Helping Therapists Healing from Their Own Trauma

The Meadows has been facilitating its signature workshop, Survivors, for more than 30 years. Many people’s lives have been changed by the opportunity to confront the deep emotional impact of their childhood trauma.

Therapists, clinicians, and treatment providers often refer patients to our intensive workshops when they need to do some deeper work in an emotional nurturing and safe place. And, sometimes, professionals come to us to do their own healing.

A little over one year ago, The Meadows workshop department grew and took up residence at the new Rio Retreat Center in Wickenburg, Arizona. We were able to greatly expand our workshop offerings to the general public and provide an even more comfortable, peaceful and beautiful setting in which to heal.

We are now pleased to expand our workshop schedule even further by responding to the request we’ve gotten from many professionals to host a Survivors workshop that is open only to them. Our hope is that this will allow participants to take a step back from their professional responsibilities and focus on themselves and their own healing. Here are a few frequently asked questions about the upcoming workshops:

What is Survivors I: Healing Childhood Relational Trauma for Professionals?
Survivors I: Healing Childhood Relational Trauma for Professionals is our standard Survivors workshop but will be limited to participants who are professionals in the field of behavioral health. Some feedback that we received from professionals who attended Survivors I before included concerns about being placed in groups with other participants who could potentially be former or future clients. Many professionals also felt it was difficult to take off their therapist hats during Survivors Workshop. When we asked professionals what we could do to improve their experiences, they said that they wanted to be in groups with their peers and they wanted to be able to use at least the psycho-educational portion of the workshop to receive continuing education credit. We are happy to say that we are able to now accommodate both of these requests.

Why would I want to go to Survivors I for Professionals?
Many therapists are committed to continuing to do their own personal growth work. Some therapists say, “You cannot take someone to a place where you haven’t been.” This does not mean that therapists need to have gone through everything that their clients are going through. It means that it is difficult to promote and assist your clients with their healing journeys when you are not committed to doing your own healing work.

Let’s face it, there is no such thing as a perfect childhood. Some people have overt or obvious trauma from their childhoods while others have less obvious struggles. Regardless of the type of childhood trauma; most therapists (at least those who tend to refer clients to The Meadows) agree that the messages we receive in childhood about ourselves, our relationships, and the world we live in continue to impact us long into adulthood. This continues to be true even if we are already on a healing journey!

At The Meadows, every single therapist (and other staff members too) is given the opportunity and strongly encouraged to go through the Survivors I workshop themselves. The Meadows believes this is important work for everyone. We want to make it as comfortable as possible for clinicians and treatment professionals to also do this life changing work.

Who will facilitate the professional Survivors workshop?
Georgia Fourlas holds both a Masters in Social Work and a Doctorate in Social Work. Dr. Fourlas has been a therapist for more than 20 years. She specializes in addiction and trauma. Dr. Fourlas is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, a Licensed Independent Substance Abuse Counselor, and a Certified Sex Addiction Therapist.

When is it? How do I sign up? Where Will I Stay?
There are currently three scheduled Survivors I for Professionals sessions for 2017:

• February 13 – 17
• May 1 – 5
• August 28 – September 1

For more information about the workshop costs, schedule, and CEUs please visit Survivors I for Professionals webpage, call us at 800-244-4949 or send us an email.

Lodging at the Rio Retreat Bunkhouse is available on a first come, first served basis. The Bunkhouse is designed to be conducive to the process of healing and recovery. It is great for participants who would like to avoid hotels and stay nestled in on our beautiful campus.

You can book your stay at The Bunkhouse when you register for your workshop for added convenience and a more immersive healing environment.

We hope to see you in Survivors!