EFT: Hold Me Tight
Kathryn Rheem, MS, George Faller, MS

This institute offers participants the wisdom gained from the new
scientific understanding of love and from 25 years of research and
clinical practice in Emotionally Focused Couple Therapy (EFT) developed
by Sue Johnson. The presentation will begin with of a clear picture of romantic
love as the natural arena for personal health, resilience and growth and an outline
and guide through four relationship-enhancing conversations: Recognizing
Demon Dialogues; Finding Your Raw Spots; The Hold Me Tight Conversation; and
Forgiving Injuries. The institute will include a summary of the attachment
perspective on love and loving and offer a number of ways to help couples
keep love strong and will conclude with guidlines for teaching EFT programs
in a variety of settings (military, congregations, Head Start, community agencies)
and for using EFT principles in your private practice settings.

Participants will be able to:
Understand the exquisite logic of love. Mystery solved!
Map out the key responses and cycles that sabotage a felt sense of connection in relationship.
Identify the basic needs and fears – the music of the relationship dance.
Shape conversations to foster a secure lasting bond between partners.

The institute will include guided practice to help participants learn how to use
this perspective and conversations in their own relationships or use them
to guide couples into these conversations.

Participants will receive the following Handouts:
1. The importance of a loving relationship
2. What we know about the nature of love and bonding
3. What is effective dependency
4. Conversation 1 - Recognizing the Demon Dialogue (Steps, example, exercises)
5. Conversation 2 - Finding Your Raw Spots
6. Conversation 3 - The Hold me Tight Conversation – Reaching and Engaging
7. Conversation 4 – The Forgiving Injuries Conversation
8. Attachment Rituals – to keep your love blooming.
9. A certificate of attendance from the EFT Center

Who should attend:
Marriage and Couples Eduators, mentor couples, therapists, counselors, clergy, and the public.
In fact, here is a testimonial from an attendee at this institute in 2008 in San Francisco:
"My husband and I attended the EFT Institute and it has changed my life
(with my husband)!"

Suggested reading:
The workshop and model are based on the book, Hold Me Tight, LittleBrown, April 2008 (click to order).
Johnson, S. M. (2004) The practice of emotionally focused couples therapy: Creating connection. NY Brunner/Routledge.
Johnson, S. M, & Whiffen, V. (2003) Attachment processes in couple and family therapy. NY. Guilford Press.

About Kathryn Rheem:
Kathryn Rheem, M.S., LCMFT, ABD, is a certified EFT therapist, supervisor,
and trainer. She is the director of The Couple & Family Therapy Center, LLC,
located in Bethesda, Maryland, which serves military and civilian couples
and the Associate Director at the Washington Baltimore Center for EFT. She
has worked extensively with combat-related trauma and the impacts of high
stress on couple relationships. Kathryn has trained Army Family Life
Chaplains and worked with military service members and their partners at
Fort Hood, TX, Camp Lejeune, NC, Fort Belvoir, VA, Fort Leavenworth, KS, and
in Germany. Kathryn, along with Dr. Sue Johnson, is the founder and director
of Strong Bonds, Strong Couples, LLC, which provides EFT-based weekend
retreats for soldiers coming home from Iraq and Afghanistan and their
partners. Kathryn has published Attachment and the Creation of a Safe Haven:
Use of Emotion Focused Therapy in Treating Military Couples Impacted by the
Trauma of War (Family Therapy, 2008) and a chapter on using EFT with
military couples (Families under Fire: Systemic therapy with military
families, Routledge, in press). Kathryn, a clinical member of AAMFT, can be
contacted at Kathryn@hotmail.com. 

About George Faller:
George Faller is a Lieutenant in the NYC Fire Department and is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist in New York.  He received his MS in Marriage and Family Therapy from Iona College.  After September 11th, 2001, George received extensive training from Dr. Susan Johnson in using Emotionally Focused Therapy with traumatized couples.   He is an EFT approved clinician, supervisor, and trainer and a clinical member and approved supervisor of AAMFT.  George is the founder and director of the New York Center for Emotionally Focused Therapy which is helping to spread EFT in the tri-state area.  Currently George is running numerous supervision groups, core skills trainings, externships and is teaching many EFT courses at the Ackerman Institute in Manhattan.  George is also currently working with the US Army to help repair returning veterans’ marriages and train Army chaplains in using EFT.  George lives in NY with his wife, Kathy, and their two sons, Christian and Dylan.

 Information on EFT resources and training tapes and an outline of the EFT externship curriculum and registration procedures are available at: http://www.eft.ca

This institute is part of the week-long Smart Marriages conference.

Register for the Institute and the Conference: Click for Information on Conference Details, to download a conference brochure, REGISTER ONLINE, hotel & travel information & discounts, etc.