NAVIGATING THROUGH COUPLE AND FAMILY MAZES:
EFFECTIVE THERAPEUTIC TOOLS AND STRATEGIES FOR CHANGING THE UNCHANGEABLE

Matthew D. Selekman, MSW, LCSW

WORKSHOP DESCRIPTION

Throughout our professional careers, we have been challenged and intimidated by couples and families that have been described by former therapists and treatment program staff as being: “unchangeable,” “resistant,” “noncompliant,” “impossible,” and given the worst DSM labels. In this “hands-on” three-day workshop, participants will learn several effective therapeutic tools and strategies for working with the most challenging clinical couple and family dilemmas, such as:

• Violent and suicidal partners and family members
• High-conflict couples
• Working with extra-marital affair couple dilemmas
• Couples and families with multiple mental health and substance abuse issues
• Working with clients presenting with severe and long-term histories of self-destructive behaviors
• Working with dual-addicted couples
• Couples and families with long histories of involvement with multiple larger systems

Each day of the workshop there will be 1-2 couples and families for live case consultation and skill-building exercises. There will be ample opportunities for participants to bring in their most difficult couples and families for live consultation and/or present their stuck cases to the larger group. Finally, participants will learn a variety of effective ways to use themselves as creative catalysts for change and therapeutic team consultation strategies they can use with their work colleagues to get unstuck with and gain fresh ideas for transforming difficult cases.