Core Program | Children, Youth and Parenting Track
Program Director: Dr. Esther Bamberger
First year
The Fundamentals of Psychotherapy Integration in Children, Adolescents, and Parenting - Dr. Esther Bamberger
The course will review the history of the field and the development of the movement to promote the integration of psychotherapy, engage in in-depth study of various models of integration and their clinical applications, examine the research findings and challenges in the field, and invite course participants to reflect on the significance of the material learned for their therapeutic work. The course serves as a gateway to the world of integration of psychotherapy.
The psychodynamic approach, mapping currents and models from a historical perspective –
Ms. Naama Greenwald and Ms. Maayan Pekhat are twins.
A course common to both tracks, divided into beginner and advanced levels. The course will deal with a historical overview of the development of currents within the psychodynamic approach, emphasizing their central ideas, fundamental concepts, and perceptions of therapeutic processes. Drive theory, ego psychology, object relations current, self psychology, relational and intersubjective psychoanalysis will be studied and mapped on a developmental timeline through an in-depth comparative discussion, a mapping that will serve as a basis for discussing the therapeutic relationship as both a platform for change and a space for change from the perspectives of the various currents in psychoanalysis.
Integrative Applications of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy - Dr. Lihi Hamel Belson and Dr. Ella Oren
A common course for both tracks, divided into beginner and advanced levels. The course will deal with the use of cognitive and behavioral models and tools from an integrative position. In the first part of the course, basic concepts and key techniques in cognitive-behavioral therapy will be studied in depth. The distinction between thinking and therapeutic work in the spirit of the first and second waves of CBT compared to the third wave will be clarified. In the continuation of the course, it will be demonstrated and explained how cognitive and behavioral tools can be used through various models of integration in psychotherapy. In addition, a specific work model will be presented and demonstrated, based on the creation of a common therapeutic language that combines a relational psychodynamic approach and a cognitive-behavioral approach in the spirit of the third wave of CBT. The course combines guest lectures by first-class expert clinicians who treat CBT from an integrative position in the spirit of the first, second and third waves, with adults and children and youth.
Parenting Therapy from an Integrative Position - Ms. Michal Ziv
In this course, we will address key clinical issues in the field of therapeutic work with parents from an integrative perspective, examining how this multidimensional perspective contributes to formulating a therapeutic position and building a therapeutic alliance with parents in order to promote therapeutic goals related to the relationship with the child and his functioning. We will address understanding the complexity of the parental role, discuss the challenge that dealing with parenting and the parental couple poses to therapists, and discuss the importance of building a diverse toolbox and a roadmap for the progress of therapy in order to improve the parent-child relationship and improve parental regulatory abilities in order to promote the child's adaptation and functioning and improve the WELL BEING of the parents and the child. The course will present a variety of theoretical approaches to mapping the needs of parents in order to formulate relevant therapeutic goals, and an emphasis will be placed on translating the theoretical concepts taught into clinical contexts and practical therapeutic interventions. During the course, case presentations and clinical examples, experimentation and experiential practice in conceptualizing cases and methods of intervention will be integrated.
Training in the integration of psychotherapy A and B
An annual training group, the group is based on case presentations by group members and emphasizes observation and integrative thinking, identification of different treatment approaches, therapeutic techniques, deepening and conceptualizing between theory and practice in order to enrich thinking and movement according to the patient's needs. The group training allows exposure to the work of other students, promotes discussion from multiple theoretical perspectives of clinical work and exposure to cases from a wide range of contexts, populations and treatment methods.
Second year
Between Difference and Psychopathology from an Integrative Perspective - A - Ms. Hamutal Sofer Groch
The course will present an integrative perspective on mental disorders and emotional difficulties in childhood and adolescence. The course is a two-year semester, with different disorders being studied each year - in Part I, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, anxiety disorders, and behavioral disorders will be studied. We will discuss the importance of the diagnostic and conceptualization process in order to build a treatment plan and evaluate its results, within the framework of integration-oriented psychotherapy, which places the person dealing with the difficulty at the center. We will review key ways to diagnose, classify, and conceptualize psychopathology, in an attempt to create a multidimensional and broad roadmap for classification, including a variety of "languages" and alternative perspectives. In doing so, we will address diagnosis from a phenomenological, psychodynamic, cognitive-behavioral, systemic, and multicultural perspective, and will also review models that attempt to combine the various perspectives into an integrative over-conceptualization (transdiagnostic models). In addition, unique dilemmas related to diagnosing psychopathology in children and adolescents will be presented, such as difficulties related to early relationships or consideration of developmental aspects. The course will combine in-depth theoretical knowledge, guest lectures by expert clinicians in the specific disorders, and students' experience in conceptualization processes and building a treatment plan from an integrative standpoint for a patient dealing with the disorder.
Principles of the Relational Position - Dr. Esther Bamberger
The course will offer a comprehensive introduction to the background to the emergence of the relational approach and a rich perspective on its development process. It will provide learners with extensive and organized knowledge of the principles of the approach, the theorists leading it, and the central issues it addresses, while focusing on models of intersubjectivity, and on the characterization of goals, dimensions, processes, and tools of the therapeutic process from a relational perspective. We will attempt to gain a deeper understanding of concepts at the core of the approach, including: mutual recognition, multiple selves, interpretation as mutual construction, enactment, the relational third, the dialectic of hope and fear, between spontaneity and rituals, and between interpretive and expressive work in the therapeutic process, the therapist's self-disclosure, and more. During the course, we will present and demonstrate specific aspects related to therapeutic work in a relational approach with children, adolescents, and parents, and demonstrate how these ideas can provide a theoretical and practical platform for thinking about integration in psychotherapy.
Parenting Therapy with the Integrative Approach - Ms. Michal Ziv
In this course, we will address key clinical issues in the field of therapeutic work with parents from an integrative perspective, examining how this multidimensional perspective contributes to formulating a therapeutic position and building a therapeutic alliance with parents in order to promote therapeutic goals related to the relationship with the child and his functioning. We will address understanding the complexity of the parental role, discuss the challenge that dealing with parenting and the parental couple poses to therapists, and discuss the importance of building a diverse toolbox and a roadmap for the progress of therapy in order to improve the parent-child relationship and improve parental regulatory abilities in order to promote the child's adaptation and functioning and improve the WELL BEING of the parents and the child. The course will present a variety of theoretical approaches to mapping the needs of parents in order to formulate relevant therapeutic goals, and an emphasis will be placed on translating the theoretical concepts taught into clinical contexts and practical therapeutic interventions. During the course, case presentations and clinical examples, experimentation and experiential practice in conceptualizing cases and methods of intervention will be integrated.
Elective course 1 of 2 courses common to both tracks:
1. Introduction to DBT Dialectical Behavioral Therapy - Ms. Nurit Shahar
Personality disorders in general and borderline personality disorder in particular pose a challenge to the diagnostician, theorist and therapist. Characteristics of impulsivity, affective instability, lack of trust (acting out), fragile interpersonal relationships, identity confusion, massive use of splitting and projective identification cause powerful countertransference reactions. Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) is intended for disorders of emotional regulation and instability, and is effective even and especially in cases of chronic suicidal behavior. This therapeutic approach, developed by the American psychologist Prof. Marcia Linehan, has been empirically tested in several centers in the US and Europe and has been proven to be clearly effective in treating patients suffering from borderline personality disorder. The approach has also been found effective in treating eating disorders, especially binge eating, depression and anxiety in people with personality disorders, as well as in people suffering from substance addiction. The approach has been found to be effective in treating adults and adolescents, and recently there is evidence of its effectiveness in children as well. It is an integrative treatment approach that includes the use of elements of cognitive-behavioral, supportive, dynamic therapy in the self-approach and the object relations approach, elements from the intersubjective approach and elements from the Zen Buddhist theory. The main elements that define dialectical behavioral therapy are behavioral theory, mindfulness and dialectical philosophy. The treatment offers holism and synthesis. The unique characteristic of the method is the dialectical part, which means bringing opposites closer together in a continuous process of synthesis. There is an emphasis on acceptance as the basis for change, and a synthesis between the concept of Zen Buddhist theory and Western psychological concepts.
The Motivational Approach: How to Help Patients Change - Ms. Orit Kovac
Patients who are unable to make behavioral changes are highly frustrated, and so are those around them - therapists and family members - who feel helpless in the face of a stuck or worsening situation. The motivational approach, which grew out of the field of addiction treatment, was developed and formulated by Miller and Rolnik. It is an evidence-based approach that aims to motivate patients to change behavior and cooperate with treatment plans. At the heart of the approach is the understanding that ambivalence is at the heart of every change process and that we must accompany the patient in exploring and resolving it if we want to promote change and increase the chance that it will be maintained over time. The approach focuses on the interaction between the therapist and the patient and explores the ways in which motivation, self-efficacy perception, and resolution of ambivalence can be influenced. In addition, the approach is based on research demonstrating that a confrontational stance on the part of therapeutic agents increases resistance on the part of patients, therefore it includes intervention strategies for treating resistance while deliberately avoiding confrontation.
Training in the integration of psychotherapy C. D.
An annual training group, the group is based on case presentations by group members and emphasizes observation and integrative thinking, identification of different treatment approaches, therapeutic techniques, deepening and conceptualizing between theory and practice in order to enrich thinking and movement according to the patient's needs. The group training allows exposure to the work of other students, promotes discussion from multiple theoretical perspectives of clinical work and exposure to cases from a wide range of contexts, populations and treatment methods.
Ethical Issues in Psychotherapy - Dr. Dafna Palti
The course seeks to establish the understanding that professional ethical thinking is central and essential in the work of psychotherapy therapists and to provide theoretical and practical tools to apply this. First, in 2 self-study units, we will deal with the definitions of professional ethics of psychotherapy: What is professional ethics? What is the difference between legal rules and ethical rules? What laws are important to recognize in the context of therapeutic work in mental health? What is an ethical dilemma? How do you identify it and how do you reach an ethical decision? What are ethical codes and what are ethics committees? What principles and values should guide us in our work?
Subsequently, 2 online workshops will be held at the beginning of the summer in small groups (workshop dates will be announced in advance during the academic year) to which students will be invited to bring ethical dilemmas from their work. The workshops will allow them to demonstrate and practice ethical discussions and ethical deliberations surrounding the dilemmas, and analyze them using the tools presented in the course.
Third year
Between Difference and Psychopathology from an Integrative Perspective - by Dr. Lehi Belson Hamel
The course will present an integrative perspective on mental disorders and emotional difficulties in childhood and adolescence. The course is a two-year semester, with different disorders being studied each year - in part two, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, depression and suicidality, somatization disorders and emotional difficulties associated with the development of sexual identity will be studied. We will discuss the importance of the diagnostic and conceptualization process in order to build a treatment plan and evaluate its results, within the framework of integration-oriented psychotherapy, which places the person dealing with the difficulty at the center. We will review key ways to diagnose, classify and conceptualize psychopathology, in an attempt to create a multidimensional and broad roadmap for classification, including a variety of "languages" and alternative perspectives. In doing so, we will address diagnosis from a phenomenological, psychodynamic, cognitive-behavioral, systemic, and multicultural perspective, and will also review models that attempt to combine the various perspectives into an integrative over-conceptualization (transdiagnostic models). In addition, unique dilemmas related to diagnosing psychopathology in children and adolescents will be presented, such as difficulties related to early relationships or consideration of developmental aspects. The course will combine in-depth theoretical knowledge, guest lectures by expert clinicians in the specific disorders, and students' experience in conceptualization processes and building a treatment plan from an integrative standpoint for a patient dealing with the disorder.
Holding the Brokenness: On Pain, Resilience, and Hope in Encountering Trauma – Ms. Shlomit Giloni Barak
Childhood trauma occurs at critical stages in development and therefore leads to severe, chronic and persistent consequences in their impact on the psyche. Research indicates that childhood trauma harms brain development and affects the emotional, cognitive and social development of children and adolescents. The more trauma is left untreated, the more its consequences are evident in the long term and in adulthood. In the course, we will learn about the various diagnoses following trauma on the developmental axis, the effects of trauma on the body and brain, traumatic memory, and unique characteristics of trauma in children and adolescents. We will integrate different psychological approaches (dynamic, narrative, physical, attachment, systemic), in working with the child and the parents, and allow space for processes of regulation, compassion (self-care) and growth of the patients and us, the therapists. The learning will combine theoretical and clinical understanding in lectures, experiences, demonstrations and discussion of therapeutic examples of the participants.
Integrative Issues in Therapeutic Work with Adolescents – Dr. Lehi Belson Hamel
The course will attempt to touch on key aspects that are at the core of therapeutic work with adolescents and their parents, from an integration-based perspective. Among the topics that will be covered are developmental aspects between childhood and adulthood, the adolescent self, sexuality, sexual orientation and sexual identity, psychopathology in adolescence (eating disorders, addictions), issues related to the therapeutic relationship, working with parents of adolescents and the peer group. The course will move between theoretical thinking on the issues and a discussion of clinical cases.
Elective course 1 out of 4 courses common to both tracks:
Treatment of loss and bereavement – a personal-professional journey / Ms. Hamutal Arbel
In what way does death, yours and that of your loved ones, concern you? How do you relate to the subject of death when it comes up with patients? Do you find it more difficult to respond to this topic than to other topics? Do you get stuck, or do you skip ahead elegantly? The course seeks to expand the knowledge, reduce fear, and increase the confidence of therapists in treating situations of loss and bereavement, in order to assist patients in processing the loss, in finding effective ways of coping, and in constructing beneficial meanings. We will move between learning the latest theory and contemporary models in the field of loss and bereavement and their applications in psychotherapy, and an internal journey of inquiry into our relationship, as therapists and as human beings, with death. The course will be workshop-style and will include the use of writing, art, and various types of media, as well as work on clinical material from course participants.
2. Relationship-focused interventions in parent-child care / Ms. Michal Yardeni
Today, there is an extensive clinical and research knowledge base on dyadic interventions as a key factor in the treatment of difficulties in children and adolescents. The goal of these interventions is to treat situations of relationship disruption, or to support a parent in helping their child in situations where traumatic events or other emotional and developmental difficulties threaten the child's mental development. In this course, we will discuss several models of dyadic treatments, suitable for preschool children (such as the Haifa model for dyadic therapy) or for latency ages and adolescents (the Daniel Hughes model), as well as models that are designed to treat certain situations, such as the DIR model, which is a model for parent-child therapy with children on the autistic spectrum; and the CPP model, which is designed to treat trauma in early childhood. During the course, we will learn about dyadic therapy, starting from the stage of creating a therapeutic alliance with parents, the assessment process, through conceptualization and goal setting (building a formulation), choosing entry points, and finally the therapeutic intervention itself. We will also discuss how these interventions can be integrated into treatments where the setting is not dyadic, such as parenting therapy or individual child therapy. We will study the theoretical and research background that underlies these interventions, discuss various circumstances that call for integrating dyadic interventions into the treatment of children's difficulties, and how understanding the circumstances and the formulation of the treatment affect the therapist's positioning, therapeutic goals, and methods of intervention. Learning will be done through lectures, discussion, experiential experience, and clinical examples.
3. Days of War: Mental Movement in Encounter with Transience and Death / Ms. Ginat Engel Barak
Still a war / Dana Schneider
And for a moment you might think everything is fine:
The moon is orbiting the Earth again,
It rained in the yard today,
The children's breaths rise and fall in my room.
Sleep.
But the crack in the ceiling
He will testify.
On my torn eyes
And my scorched heart
Still a war
Until two years ago, we only read about ongoing war in history books. Since then, we have been moving in a changing reality, one day under a real threat and the next day when routine "breaks out."
The clock keeps ticking...
What happens to us when we encounter impermanence and death?
How do we enable the soul to deal with threats or 'ruptures' in the continuum of being?
In the course, we will look at these questions from different angles, including psychoanalytic, existentialist, Buddhist writing, and prose. We will focus, among other things, on our personal experience of transience and death, and how we operate in a clinic where 'the walls are falling' - when patients encounter a similar reality.
We will integrate clinical material, stay in the present, and embark on a common journey "without memory and without desire" (Bion).
Mindfulness for Therapists – From Theory to Practice / Ms. Shelly Frankel Falls
In the course, we will focus on understanding the origins of mindfulness and delve into its many benefits and diverse applications. We will practice a variety of mindfulness techniques, including mindfulness of the worlds of the senses and mindfulness of thoughts and emotions. In addition, we will focus on cultivating beneficial emotions such as self-compassion and compassion for others, gratitude, and generosity. The goal of the course is to instill mindfulness techniques in students so that they can also offer them to patients and use them in the therapeutic field. Developing mindfulness helps both the therapist and the patient in expanding the range of attention, developing self-awareness, emotional regulation, and non-judgmental introspection. It also increases our ability to identify automatic reactions and pause them, and improves the ability to deeply accept reality. The course requires practical practice at home of the techniques taught during the classes. The end of the course will be dedicated to a joint examination of how the concepts and tools offered can be integrated into the treatment room.
Training in the integration of psychotherapy, 5th and 6th
The training group is a space designed to enable learning, experimentation, and internalization of integration between theoretical knowledge and clinical experience around a focus of integration in psychotherapy. In the third year, the focus of the training group will be to deepen and consolidate the connection of the knowledge acquired throughout the years of study into the personal-professional identity and therapeutic style of the therapist. In the meantime, the course will accompany students in writing the final case, which is designed to encourage and promote the consolidation of the knowledge and tools acquired during the studies in the program.