Dr Imelda McCarthy PhD. joins us to share the story, development and practice of the Fifth Province. Imelda talk with us about how the Fifth Province evolved within the context of Ireland, the wider systemic community and the connections it has with spirituality. She gives us examples of using the myth  in practice and how the model invites space into the therapy room. We also hear about thematic diamonds and to work with oppositional positions.

Dr Imelda  McCarthy, PhD. is a systemic/social constructionist therapist, supervisor and consultant.   She has affiliations with School of Applied Social Science at University College Dublin where she was a director of the PhD program in families and systemic therapies and a senior university lecturer. She currently works in private practice while she teaches and consults nationally and internationally.  Imelda is also affiliated with Kensington Consultation Centre (London, UK), is on the faculty of the TAOS institute PhD programme. She has written and presented both nationally and internationally in over 20 countries on the topics of Women, Child Sexualised Abuse, Poverty and Spirituality and Therapy.

From 1981 – 1995 Imelda was a member of a clinical team, the Fifth Province Associates whose work along with her own has been translated into eight languages. She is also a co-founder of the Irish Family Therapy Association and Ireland’s first professional training programme in family therapy at the Mater Misericordiae Hospital in Dublin.

Check out Imelda's website:

www.imeldamccarthy.com

Introducing our new podcast adventure - The Systemic Lens. We are a group of systemic therapist with a love for film, TV, music, literature and theatre and will be using systemic theory to share our reflections, thoughts and resonances on some our our favourites. 

Through these podcast we hope to expand the bounds of systemic application and offer alternative forms of analysis to film, TV, Music, literature etc. We also hope to provide new ways for people to connect with systemic ideas.

We begin with an a systemic exploration of the classic Wizard of Oz and discuss issues of gender, power and the discovery of self through relationships. 

Enjoy. 

In this episode we talk with Dr Ged Smith about his ideas on taking a 1.5 order position in therapy. Ged introduces us to the meaning of the 1.5 order position and shows us ways to operate within and between first and second order positions from his own experience. 

In this podcast we discuss the therapeutic conundrums and tensions between the therapists  position as expert and collaborator; having certainty and exploring and knowing and not-knowing.

Nick Pendry is a social worker and family therapist. He is currently employed as the deputy director of children's services at the London Borough of Wandsworth. He identifies as a Brown-Indian man. Nick has worked in various roles in the NHS and local authority children’s services. He is particularly interested in embedding systemic ideas and practices into children’s social care and in the construction of race and racism.

In this conversation Nick Pendry shares his thoughts and reflections on race and racism and how they inform and shape his practice. Nick invites us to consider our own positions and how together we can open the door to more authentic, meaningful and transformative conversations about race and racism. 

Inga-Britt Krause is Training and Development Consultant with special reference to race and equity at the Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust where she also worked as a Consultant Systemic Psychotherapist in a Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service. She first trained as a Social Anthropologist at the London School of Economics and Political Science and teaches widely, nationally and internationally, on the subject of social science and psychotherapy and about the place of culture and race in clinical practice and theory.

Paper discussed in this episode:
Krause, I. B. (2022). Can we teach race and equity?. Journal of Family Therapy, 44(1), 157-170.

New publication:
Barbetta, P., Cavagnis, M. E., Krause, I. B., & Telfener, U. (2022). Ethical and aesthetic explorations of systemic practice: New critical reflections. Taylor & Francis.

Dr Victor Yalom, founder of Psychotherapy.net joins the Systemic Way in a conversation about developing your best therapeutic self. We hear about his experiences of becoming a therapist, creating Psychotherapy.net and also tips on developing a more dynamic, authentic self so that you can better connect with and support your clients along their therapeutic journey.

Being self-aware, comfortable sitting with difficult emotions, and truly present for our clients are essential skills that cannot be learned from books and classes. Yet these are key to forming strong therapeutic alliances and promoting meaningful growth and change.

Dr Victor Yalom shares his ideas on continuing professional development beyond the books whether you’re an established clinician with years of experience or a new practitioner just starting out.

www.psychotherapy.net

In this episode, Julie and Sezer speak with Gwyn Daniel about her connection to politics and systemic thinking and how she navigates the two in the systemic community. Gwyn talks about gender, power, class and geography in this rich and insightful episode.

Gwyn Daniel is a Systemic Family Therapist, Trainer, Clinical Supervisor  and co-founder of the Oxford Family Institute. She has authored or co-authored many professional books and articles and we welcome Gwyn back to talk to us about this important topic.

In this episode we explore the personal and professional journey of Hesther Selbeck, a Dutch Systemic Psychotherapist and developer of Contextual Equine Therapy. Hesther takes us on a ride through the development, theory and practice that underpins her model. 

Contextual Equine Therapy is a form of systemic therapy in which horses are used as co-therapists. The interaction with the horses provides a (deep) experiential form of therapy in which clients come into contact with their emotions and are mirrored in their behavior. 

During the treatment, two psychotherapeutic methods are united: equine therapy (Eagala Model) and systemic therapy. The Eagala Model sees the horse as a sensitive co-therapist, the team facilitates. Equine therapy focuses on the emotional experience and giving meaning to the behavior of the animals in response to client(s).

Hesther Selbeck has developed this treatment based on her background and expertise as a systems therapist in Child and Youth Mental Health Care. There she encountered a challenge in changing patterns between family members and generating hope and perspective. She questioned the context of the clinic on the psychiatric behavior of young people. While traveling on horseback through Mongolia, she discovered a process of interaction between her and the horse. There was an interaction going on. These insights and experiences became the basis for the approach.

 
www.hestherselbeck.nl 

In this episode we are honoured to speak with Ncazelo Ncube-Mlilo, where we discuss her work with a focus on the COURRAGE approach that she has developed with women who have experienced trauma.  COURRAGE is a collective narrative way of working that privileges the alternative stories of women who have faced significant hardships. It honours the strengths, skills and courage women show and use in the face of sorrow and grief.

Ncazelo talks us through the different stages of the model and shares stories about how it was co-created and reflections in the women's experiences.  This is an inspiring and insightful talk with a practitioner who takes us into the heart of her practice. 

Ncazelo Ncube-Mlilo, the pioneer of Tree of Life through her organisation PHOLA  provides training and supervision in many countries where the methodology is used to support practitioners to remain rooted to the values and principles that inform it. The trainings offered seek to ensure fidelity in the use, application and adaptation of the methodology and contribute towards promoting culturally sensitive therapies.

She developed other culturally sensitive counselling tools namely; COURRAGE Methodology and NARRATIVES IN THE SUITCASE Project. 

Find out more about Ncazelo and PHOLA at:

https://phola.org 

In this episode, Julie and Sezer speak with Chiara Santin who  is a Systemic and Family Psychotherapist, supervisor, trainer and Director of Rainbow Family Therapy Services  and Rainbow Community Projects CIC.  

Chiara has  worked with children and families for more than 30 years, in Italy as a community-based youth worker and in UK as a professional. She is passionate about promoting affordable family therapy, activity-based therapy and EcoTherapy. 

EcoTherapy is a form of therapy  which uses  nature as the context for change, self-growth and healing.  It is the application of Ecopsychology, a well-developed field to claim people’s need to reconnect to nature for their own benefit as well as promoting a renewed awareness and commitment to caring and protecting the environment of which we are part of. 

Chiara talks to us about her projects in applying EcoTherapy to systemic family therapy. 

For more information about Chiara's work and EcoTherapy, visit her website on:

www.familytherapyservicesrainbow.org