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Outline

Reduce Anxiety, Depression, and Unworthiness

Neuroscience – Psychoeducation and Practices

• Neuroplasticity – your brain’s ability to organize and learn
• The triune brain
• Primary emotional motivators
• Negativity bias of your brain
• Savoring the good and affiliation system of the brain
• Social brain: causes and conditions
• Default mode network, salience network and central executive network of the brain
• Neuroscience exercises for clinical use
• Use of art expression to personalize learning
• Use of small group sharing (not therapy) for learning
• Exploration of emotional motivators, social brain and savoring the good to personalize learning and small group sharing

Reduce Feelings of Overwhelm, Dissociation and Shame

Lead Clients to Emotional Stabilization

• Emotional stabilization skills
• Body scan and sensory input for stabilization
• Mindful breathing practices
• Impact of yoga on nervous system
• Emotional Freedom Technique
• Mindful walking
• Clinical examples of emotional stabilization skills
• Practice emotional stabilization skills

Teach Clients to Observe and Choose Thoughts

Experience the Impact of Thoughts

• Nonjudgmental observing of thoughts
• Naming – write thoughts down
• Recognize, distance and dis-identify from narrative of self-identity
• Relate to the voice of the inner critic
• Address negative thoughts regarding chronic pain
• Store consciousness/mind consciousness and therapeutic implications
• Use of chants, mantras, songs for healing
• Nourishing wholesome thoughts – use of repetition and concentration
• Habit tendencies and neuronal pathways
• Accessing beneficial memories
• Clinical examples of relating to thoughts therapeutically
• Exploration of observing and choosing thoughts to personalize learning and small group sharing

Help Clients Approach and Alleviate Distressing Emotions While Cultivating Emotional Aliveness

Treat Distress with Mercy

• Be there for grief
• Comfort pose and self-love mantra
• Emotional Freedom Technique for client self-care
• Yoga for emotional trauma/anxiety
• Yoga for depression
• Clinical examples of treating distress with mercy
• Activity to personalize the client’s experience
• Exploration of approaching and alleviating emotions to personalize learning and small group sharing

Promote Self-Compassion and Increase Emotional Resilience and Self-Acceptance in Clients

Why Kindness to Self at Times Cause Distress

• Who has seen your goodness? – restoring trust
• Teachers of compassion
• The voice of the inner friend
• Three-part self-compassion note
• Offering loving kindness to any inner aspect that feels not deserving
• Compassion for the inner critic
• Tonglen practice – receiving suffering and sending compassion
• Clinical examples of utilizing self-compassion
• Exploration of compassion practices to personalize learning and small group sharing

Resources to Regulate Nervous System and Restore Self-Worth in Clients

Causes of Unworthiness and Shame

• Impact of shame on brain – default network and pain system
• The physiology of shame
• Differentiate among shame, defiance, and noble posture
• Simple yoga for healing the physiology of shame
• Narrative of unworthiness
• Create a new narrative of self
• Life review/eulogy to discover true values
• Clinical examples of treating unworthiness and shame
• Write eulogy to discover true values and small group sharing

Mindfulness Applications for Specific Clinical Use

Mindfulness Communications Process for Conflict Resolution and Emotional Bonding

• Mindful eating practice and research on mindfulness for overeating
• Learn and practice leading mindful exercises and yoga for emotional trauma/anxiety and depression

Faculty

Mary NurrieStearns, MSW, LCSW, C-IAYT, E-RYT 500

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Mary NurrieStearns, MSW, LCSW, C-IAYT, teaches seminars and retreats to teach clinicians how to take mindfulness skills, brain based protocols for treating shame and office-based yoga back to their clients. These evidence based clinical interventions move therapy forward by improving emotional regulation, restoring healthy nervous system functioning and cultivating healthier thought patterns. Both mindfulness and yoga practices have brought healing and calm to Mary’s clients and students.

Mary provides participants with the latest research results and pulls together the work of experts in the mental health field who are proponents of both practices (i.e. Bessel van der Kolk, Jon Kabat-Zinn). She draws on 37 years as a mental health professional counselor and 27 years of meditation and yoga practice. She is a certified yoga therapist, seasoned yoga teacher and ordained member of Thich Naht Hahn’s Order of Interbeing.

Mary is the author of Healing Anxiety, Depression and Unworthiness: 78 Brain-Changing Mindfulness & Yoga Practices (PESI, 2018), Yoga for Anxiety with Rick NurrieStearns (New Harbinger, 2010), Yoga for Emotional Trauma with Rick NurrieStearns (New Harbinger, 2013), Yoga Mind – Peaceful Mind with Rick NurrieStearns (New Harbinger, 2015), and Daily Meditations for Healing and Happiness: 52 Card Deck (PESI, 2016). Mary is the co-editor of Soulful Living (Hci, 1999) and former editor of Personal Transformation magazine. She has produced DVDs on yoga for emotional trauma and depression. Mary teaches across the United States.

Speaker Disclosures:

Financial: Mary NurrieStearns maintains a private practice. She receives royalties as an author for New Harbinger’s Publishing. Ms. NurrieStearns receives a speaking honorarium from PESI, Inc.

Nonfinancial: Mary NurrieStearns has no relevant nonfinancial relationship to disclose.