30 CE Continuing Education Certificate Program in Somatic Psychotherapy and Practices
Specialized training and continuing education program for experienced practitioners offering 30 CEs (CEUs)
The demand is soaring for practitioners qualified in somatic therapeutic approaches that acknowledge the powerful body-mind connection for effective healing. In just three weekend residencies, earn 30 CEs (CEUs) and enhance your therapeutic skill set with Antioch University’s Somatic Psychotherapy Certification. AUSB offers a rare opportunity for experienced practitioners to integrate this leading-edge knowledge into your current practice, learning from renowned somatic experts.
This certificate is offered by AU Santa Barbara.
Why Somatic Therapy?
Somatic psychotherapy is a unique therapeutic approach that embraces the interconnection between the body, emotions, cognition, and sense of self. It is applied in the treatment of psychological and physical responses to trauma and post-traumatic stress disorders, as well as in responding to a vast range of life issues including depression, anxiety, and attachment disorders. Somatic approaches draw from scientific evidence that feeling, sensation, expression, movement, and emotions are embodied through the course of development, in patterns impacting how we function including how we relate to ourselves and others. AUSB’s highly experiential learning environment offers specialized training in addressing trauma-related symptoms, including Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).
Dates
The Certificate in Somatic Psychotherapy includes four (4) essential courses offered over two (2) month, totaling 30 Continuing Education units for LMFTs, LCSWs, and LPCCs. Classes meet Fridays from 5-9 pm, and Saturdays from 9am-4pm, totaling 10 hours per weekend. There is opportunity for consultation & learning between residencies.
Fall 2021 Certificate Residency Dates
- Residency I: September 10 – 11, 2021
- Residency II: October 15 – 16, 2021
- Residency III: November 5 – 6, 2021
We hope to offer this residency in person and we may also offer an online section for those wanting to take the full residency online.
Certification Requirements
Attend all three (3) residency weekends as an active participant, and participate in the between-residency online interactions as per course expectations.
Coursework
Introduction to Theories and Techniques of Somatic Psychotherapy and Trauma Treatment
In this course, students will critically examine seminal historical theories of the body and mind interconnection in psychotherapy with reference to current theoretical models and techniques. These theories will include psychodynamic (object relations, relational, intersubjective, depth analytic), attachment, affect regulation, and interpersonal neurobiology. The somatic focus and perspective will be integrated with other modalities of psychotherapeutic theory and treatment including CBT, DBT, Humanistic-Existential, Gestalt, and others to provide an understanding of bottom-up vs top-down psychotherapy, with a particular focus on trauma treatment. Techniques discussed will include Somatic Experiencing, Hakomi, Sensorimotor Psychotherapy, Expressive Arts (movement, music, theatre, visual arts, and poetry), Mindfulness, guided imagery, EMDR, and Yoga. The course will provide a basis for an interdisciplinary, holistic perspective that will inform case conceptualization, the development of treatment plans, clinical skills, choice of techniques, and therapeutic orientation with individuals, groups, children, and adolescents.
Somatic Approaches to Trauma and PTSD
This course will focus on recent advances in understanding the effects of trauma on the brain, mind, and body in general and with regard to specific forms of complex trauma and PTSD. Major current theorists and practitioners in the field will be studied in depth including Van der Kolk, Levine, Ogden, and Porges. Students will develop a solid theoretical understanding as well as training in specific treatment modalities and methods. Practical application to children, adolescents, veterans and other adult survivors of various forms of abuse and trauma will be addressed. Building upon traditional psychotherapeutic techniques and principles, students will learn approaches viewing the body as central in the therapeutic field of awareness, and includes observational skills, theories, and interventions not usually practiced in psychodynamic psychotherapy.
Movement, Mindfulness, and the Expressive Arts in Somatic Psychotherapy
This experiential course is grounded in somatic therapies’ principles and practices and will provide the student experience in integrating these practices with verbal psychotherapy. This course will draw from the field of dance/movement therapy, from mindfulness practices, and from the work of both Peter Levine and Pat Ogden. Elements of the expressive arts, with attention to present moment and body-centered experience, will be included in the course. Distinctions will be made between the expressive arts therapies and the clinician’s ability to utilize the arts as a tool in the course of therapy, without formal training in art, dance/movement, or music. This course will be experiential and will focus on practical application, as the student learns to integrate somatic tools in the here-and-now context of therapy, and to engage client collaboration with somatic and expressive interventions. Ethical considerations related to the use of touch and movement will be woven throughout the course. The course builds upon and expands upon the student’s previous clinical training, and on the theoretical information offered in additional somatic courses.
Practical Approaches
(2 weekends: Nov 8, 9 and Dec 6,7)
This Practicum course focuses on group and dyadic work using current case presentations, discussions, and explorations based in the theories and techniques learned in the program. This practicum will synthesize elements of somatic psychotherapy with assessment, treatment planning, differential diagnoses and work with multiple diagnoses, course of treatment, choice of modalities, cultural sensitivity, transference and countertransference, clinical intuition and the art and science of psychotherapy.
Expert Faculty
AUSB’s Somatic Psychotherapy programs are taught by faculty who are well-respected experts in the field of somatic therapy and other holistic therapeutic approaches. Students will learn from active professionals who are thought leaders, teachers, and practitioners with decades of experience. Some of the expert faculty who have taught in our Somatic Psychotherapy program include:
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Victoria Stevens, PhD – Dr. Stevens is a licensed clinical psychologist, psychoanalyst, researcher, and educator, with specialized certifications in hypnosis and the treatment of victims and perpetrators of violent crimes. She studied interpersonal affective neurobiology with Allan Schore for more than a decade and is a founding faculty member of the California Institute of the Arts Teaching Artist Training Program.
Clyde Blair, MA, LMFT, CSP is a licensed Marriage Family Therapist and Certified Sensorimotor Psychotherapist who has been practicing psychotherapy for over 20 years. He has extensive clinical experience in community, outpatient, and private practice settings with specialization in addictions, trauma, and couples, counseling. He completed certification in Sensori-Motor psychotherapy with Pat Ogden in 2018 to treat simple and complex trauma and developmental attachment deficits in individuals. He previously taught at Pacifica Graduate Institute and currently practices in Santa Barbara and Los Angeles
- Consuelo V. Davis is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, Board Certified Dance/Movement Therapist, Nationally Certified Anger Management Facilitator and Certified Clinical Trauma Professional, who has worked in the mental health field since 1993. She has a BS in Dance Education from New York University, a MA in Dance/Movement Therapy from UCLA, and a MA in Clinical Psychology from Antioch University. Ms. Davis has worked in the Departments of Psychiatry and Addiction Medicine at Kaiser Permanente for the last 15 years. She has a private practice in Culver City, CA, and has been an Adjunct Faculty member in the Masters of Psychology Department at Antioch University Los Angeles since 2017. Consuelo specializes in working with individuals, couples, families, and groups; and integrates cultural proficiency, mind/body, and trauma-focused treatment interventions into the therapeutic process as needed. She utilizes various theoretical models to meet the unique needs of each client including: Attachment, Family Systems, DBT, DMT, Solution Focused, Mindfulness, Strength-based, and Psychodynamic treatment approaches. Ms. Davis is grateful for the opportunity to teach in the Somatic Certification Course at Antioch University Santa Barbara and looks forward to enhancing the professional growth and development of the program participants in meaningful ways.
Admission & Costs
Application Requirements
- Eligibility: Existing Master’s degree in psychology or related field, or advanced training in movement arts, or relevant experience
- Brief essay: In less than one (1) double-spaced page, please respond to the question: How would you envision this training might impact your life (e.g. career, practice, awareness, personal growth, relationships) and what challenges might you encounter?
Please complete our online Registration
If you have questions about the application for admission or the requirements, please contact Admissions at [email protected].
*Space is limited. Registration will be on a first-come, first-serve basis.
30 CEs (CEUs)
Cost:
$1,950
$1,800 Antioch alumni and faculty
Tuition does not include travel or accommodation expenses for out-of-town students.Federal financial aid is not available for this program.
Upcoming Events
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