Leadership Springs Where It May
by Eleanor Howe, Director
Our work presents us with the opportunity to approach our clients in a loosely held tension between discipline and spontaneity. Sometimes we respond to a patient in a way that surprises us and yet opens the client to freedom, and opens the therapeutic relationship going forward. These transactions aren’t programmed; what is programmed is the practice that both therapist and patient bring to their joint endeavor.
Moments of leadership often happen in parallel fashion. In a group setting, one can’t predict whose mouth will proffer pearls of wisdom or an expression that sets something amazing in motion. As an example, I’d like to share an event, one that became a model scene for me – a model scene of how a large group’s adherence to its tenets provides a rich and fertile climate for grappling with and solving community concerns. Productive ideas arise out of a loosely held tension between spontaneity and discipline and may arise, unprogrammed, from any member.
For several years, I attended Adelphi Friends meeting, a nearby Quaker meeting. I began at a time when each of my parents was critically ill and they were living away from their home and support system. I needed a foundation on which to find a footing, to get me through the dread gripping me. The worship experience matched my need, and so for several years I became a regular attender.
You may not know that Quakers worship in silence as a corporal body. Individuals bend their attention inward toward what they believe is a capacity to discern Truth, which is considered to be Light, or Love. Quakers believe that worshipping together creates a unique capacity for discernment that is different and greater than what one individual might achieve. The worship hour starts with some shuffling of body parts, coughs, looking around, but gradually, and ideally, a meeting finds a felt center as a group. The silent worship is broken when a participant feels moved to stand to share an insight or Truth. Their belief is that the insight ought to be shared, and that because the Truth that is discerned arises from the group’s effort, it is likely to be meaningful to many.
One day, when the meeting was quiet, a man in one of the front rows stood and began “preaching” non-stop. He appeared to be someone not of the community, but known to some. He was obviously speaking from his religious tradition. I wondered if there was a psychotic process. Whatever motivated him, his behavior was profoundly violating the sanctity of this meetinghouse. Some members stood without speaking in what is apparently a tradition of protest. The outsider was undeterred and continued loudly on with a fire-and-brimstone rant. It went on and on. Tension and unhappiness inside me grew. I wondered, “Do Quakers – who cherish non-violence — ever escort someone out?”
And then: A woman I knew to be a regular attender began to sing. She wasn’t a known leader of the community. If anything, I viewed her as possibly rigid. Still, it was she who initiated a solution to our shared dilemma. I didn’t know the hymn, but obviously many others did. Calmly they joined in. The outsider continued to speak as the congregation gently sang. His rant and the singing co-occurred. What a well-chosen song on her part – It had so many verses! At some point I began to hear its words and to pay it attention and I realized that was because I no longer heard the voice of the preaching intruder. The group singing had incorporated his rant, had met him with calm and steady persistence, and finally and peacefully he yielded. After awhile, the singing concluded. Everyone standing sat down and we resumed our corporate meditation. The preacher remained seated in the front row. Not expelled. Accepting of a group solution.
This event became a model scene for me: That when a group adheres to its wisdom, when it resists the temptation to break away from its well-vetted precepts, when it accepts that its processes will hold true, any member may reveal an idea that solves what seemed such a thorny problem.
This truism is important for ICP+P. Our eyes are big. We undertake much and provide well-crafted learning opportunities in many formats. We rely on a large pool of volunteers to create and coordinate our varied activities.
We will be holding a planning meeting in September, one in which our membership will examine the full range of our aspirations and the capacities of our volunteer labor pool to actualize them. This examination constitutes a natural developmental step in our organization’s life, a time to take stock and to affirm our priorities and commitments. I enjoy working within the warm, striving “can-do” culture of ICP+P and our commitment to a non-hierarchical governance of our professional community. Like others, I’ll share any knowledge that seems useful and will share in maintaining a space that is fertile for suggestions, frameworks and solutions. Drawing from my model scene, I cherish trusting the process and not knowing in advance from whom will come the words, actions, and ideas that ultimately frame our conversation. The way will open.
Call for Submissions for Clinical Reflections Day Due by October 1, 2019
Call for Clinical Vignettes for Mark Blechner Conference in September
Mark Blechner will be speaking on The Evolving Landscape of Gender and Sexuality: Clinical Implications, at our fall conference on September 28, 2019. In order to give Dr. Blechner the opportunity to discuss a variety of clinical situations, we are seeking brief vignettes that address clinical issues surrounding gender and sexual diversity.
Vignettes should be 2 -3 pages, or approximately five minutes when read aloud. Each vignette will be read by its author, followed by 5 minutes for Dr. Blechner’s response and 10 minutes of audience discussion. If an author would prefer not to read their vignette aloud, someone from the program committee is available to read it (this is the same format as the Andrea Celenza conference a few years back). The program committee will select four vignettes. We are particularly hoping to have a diversity of clinicians and clinical situations represented, and participants of all experience levels are invited to submit. The conference committee will review and select the vignettes to be used, based on clinical formulation, writing and diversity of issues represented. Submissions should be emailed to Dr. Janna Sandmeyer at JannaSandmeyer@me.com by August 15, 2019. Please feel free to email Janna with any questions.
Upcoming Training + Education
Short Course
Circling the Chairs: Starting Groups in Private Practice
Friday, September 20, 2019 from 12:30-3:45 pm ~ ICP+P Office, 4601 Connecticut Ave., NW, Suite 8, Washington, DC 20008
Presented by:
About the Short Course:
Launching a group can be one of the most challenging tasks you face as a group therapist. It is easy to get stuck because you are unsure what to do next. In this workshop participants will explore the potential pitfalls of starting a group and learn how to avoid them. Using practical advice that is grounded in group theory, participants are guided through a stepwise process of launching a group.
At the conclusion of the short course, attendees will be able to:
- Define the parameters (open, closed, time-limited, population, etc.) and focus of the group they want to start.
- Evaluate how to identify and connect with referral sources, and to promote your group, to ensure a successful group therapy experience for the participants.
- Identify the important elements of forming a group.
- Plan how to launch a group.
This program is appropriate for introductory and intermediate level clinicians and offers 3 CEs.
Understanding Homophobia in our Forefathers: Rethinking How Kohut Actually Worked
Featuring Janna Sandmeyer, PhD and Discussant Mark J. Blechner, PhD
Friday, September 27, 2019, 3:30 – 5:30 pm ~ Silver Spring Civic Building at Veterans Plaza, Silver Spring, MD
About the Conference:
Dr. Sandmeyer will present her Ralph Roughton award winning paper, “Understanding Homophobia in our Forefathers: Rethinking How Kohut Actually Worked.” In this presentation, we will explore the impact of Jule Miller’s (1985) account of his supervision with Heinz Kohut, depicted in Miller’s seminal paper, “How Kohut Actually Worked.”
Through the lens of contemporary self psychology, we will revisit the supervision with an eye toward leading edge interpretations that support the patient’s same-sex striving as a healthy expression of his sexuality. We will consider the context of the times in which the supervision occurred, as well as more personal and theoretical factors that may have influenced Kohut and Miller’s thinking. Dr. Blechner will bring his decades of experience as an analyst working with LGBTQ people to this discussion, in which attendees will be encouraged to participate.
At the conclusion of this pre-conference, attendees will be able to:
- Describe the clinical principles that exemplified Kohut’s way of thinking toward the end of his life.
- Identify the heterosexist and homophobic aspects of Jule Miller’s (1985) article, ‘How Kohut Actually Worked.’
- Describe correctives for the heterosexist and homophobic aspects of Jule Miller’s (1985) article, ‘How Kohut Actually Worked.’
This conference is appropriate for mental health professionals at all levels of experience and offers 2 LGBTQ/Diversity CEs.
The Evolving Landscape of Gender and Sexuality: Clinical Implications
Featuring Mark J. Blechner, PhD
Saturday, September 28, 2019, 9:00 am – 12:30 pm ~ Silver Spring Civic Building at Veterans Plaza, Silver Spring, MD
About the Conference:
- Discuss issues of gender, sexual orientation, and sexual problems that are commonly seen in psychotherapy today;
- Analyze the influence of culture on these issues and explain how personal beliefs and attitudes affect clinical work;
- Prepare a strategy for educating yourself about sexual issues well beyond the training offered in mental health programs, and describe ways of dealing with transference and countertransference dilemmas that affect such work.
2019-2020 ICP+P Training
- September 20, 2019, Short Course – “Circling the Chairs: Starting Groups in Private Practice” with Rob Williams, LICSW, CGP, Liz Marsh, MSW, LICSW, Art Therapist, David A. Heilman, PsyD, Jennifer McLish, LCSW. ICP+P Office, 4601 Connecticut Ave., NW, Suite 8, Washington, DC 20008, 12:30 – 3:45 pm (3 CEs).
- September 27, 2019, Pre-Conference – “Understanding Homophobia in our Forefathers: Rethinking How Kohut Actually Worked” with Janna Sandmeyer, PhD with Mark Blechner, PhD as discussant. Silver Spring Civic Building, 3:30-5:30 pm, 2 CEs. Fulfills LGBTQ/Diversity credit requirement.
- September 28, 2019, Conference – “The Evolving Landscape of Gender and Sexuality: Clinical Implications” with Mark J. Blechner, PhD, Silver Spring Civic Building, 9:00am-12:30pm, 3 CEs. Fulfills LGBTQ/Diversity credit requirement.
- November 15, 2019, Short Course – “Keeping the Body in Mind: Affect Regulation for Trauma Survivors” with Tally Tripp, LCSW, ATR-BC, CTT. ICP+P Office, 4601 Connecticut Ave., NW, Suite 8, Washington, DC 20008, 12:30 – 3:45 pm (3 CEs).
- December 7, 2019, Conference – with Anton H. Hart, PhD, Silver Spring Civic Building, 9:00am-12:30pm, 3 CEs. Fulfills Diversity credit requirement.
- February 22, 2020, Conference – Clinical Reflections (previously Scientific Day), Silver Spring Civic Building, 9:00am-12:30pm, 3 CEs.
- May 1, 2020, Pre-Conference – “Misogyny, Hatred and Envy” with Adrienne Harris, PhD
- May 2, 2020, Conference – “Gender Fluidity and Gender Fixed: Contemporary Intersectional and Psychoanalytic Models of Gender and Gender Development” with Adrienne Harris, PhD. Georgetown University Conference Center, 9:00 am-5:00 pm.
News + Notes
Joanne Zucchetto, Simone Jacobs and Ly Vick Johnson have co-written “Understanding The Paradox of Surviving Childhood Trauma: Techniques and Tools for Working With Suicidality and Dissociation “ which was published by Routledge on July 25th.
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