Sell your clients on the benefits of compassion focused exercises. Normalize self-criticism and mental health struggles. Help them to catch when they are stuck in threat and compassionately self-direct their focus.
Do you have clients that are great at caring for others but highly critical of themselves? Can they cognitively recognize their value by thinking about it, but simply don't connect with the internal feeling of being worthy. Compassion-focused therapy (CFT) is a science-driven method that was originally designed to help clients who are prone to shame and intense self-criticism or for those who struggle to engage with traditional CBT. It uses thorough psychoeducation in evolutionary psychology, attachment theory, affective neuroscience, CBT and behaviorism to demystify and de-shame the occurrence of mental health struggles.
CFT psychoeducation provides the foundation for helping clients feel safe and confident in working with challenging affective states. Simultaneously, clients learn to build responsibility and emotional courage to tackle difficult life situations through the development of compassion. The CFT handouts are designed to provide a helpful, clear, easy-to-use, visual guide on the background of CFT therapy. Given that psychoeducation is so pivotal in this therapy, the clients understanding of key psychological concepts is imperative. What better way to achieve great results than with visual prompts and take-home material.
The 7 full-color A4 handouts (delivered by instant PDF download) detail a step-by step guide to CFT including:
- The three emotional systems of threat, drive and soothing
- Human evolution and the development of the 'tricky brain.'
- The brain body connection
- The threat system and shame/self-criticism (normalization of the development of mental health struggles given our 'tricky brains')
- Getting stuck in threat or drive
- Common anxiety and depression presentations and their relation to the three emotional systems (appreciating emotional complexity)
- Identifying imbalances in the three emotional systems
- Attachment theory and predisposing factors leading to under-developed soothing systems
- Reluctance to let internal critics go (compassion may be unfamiliar)
- What exactly is compassion and why is it important?
- How do I move towards self-compassion (common barriers)
- Outline of layered processes involved in CFT
- Compassionate practices and compassionate self-correction
Build on your current repertoire with vibrant handouts that can foster on-going self-exploration between sessions. Ensure clients have material that ensures their understanding of the therapeutic focus at hand. Increase engagement. Clients absolutely love our handouts! Fun yet professional!