The Systemic Way Sezer and Julie

Amanda Middleton joins us to talk in depth about her keynote speech/article, Adventures in time, gender and therapeutic practice. Embracing a queer systemic way of working with gender expansive families. 

Amanda shares with us ways to understand gender and sexuality that are away from binary discourses and we discuss why this matters for inclusive therapeutic practice. She takes us on an adventure about her work, projects and passions on utilising a queer systemic approach that is steeped with theory, history and insights to grow our knowledge in this important area.

Topics covered include:

- ⁠decolonising gender
- ⁠depathologising our practice in regards to gender & sexuality 
- relational homelessness 
- ⁠systemic tools to address gender & sexuality 
- ⁠chromonormativity

About Amanda Middleton:

Amanda has over 18 years of experience providing counseling and psychotherapy to a diverse range of people and groups. She qualified as a Psychologist in Australia, and as a Family and Systemic Psychotherapist in the UK and works primarily with gender, sex and sexuality specialising within the LGBTQI communities and LGBTQI families. 
Amanda has worked in the NHS ( CAMHS), Social Care and private therapy fields. Working as a specialist in the areas of sex and sexuality, dual diagnosis (mental health and substance misuse), homelessness, HIV and sexual health, drug and alcohol use, and domestic violence.

This episode focuses on social constructionism with one of the leading figures in the field, Kenneth J. Gergen Ph.D.

We hear about how radical the ideas were at the time of its conceptiopn and the people who believed in its contribution to psychology and supported its evolution. Ken tells us his personal and professional stories of the history and development of his key ideas within social constructionism alongside some of the challenges when sharing with the wider field.  Ken discussed the key elements of its application in the therapeutic context and his futures hopes. 


Bio (taken from Taos Institute website)

Kenneth J. Gergen, Ph.D., is a founding member, President of the Taos Institute and Chair of the Board, and the Mustin Professor of Psychology at Swarthmore College. Gergen also serves as an Honorary Professor at the University of Buenos Aires. Gergen received his BA from Yale University and his PhD from Duke University, and has taught at Harvard University and Heidelberg University. He has been the recipient of two Fulbright research fellowships, the Geraldine Mao fellowship in Hong Kong, along with Fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation, the Japanese Society for the Promotion of Science, and the Alexander Humboldt Stiftung. Gergen has also been the recipient of research grants from the National Science Foundation, the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, and the Barra Foundation. He has received honorary degrees from Tilburg University and Saybrook Institute, and is a member of the World Academy of Art and Science.

Gergen is a major figure in the development of social constructionist theory and its applications to practices of social change. He also lectures widely on contemporary issues in cultural life, including the self, technology, postmodernism, the civil society, organizational change, developments in psychotherapy, educational practices, aging, and political conflict. Gergen has published over 300 articles in journals, magazines and books, and his major books include Toward Transformation in Social Knowledge, The Saturated Self, Realities and Relationships, and An Invitation to Social Construction. With Mary Gergen, he published an electronic newsletter, Positive Aging (www.positiveaging.net) distributed to 20,000 recipients. 

Gergen has served as the President of two divisions of the American Psychological Association, the Division on Theoretical and Philosophical Psychology, and on Psychology and the Arts. He has served on the editorial board of 35 journals, and as the Associate Editor of The American Psychologist and Theory and Psychology. He has also served as a consultant to Sandoz Pharmaceutical Company, Arthur D. Little, Inc, the National Academy of Science, Trans-World Airlines, Bio-Dynamics, and Knight, Gladieux & Smith, Inc.

In this episode we discuss the Queensland Institute of Family Therapy's (QIFT) meta framework for integrative practice. Founders, Kate and Leonie talk about how practitioners are embracing and integrative approach and their experience of developing the framework. 

Topics covered include:
The main elements of the framework How integrative differs from traditional approaches in family therapy What it contributes to the wider systemic field Throughout the conversation we hear about case examples & teaching points about the model.
For any training enquiries related to:

• Key Skills in Family Therapy
• Working Safely with Families and Trauma
• Systemic Integrative Practice Masterclass
• Trauma-Informed Care For Midwives
• Trauma-Informed Care In The Emergency Department
• 3 Hour Trauma-Informed Care lecture

Please note that from June 30th 2024 QIFT will no longer be operating but you can contact Kate & Leonie directly to enquire about the framework or their practice.

You are welcome to contact Kate directly (drkateowen@gmail.com or 0408528380) for any training enquiries related to Working Systemically with Stakeholders and Live Supervision: Systemic Supervision In Action.

You are free to contact Kate for any other training in family therapy, trauma, staff wellbeing, student welllbeing and anxiety, and other various topics.  For more information please visit www.drkateowen.com.  You can also stay in touch by joining her mailing list and following on social media platforms such as:
Instagram https://www.instagram.com/drkateowen
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/drkateowen
LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/drkateowen
YouTube https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCSbcwwK4FFb4MVxxZ6KMqwQ

After June 30th you are welcome to contact Leonie directly (drleoniewhite@gmail.com or 0401002544) for any training enquiries related to Systems and Stories: A Narrative Therapy Approach to Meaning Making and Change, and Picture This: Harnessing the Therapeutic Power of Genograms, as well as any other training in family therapy, trauma and various topics.

For more information on other training Leonie provides you can visit her website https://www.drleoniewhite.com/community-events-and-training  and you can also stay in touch with Leonie by subscribing to her monthly Resource Letter www.drleoniewhite.com and via her Professional Social Media and LinkedIn
https://www.facebook.com/drleoniewhite
https://www.instagram.com/drleoniewhite
https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-leonie-white-9a915489

This episode is about Shadi Shahnavaz’s insightful book “Working systematically with refugee families and couples: exploring trauma, resilience and culture” We discuss areas such as:
-Effects of trauma
-Seeking therapeutic help
-Cross cultural therapy
-Refugees lived experiences
-Frameworks for engaging & supporting families and couples
Shadi guides us through her personal and professional journey of working in this area and enlightens her process with case studies and resonances to develop compassionate & effective practice


Bio:
Dr Shadi Shahnavaz is a social worker and systemic therapist. She has worked for over 25 years with complex families and individuals and has extensive experience in working with refugees. Shahnavaz presents and provides training on attachment theory, working with trauma, and working systemically.

Book reference:

Shahnavaz, S. (2022). Working systemically with refugee couples and families: exploring trauma, resilience and culture. Taylor & Francis.


Reviews:

'Dr Shahnavaz is to be commended for writing such a useful book, especially during these times when the phenomenon of refugees is so prominent in our societies. It is unique because of its specific focus on couples and families and its systemic approach, examining the interactive implications of these forms of adversities. The inclusion of relevant clinical material brings to life the complexities of these painful realities, whilst it also indicates ways of effectively addressing them. The book will be a valuable resource both for specialists and for the general public.'
Renos K Papadopoulos, PhD, Professor at the University of Essex, UK. Author of Involuntary Dislocation: Home, Trauma, Resilience and Adversity-Activated Development (Routledge, 2021)
'An important and timely contribution to the clinical work with highly traumatized refugees and their families—very moving, personal and instructive! Essential reading for all practitioners listening to seemingly unspeakable narratives...'
Dr E. Asen, Consultant Psychiatrist, University College London & Anna Freud National Centre for Children and Families, UK
'At one level, Dr. Shahnavaz’s honest new book is an academic text, with a comprehensive review of literature and an examination of the contemporary political and social contexts in which refugee lives are embedded. At the heart of the book are compelling real-life accounts of refugee couples’ experiences and journeys, woven in with the author’s reflexive experiences of migration. It is these narratives that transport the book from an academic text to a complex hybrid between historical biography and autobiography. The book is written in a lucid and accessible style and includes a helpful overview and critique of therapeutic interventions for refugee couples and families. It skillfully examines the controversial subject of whether cultural and linguistic matching between the family and therapist is necessary for the therapeutic relationship. The book is a "must read" for students and teachers of refugee studies; for clinicians working with refugees; for service providers and policy makers; for service users; and for all those who are interested in culture, couple and family relationships and the impact of transgenerational trauma.'
Dr Reenee Singh, Consultant Family and Systemic Psychotherapist & Founding Director, London Intercultural Couples Centre at the Child and Family Practice, UK

In this episode we speak with the much respect Dr Harry Aponte about his career, contributions and process of becoming and being a therapist.  He shares with us stories oh how he became interested in systemic practice and his early days in structural systemic family therapy. We take a deep dive with Harry as he discussed the key ideas that informs his approach, the important people who have helped shape his practice and the values that he holds in his therapeutic work. 

This episodes explores structural approaches, the use of self and working with marginalised communities. 


About Dr Harry Aponte:

Dr. Harry Aponte has made significant contributions in the area of Family Therapy. An Afro-Caribbean male, Dr. Aponte’s work has been crucial in building better systems of care for those considered “underprivileged.” As a trailblazer in the mental health field, Dr. Aponte fought to change the narrative around African American and Hispanic American families from the stigmatizing term “disorganized” to that of resourceful.
While working in the “inner city” of Philadelphia, Dr. Aponte pioneered the idea of eco-structural therapy. This move shifted the stigmatization of early mental health practices for those who identified as BIPOC, and influenced a form of therapy that accounted for the many socioeconomic and racial factors that influenced these families. This shift helped to coordinate efforts to build collaborative practices across multiple disciplines in hopes of providing the best services for at risk families. Dr. Aponte has continued to influence the field of family therapy and mental health, especially for those who identify as BIPOC, through his many articles, books, talks, and teaching of therapists across five decades.

Resources:

https://apontetraininginstitute.org/


 

Editor of The Journal of Family Therapy (JFT), Sarah Helps joins us to discuss the history, contribution & value of JFT. Sarah shares her passion for research and its important role in the systemic field. She shows how research can support practice through developing knowledge and deepen our understanding of process. She talks us through how to get involved with the journal and debunks  fear of creating meaningful research.

The Journal of Family Therapy advances the understanding and treatment of human relationships constituted in systems such as couples, families, professional networks, and wider groups, by publishing articles on theory, research, clinical practice and training.

Bio:

Dr Helps is a consultant clinical psychologist and systemic psychotherapist. She started working at King's College Hospital after qualifying in 1995 and has recently returned to lead the growing paediatric psychology service.

She teaches on aspects of systemic research and practice at the Tavistock and the Institute of psychiatry, psychology and neurosciences. Over the course of two decades, her research interests have focused on hospital, staff, stress, parental adaptation to childhood illness, and more recently on how communication between clinicians and families works in a variety of healthcare settings. She is interested in growing just, evidence-based systemic practice informed by a plethora of forms of research and enquiry and supporting research that is born from genuine co-production between research-minded practitioners and the people with whom we work.

Dr Helps was appointed as JFT editor in 2023.

Sarah Helps, BSc, MSc, DclinPsy, DProf
Consultant Clinical Psychology / Lead for Paediatric Psychology
King's College Hospital, UK
Email: JOFTedoffice@wiley.com
Twitter: @Editor_JFT