Compassion Focused Therapy for Queer Folk

Tuesday 17th October 2023 - Tuesday 21st November, 2023

1pm-2pm

Online

6 Tuesday Lunchtimes - Bring your lunch along!

When setting up the Mindful Psychology Practice, Charlotte tells us:

“I was always very keen on creating safe spaces for specific communities who are oppressed. As a queer person with positions of privilege and oppression, I wanted to offer a unique therapeutic space to those who may have had the experience of feeling exiled, othered, oppressed or forced into a particular box or narrative because of their gender, sexuality or relationship structures. Compassion Focused Therapy offers huge benefit to those who may have been oppressed, shamed or criticised either overtly or covertly by their families/ friends/ society/ politicians/ general life discourse/ religion etc. Compassion Focused Therapy helps us understand our inner critic, something I have a huge amount of personal experience with and sometimes have a better/ worse relationship with. But compassion focused practices have been hugely beneficial to me and have helped me to find a way to soothe, comfort and be kind to oppressed and frightened parts of myself. I am so keen to pass this onto others”.

Dr. Charlotte Whiteley is a highly respected psychologist and renowned meditation teacher, known for her profound expertise in integrating mindfulness practices into the field of psychology. With her compassionate approach and keen insight, Dr. Whiteley empowers her clients to navigate through life's challenges with grace and wisdom. Combining her extensive knowledge of psychological theory, systemic and social justice training and her deep understanding of meditation techniques, she offers a unique perspective that transcends traditional therapy. Dr. Whiteley's skillful guidance enables individuals to cultivate self-awareness and discover their authentic selves. Her commitment to holistic healing and her ability to create a safe and welcoming space for growth make her a trusted mentor and transformative force in the lives of those she serves.

Benefits of Compassion Focused Therapy:

• Emphasis on self-compassion: Compassion Focused Therapy (CFT) places great importance on developing self-compassion, which helps individuals learn to be kinder and more accepting of parts of themselves. This can be particularly beneficial for individuals struggling with self-criticism and low self-esteem.

• Addresses shame and self-blame: CFT recognizes the harmful impact of shame and self-blame on mental health. By incorporating techniques like compassionate imagery and compassionate letter writing, CFT provides tools to challenge and reduce such negative self-perceptions, fostering healing and self-acceptance.

• Suitable for a range of psychological and emotional issues: CFT is a versatile therapy approach that can be beneficial for various mental health conditions, including anxiety, depression, eating disorders, trauma, and other shame-based difficulties. Its holistic nature allows it to address the underlying emotional and psychological factors contributing to these issues.

• Focuses on emotion: CFT emphasizes the development of emotional regulation skills, helping individuals understand and manage difficult emotions effectively. By promoting emotional awareness and regulation, CFT equips individuals with lifelong coping strategies that can enhance their overall well-being.

• Strengthens resilience: Through cultivating self-compassion and compassion towards others, CFT helps individuals build resilience in the face of adversity. This therapy approach encourages individuals to tap into their inner resources, promoting psychological, emotional, and social resilience.

• Systemic Focus: This approach pays particular attention to challenges created by society and systems that we are part of. It helps to understand that the pain we can experience in life is not our fault, it is the nature of society and our human minds that can create barriers. We learn to understand more about this and respond in a kind, patient more compassionate way to ourselves and others.
  

Structure of the course:

Week 1: Introductions, introduction to Compassion Focused Therapy, Contracting together, Compassion Focused Meditation practice.

In week 1, we introduce ourselves to each other, in a way that feels safe! You will be introduced to CFT and the basic theory behind it. We will create a contract together for the rest of the course, which will inform how we stay safe together, how we create a space that aligns with our values. We will start some basic self-compassion meditation practices.

Week 2: The three emotional systems and how this connects to experiences of shame/ oppression and othersness

In week 2, you will be introduced to the three emotional systems model of compassion focused therapy (Motivation, Threat and Soothing system). You will apply your own emotional world to these systems, in a way that feels safe to you. You will learn about attachment theory and evolutionary psychology and about the different parts of our experiences.

Week 3: Mindful Awareness

In week 3 there will be a particular focus on mindfulness-based practices for thoughts, emotions and difficult experiences. Meditation is an incredibly important aspect of CFT so regardless of your history with meditation (good/ bad/ neutral), you will be invited to explore a new relationship with your mind and your emotions.

Week 4: Self compassion, multiple selves and receiving compassion from others

In week 4 you will start to go deeper into the practice of self-compassion, you will learn more about this concept and how it is innate in all of us but how our tricky minds can get in the way. You will learn more about different parts of ourselves (scared parts, angry parts, shamed parts) and you will learn how to apply compass-focused practice to these parts. You will also learn about opening up to receiving compassion from others.

Week 5: Self-criticism, shame and guilt

In week 5, we will go deeper into difficult and complicated experiences with self-criticism, shame and guilt. You may be invited to participate in a role play, if you feel safe to do so. This can be a powerful week so it will be important to ensure you have some space between the course and whatever you are going back into in the afternoon (maybe a 15 minute walk).

Week 6: Deepening self-compassion and compassion for others

In week 6, you will bring together all that you have learnt over the course and we will be doing a practice together that also harnesses compassion to others. You will finish the course with some clear ideas of how to continue developing your compassion focused practice and you will have a number of different meditations, practices, visualisations and other tools to go away with and continue deepening.

Practicalities

Cost - The full cost of this course is £200 however, there are LOW COST and ‘PAY WHAT YOU CAN’ spaces. You can also set up a payment plan if needed.

BOOK NOW or email for more information/ payment plan/ low cost at enquiries@mindfulpsychologypractice.co.uk

Once you have booked, a health information form will be sent to you in addition to practice logs that you’ll need for the course. You will also then be sent the zoom link, which will remain the same for the full 6 weeks of the course.

Please see our Mindfulness Courses FAQ’s for further information on practicalities here.