The Spells that Bind: Bringing Awareness to Stories That Can Hold System Involved Youth & Families Hostage

Vickie Xiao Rong Chang, PhD

Training Description

People make sense of life through stories; certain core narratives define who we are and reflect our values, fears, and ultimately, liberate or imprison us. In this training, we will personally apply a process which, once understood, can help you support system involved youth and families toward awareness of whether or not the core stories of their lives reflect their values, who they want to be, and their dreams. Using reflective writing, dyadic/group sharing, and awareness/somatic/land-based exercises, together we will practice a process that can be utilized to support improved outcomes for system involved youth including seeking to hospice and reviving the stories that will bring greater freedom. These strategies are useful for preventing and/or managing vicarious trauma and compassion fatigue and can be easily taught to foster or system involved youth and families as well.

Learning Objectives

· Acquire information from three research studies supporting narrative and mindfulness-based approaches to healing

· Be able to explain how to help system involved youth and family identify stories connected to their lives, identity, and the world they live in

· Apply reflective writing, sharing, and awareness/somatic exercises to shift these stories

Agenda

3:00-3:15PM  Discuss the importance of stories in creating meaning within system involved youth and family lives; the power of stories to inspire, heal, and to imprison

3:15-3:30PM  Present research narrative and mindfulness approaches to healing.

3:30-3:45PM  Using reflective writing, learn and practice the process of identifying three core stories in your life, and whether they are aligned with your values and dreams so that these can later be applied within efforts to support system involved youth.

3:45-3:55PM  Share stories in dyads or triads.

3:55-4:00PM  Break (CE hours will not be offered for this time)

4:00-4:15PM  Harvest as a group

4:15-4:30PM  Practice writing new stories which move towards dreams & alignment with values so that these strategies can later be taught and applied within efforts to support system involved youth

4:30-4:45PM  Share stories, practice the process of noticing feeling in the body, using awareness, body, and land practices to support new stories in taking root

4:45-5:00PM  Answer questions and offer support for moving with new stories into life and helping system involved youth to do the same

Meet Our Trainer

The daughter of Northern Chinese immigrants, Dr. Vickie Chang (she/her) was born and raised in the SF Bay Area. In her work as a psychologist, writer, and group facilitator, she is committed to personal and collective liberation. She is passionate about climate justice and supporting BIPOC/API healing in a variety of ways, including working with activist groups. For more on her background, see www.vickiechangphd.com.

This course meets the qualifications for (1.92) BBS CE hours for LCSWs, LMFTs, LPCCs, and LEPs as required by the California Board of Behavioral Sciences & is provided by Fred Finch Youth Center, CAMFT Provider #045295.