Time: 6:00 pm

II) Bereavement Support Group - Understanding Your Grief

Understanding Your Grief will meet for 12 sessions (one session per week) and explore the meaning of grief, one's individual journey through loss and the steps to take to heal in grief. This support group will offer a safe place for people to do the work of mourning and will encourage participants to reconcile their losses and go on to find continued meaning in life and living. Two books will be included in the price of the group: Understanding Your Grief and the Understanding Your Grief Journal. (TOP)

Who should attend: Participants who are experiencing the death of a loved one.

Facilitator: Gayle Horn, M.Ed., L.P.C
Fees: $445.00 (Materials $25.00)
Dates: Tuesday, January 19, 2009
Time: 8:00 am-4:00 pm

III) Is Your Child Running Your Home? How to Regain Control of Your Homelife.

Goals:

• An assessment of the behavior in your house. How does my home function?
  
• Discussion about: What was I taught and what I believe it means to be "Mother", "Father".
  
• Discussion about: What are children's "rights" really?
  
• Discussion about: Specific problems and examples of negative home behavior (shared).
  
• Discussion about: How to intervene to regain control of aggressive behavior, stealing behavior, defiant behavior, threatening behavior, etc.
  Participant's specific problems discussed and shared.

Objectives:

1. Participants will learn the specific problem areas that exist for them in their parenting style.

2. Participants will learn how to think about what rights children should have and what parents responsibilities are in defining them.

3. Participants will learn some different ways to deal with aggression, stealing, defiance.

4. Participants will learn how to talk with children and hoe to reinforce an appropriate behavior.

5. Participants will learn of resources available for support.

6. Participants will be able to learn from others who share home difficulties with behavior. (TOP)

Facilitator: Ralph Caraffa, Ph.D.
Fees: $80.00
Dates: February 4, 2010
Time: 8:00 am - 12:00 pm

IV)Parenting an Apple in a World Full of Oranges

What does a parent do when his/her child is different from the rest? And what if that child is simply hardwired much differently from the parent? Frequently, parents come to therapy in a state of panic, frustration, or sadness because they wish their child had a different set of qualities. They ask, "Why is my child like this? How is she so different from me?" Parents feel their expectations are rarely met, and disappointment is constant.

Understanding temperament and personality style, both in oneself and one's child, is central to effective parenting. It is important to part with beliefs such as, "but when I was a kid, children never acted this way," and "if he'd only do it this way." This workshop will focus on parenting the child you have, not the one you think you should have.The following questions will be addressed:

1. How do you understand your child's temperament, personality style, and strengths?

2. How do those differ from you? How do parents deal with the discrepancy?

3. How do temperamental "mismatches" impact parental effectiveness?

4. How do parents persist in holding onto unreasonable expectations?

5. How can parents shift their expectations, while still empowering the child to make change? (TOP)

Facilitator: Melissa S. Kinser, Psy.D.
Fees: $75.00
Dates: Saturday, January 30, 2010
Time: 9:00 am-12:00 pm

V)Eating Disorders Assessment and Treatment

Addressing food and weight issues with our children is delicate territory; we need to keep the discussion going, yet we do not want our children to feel criticized. We ourselves may have a long and difficult relationship with food - we may have a life-long history of dissatisfaction with our bodies. Parents recognize that maintaining a healthy relationship with food in american culture is no small task, and we wonder how we can ask our children to do something we can scarcely do ourselves.

This 3-hour workshop will address the following issues:

1. The top 10 food and body distortions in our culture today.

2. Role modeling: How change begins with the parent.

3. Ways to address food and weight issues in the home without alienating your child (and what NOT to say to your child about the way he/she eats)(TOP)

Facilitator: Melissa S. Kinser, Psy.D.
Fees: $75.00
Dates: Saturday, February 20, 2010
Time: 9:00 am-12:00 pm

VI) All Over the Map: Working With Youth Who Have Difficulty with Mood Regulation"

Bi-Polar Disorder is a complex diagnosis of difficulty with mood regulation. Individuals with Bi-Polar Disorder often feel as if their moods are without direction. The disorder is being recognized more in childhood. A complication is that many of the symptoms overlap with other disorders such as Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. Understanding the disorder, how it impacts youth, and developing classroom strategies to assist youth with the disorder is a significant support to improving our responses to youth who suffer from Bi-Polar Disorder.

This workshop will:

• Define Bi-Polar Disorder
  
• Explain the difference between Bi-Polar Disorder and other disorders of childhood.
  
• Help teachers recognize problems of mood regulation in classrooms.
  
• Offer strategies to help youth regulate their upswings and downturns in mood. (TOP)

Facilitator: Linda Sharpe-Taylor, Ph.D.
Fees: $180.00 plus $25 for materials
December 4, 5, 11 and 12, 2009
Time: Friday - 5:00pm - 7:00 pm
Time: Saturday - 10:00 am - 12:00 pm


VII) "Understanding the Effects of Trauma"

Intuitively we can accept that a past negative experience can influence our present functioning, but do we truly comprehend how the past can be so devastating to the present. Often we are told to "just get over it". But, how do I just get over it? A step to recovery is to first understand the impact of trauma, the symptoms of trauma, the role of memory, and how interventions work.

This four session groups will assist individuals in getting started with their recovery from traumatic events such as sexual assault, child abuse, and accidents. The purpose of the group is to understand that strong reactions to traumatic experiences are common. Further, to assist participants in recognizing how their symptoms impact their lives, and to provide an opportunity to connect with others with similar experiences. The group is time-limited to four sessions. The group is designed for individuals who are beginning therapy or who are currently in individual treatment. After completing the group, participants will start individual therapy to work on the details of their trauma history. Or, participants will return to their individual therapist to continue their recovery. (TOP)


Facilitator: Linda Sharpe-Taylor, Ph.D.
Fees: $180.00 plus $25 for materials
January 8, 9, 15, and 16, 2010
Time: Friday - 5:00pm - 7:00 pm
Time: Saturday - 10:00 am - 12:00 pm

VIII) "Strategies for Modifying Over-Indulged Child Behavior"

There is much debate whether today's children are more indulged than previous generations. The answer is complicated by the rapid changes in the culture and technology that pull everyone to a "cultural of get it now, right now!" The impact on parenting has not been anticipated by most parents who struggle to provide positive guidance. Parents often find themselves two or three steps behind the youth in adapting to societal change. The drive towards immediacy is often experienced by parents as stressful and confusing. The abundance we experience makes it easier to indulge. Consequently, the notion of waiting and working towards long-term goals seems lost. This four session workshop focuses on understanding developmental changes that influence motivation and goat setting. How parents can approach the temptation to indulge. The workshop will emphasize strategies that parents can consider when attempting to balance the indulgence of have it all now. (TOP)

Facilitator: Linda Sharpe-Taylor, Ph.D.
Fees: $180.00 plus $25 for materials
March 19, 20, 26 and 27, 2010
Time: Friday - 5:00pm - 7:00 pm
Time: Saturday - 10:00 am - 12:00 pm



IX) "The Anxious Brain"

Diminishing anxiety requires persistent effort. In clients who are discouraged or fatigued from their anxious symptoms, developing that therapy response is a major challenge. Clients expend more effort and are more complaint in following your instructions for symptom management when you are able to explain why they have their symptoms and why your methods will be effective. When you know the underlying neurobiological causes of anxiety disorders you can more effectively select the treatment methods that will get your clients the fastest symptoms relief of panic, generalized anxiety or social anxiety disorders. This course will present the neurobiological basis of those anxiety disorders and will discuss how psychotherapy effectively relieves the anxious brain. (TOP)


Facilitator: Margaret Wehrenberg, Psy.D.
Fees: $350.00 (includes materials)
March 6 and 13, 2010
Time: Friday - 5:00pm - 7:00 pm
Time: 8:00 am - 4:00 pm



X) "Care for theProfessioal Care Giver"

This seminar will focus on strategies for the "Professional Care Giver" to utilize to maintain a healthy balance of work, family and play. Participants will have an opportunity to know themselves, understand addictive helping, know needs and support system, assess their life and balance, asses workplace wellness, practice stress management tools and set a plan of action for "Care for the Professional Care Giver." (TOP)

Facilitator: Judith A. Tindall, Ph.D.
Fees: $160.00
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Time 8:00 am - 4:00 pm

• Margaret Wehrenberg, Psy.D., a licensed clinical psychologist in Illinois and Missouri, is the author of The Anxious Brain. An expert on the treatment of anxiety and depression, she also has extensive training and expertise in the neurobiology of psychological disorders. She is co-founder of the Reflex Delay Syndrome (RDS) Research and Training Institutes, a not-for profit institute founded to promote research and treatment for this disorder affecting academic, social and emotional functioning in children. She earned her M.A. specializing in psychodrama and play therapy with children, and has years of experience as a drug and alcoholism counselor, working with the U.S. Army in Germany and Lutheran Social Services in Illinois before beginning a private psychotherapy practice, specializing in treating trauma and anxiety. As a consultant, she is a sought-after speaker for continuing education seminars, consistently getting the highest ratings from participants for her dynamic style and high quality content. In addition to clinical work, she has written articles for The Psychotherapy Networker magazine, is the author of Stress Solutions: Ten Effective Strategies to Eliminate Your Stress, and has produced Relaxation for Tension and Worry, a CD for breathing, muscle relaxation and imagery to use with anxious clients. Her new book (2007) is published by W.W. Norton, The Anxious Brain: The Neurobiological Basis of Anxiety Disorders and How to Effectively Treat Them.
  
  
• Judith A. Tindall, Ph.D. is President of Psychological Network, Inc. She is licensed as a psychologist, professional counselor, certified teacher, counselor, National Association of Peer Programs trainer/consultant, C.P.P.E., MBTI Certified Trainer, custody evaluator. She has been in private practice in St. Charles since the late 70's. She has been a consultant at the local, state and national level for both public and private organizations, associations, hospitals, schools, social service agencies and the faith community. She has assisted those organizations on a wide variety of topics including peer programs, positive youth development, safety, strategic planning, teambuilding, leadership development, executive coaching, communication skills, care for the care giver, T.Q.M., stress management, violence prevention, care for the care giver, sexual harassment, diversity and MBTI, community building, HIV-AIDS testing, compulsive gambling and other topics. She has conducted evaluation for individuals, organizations and grants. She spends part of her time providing direct service through counseling to individuals and families in St. Charles community. She has written books, professional journal articles, St. Louis Business Journal and St. Charles Business Magazine. She has written the following books: Peer Program: An In-Depth look at Peer Helping, Peer Helping: Peer Power, Book 1: Becoming an Effective Peer Helper and Conflict Mediator, Peer Power, Book 2, Applying Peer Helping Skills, Peers Helping.
  
  
• Linda Sharpe-Taylor, Ph.D. is a licensed psychologist associated with Psychological Network, Inc and president of Urban Behavioral Health which specializes in assisting youth find permanent placement through effective case management. She has received post doctoral training in family therapy and systemic approaches to community problems. She has expertise in working with families experiencing legal battles regarding custody and visitation. Dr. Sharpe-Taylor serves as a consultant to government agencies, and community-based prevention programs and services. She has developed programs and services that address a variety of issues that include adolescent wellness, school violence, gender-specific programming, community building and risk reduction. She has worked in public and private agencies in greater St. Louis Region. Courts, community-based agencies, and religious affiliated groups have sought Dr. Sharpe-Taylor's expertise and guidance.
  
  
• Ralph Caraffa, Ph.D., Licensed Psychologist has been in private practice for over 25 years. Prior to private practice, Dr. Caraffa was a school psychologist at the Ferguson Florissant School District. He served as Executive Director of Child Center Our Lady of Grace. He is a certified EMDR therapist. Dr. Caraffa has extensive experience in evaluation of individuals for psycho-educational purposes, fitness for duty, forensic, and corporate evaluations. He has done extensive work with men's issues, at-risk populations, and couples counseling. He also provides consulting and training to a variety of agencies and organizations.
  
  
• Melissa Strachan Kinser, Psy.D. is a licensed psychologist and is affiliated with PNI. She specializes in eating disorders and body image, which includes anorexia, bulimia, compulsive overeating as well as weight obsession and body dissatisfaction. Dr. Kinser has lectured nationally on the nature and treatment of body image problems. She has done body image research for the past 10 years. She has conducted psychological evaluations and individual, group and family therapy. She has also provides psychological intervention to children, adolescents, and their families and consults with the legal system on a variety of forensic topics.
  
  Gayle Horn, LPC: Ms. Horn has been in private practice in St. Charles for over 17 years. Prior to that, she was a high school counselor at St. Charles High School for 20 years. She specializes in teenagers and their families. She has had training in working with the geriatric population and assisting individuals and families with grief and loss. She spends part of her time with delivering training on peer helping, peer mediation, communication skills and other specialized training.

15 hours of CE with attendance certificate of     Licensed Psychologist, Licensed Professional     Counselors,  Licensed Social Workers----Graduate     Credit through  Lindenwood University pending.

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