BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 PRODID:-//79.170.40.162//NONSGML kigkonsult.se iCalcreator 2.20// CALSCALE:GREGORIAN METHOD:PUBLISH X-WR-CALNAME:INTEGRA CPD X-WR-CALDESC:Next-Generation Training &\; Development for Counsellors &a mp\; Psychotherapists X-FROM-URL:https://integra-cpd.co.uk X-WR-TIMEZONE:Europe/London BEGIN:VTIMEZONE TZID:Europe/London X-LIC-LOCATION:Europe/London BEGIN:STANDARD DTSTART:20231029T020000 TZOFFSETFROM:+0100 TZOFFSETTO:+0000 RDATE:20241027T020000 TZNAME:GMT END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT DTSTART:20240331T010000 TZOFFSETFROM:+0000 TZOFFSETTO:+0100 TZNAME:BST END:DAYLIGHT END:VTIMEZONE BEGIN:VEVENT UID:ai1ec-926@www.integra-cpd.co.uk/integra-cpd.co.uk DTSTAMP:20240328T221449Z CATEGORIES;LANGUAGE=en-GB:All Counsellors &\; Psychotherapists\,Training Courses\,Workshop Groups (10 +) CONTACT:Michael Soth\; +44 1865 725 205\; info@integra-cpd.co.uk DESCRIPTION:
\nNow he worships at an altar of a stagnant pool
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\nAnd when he sees his reflection\, he’s fulfilled
\nOh\, man is opposed to fair play
\nHe wants it all and he wants it his way. Bob Dylan: License To Kill
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Narcissism has a reputation for be ing notoriously difficult to engage with in therapy\, for a variety of goo d reasons\, not least because the very idea of ‘needing’ therapy is a humi liating insult to the grandiose self. As one of the key modern ‘disturbanc es of the self’\, narcissism has replaced Victorian repression as the psyc hological disease of the age\, which means that the original theories of o ur discipline from 100 years ago no longer quite apply. As a dominant coll ective issue\, as exhibited by the celebrity culture all over the world an d all over the media\, the term ‘narcissism’ has entered pop psychology an d lost all precision and meaning. In order to be clinically useful\, we ne ed to have a clear\, circumscribed definition of narcissism\, and its orig ins and manifestations.
\nBeyond commonplace over-simplifications\, the various therapeutic traditions have widely divergent ideas and theorie s about narcissism\, leading to quite contradictory recommendations for th erapists. More than many other issues\, therefore\, narcissism req uires an integrative stance\, that can draw insights and understa nding from the various approaches and combine them\, to provide a comprehe nsive understanding and therapeutic response.
\nBecause the narcissi st tries to approximate an image of perfection (attempting to man ifest a grandiose self)\, this leads to a chameleon-like disconnection fro m the body\, and an objectifying\, ‘perfecting’ treatment of it. For many celebrities\, the body becomes an advertisement of the False Self\, treate d like one more fashion accessory. More than many other issues\, therefore \, narcissism calls for an embodied therapy\, reconnectin g the person to pleasurable\, ordinary human reality\, rather than pursuin g the delusions of a disembodied virtual self.
\nBecause the narciss ist was emotionally ‘used’ by their parent(s)\, their individuality was ne ver fully seen and mirrored. Therefore\, in the moment where we apply a ge neric diagnostic label and put the narcissist into the same category with many others\, we are re-inflicting a lack of individual mirroring. More th an any other issue\, narcissism reveals some of the shadow aspects and weaknesses of our discipline. In order to make therapy possi ble\, we cannot afford to rely on a reasonable and supposedly realistic eg o-ego alliance: we need a working alliance both with the wounded\, insigni ficant self as well as the inflated grandiose self.
\nThis course wi ll provide condensed understanding extracted from the various therapeutic approaches\, specifically drawing from and integrating the various psychoa nalytic\, the humanistic-embodied and the Jungian traditions. We will comb ine the theoretical input with practical\, experiential work\, based upon vignettes and case illustrations volunteered by participants\, to explore how these ideas may be applied in practice.
\nWe will be drawing on the following literature:
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