Informed Consent Podcast

May is Mental Health Awareness Month! A huge stigma remains regarding mental health. In an effort to eliminate this stigma, there is a movement to start conversations about mental illness. Gabriel and Heather join the effort by sharing their own stories!

We welcome your feedback and would love to connect with you! [email protected]

May is National Foster Care Month! Thank you to all the foster parents and child welfare professionals who support and nurture children in foster care every day! In this episode Heather and Gabriel explore one path of supporting children in foster care, successful co-parenting with birth parents. They will discuss the benefits of successful co-parenting, recognizing the stages of grief and loss for birth parents, and effective ways to join with birth parents.

If you desire more information on this topic, please reach out to Heather at [email protected]

We welcome your feedback and would love to connect with you! [email protected]

Gabriel and Heather welcome Tommy Bateman, Resident in Counseling and co-host of the REBT Advocates. Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy is a form of psychotherapy that offers an approach to life that leads to greater fulfillment and happiness. Tommy lends us his expertise in the core concepts of unconditional self acceptance, unconditional other acceptance and unconditional life acceptance.

To find out more about REBT:
Visit http://rebtnetwork.org/ for more information of REBT and a host of resources from Dr. Albert Ellis.
Subscribe to Tommy’s YouTube channel: the REBT Advocates https://m.youtube.com/channel/UCjuLu2yya3E9k6GOe4sr0HQ

We would love to hear from you! [email protected]

As we move into spring, we have the opportunity to begin to plan for the summer dip in provision of services. There are many reasons that clinical services are under utilized in the summer. Regardless of those reasons, many of us are caught off guard and can be financially impacted. In this episode, Heather and Gabriel discuss planning for the summer through the lens of professional growth and self care.

Having something to add? Questions? Comments? Stories? Join the conversation at [email protected] Can't wait to hear from you!

Bikers Against Child Abuse (BACA) exists with the intent to create a safer environment for abused children. On this episode, Heather and Gabriel talk with Gizmo and Jammer of the Blue Ridge Chapter of Virginia BACA. Gizmo is the President and Founder of the Blue Ridge Chapter and Jammer is a valuable chapter member. Together they discuss their journeys to finding this meaningful work and the ways in which BACA supports and empowers child victims of abuse. BACA works with counselors and social workers, law enforcement, and the court system to increase a child’s sense of safety as they navigate the challenges of the legal system and heal from various forms of abuse. Children with the support of BACA are four times more likely to testify against their abusers. In this episode you will find out how to refer a child/family for this empowering service and the benefits and child will experience.
-For additional information visit: www.bacaworld.org or call 1-866-71-Abuse
-To Reach the Blue Ridge Chapter [email protected], [email protected], or call 216-309-2131

In honor of April as Child Abuse Prevention Month, Gabriel and Heather are continuing to discuss trauma. In this episode, they discuss Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF- CBT). TF-CBT is a hybrid model used to treat children and adolescents who have experienced at least one significant trauma. Heather is a TF-CBT certified therapist and gives an overview of the components TF-CBT. If you are interested in finding out more information about this model and/or have interest in becoming trained and/or certified in the model check out these resources:
Medical University of South Carolina https://tfcbt2.musc.edu/
Washburn Center for Children http://www.washburntraininginstitute.org/
TF-CBT Therapist Certification program https://tfcbt.org/

In conditioned recognition of April as Child Abuse Prevention Month, Gabriel and Heather are discussing Neglect. Child neglect occurs when a parent or caregiver does not give the child the care he/she needs based on his/her age although the finances and/resources are available to do so. Neglect is the most frequently reported type of abuse to social service agencies, and is a form of trauma and can be a form of complex trauma depending on the extent to which it is present. In this episode, Heather and Gabriel discuss examples of child neglect as well as adverse effects of neglect including the effects on the developing brain.

Resource for counselors:
National Child Traumatic Stress Network http://www.nctsn.org/
Child Trauma Academy www.childtrauma.org
Books by Dr. Bruce Perry http://childtrauma.org/roktabs/

April is National Child Abuse Prevention Month. In this episode, Heather and Gabriel discuss complex trauma in honor of child abuse prevention. Trauma can be defined as a deeply distressing or disturbing event. Yet complex trauma is used to describe both the exposure to multiple traumatic events, often of an invasive and interpersonal nature, and the wide-ranging, long term impact of this exposure. In this episode you will learn about the range of types of complex trauma as well as the many effects.

Resource for counselors - National Child Traumatic Stress Network http://www.nctsn.org/

In graduate school, we are taught that self disclosure should be avoided. While self disclosure can interrupt our clients’ own processes and can lead to a slippery slope with boundaries. However, there are also benefits to self disclosure to the treatment process. In this episode, Heather and Gabriel discuss the many nuances and considerations in counselor self disclosure.

Ryan Munsey is back! In this episode, Ryan shares insights from his new book, F*CK Your Feelings, and his latest podcast endeavor, The Better Human Project.
Ryan brings us a neuroscience-based exploration of why some people succeed and others do not. He combines the latest research and science with the real-world practices of high performers to bring us tools and tips to master our minds, utilize our prefrontal cortex to better manage our limbic system, and become the best version of ourselves.

Click here to find Ryan’s latest book, F*CK Your Feelings or share this podcast on your social media and email us a screenshot of your share at [email protected] to receive a free copy of the book.

More from Ryan: http://ryanmunsey.com/home/betterhumanprojectpodcast/