Trauma, Addiction and Men: Create Connection, Increase Vulnerability and Improve Treatment Outcomes with the Male Client

CPD

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Speaker

Megan Salar, LCSW, ACADC, CCTP-II, EMDR-C Related seminars and products

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Megan Salar, LCSW, ACADC, CCTP-II, EMDR-C, is an Evergreen certified EMDR clinician and trainer, as well as a Certified Clinical Trauma Professional II through Evergreen Certifications. Megan is also an Advanced Certified Alcohol and Drug Counselor, who formerly owned and operated one of the largest treatment centers for substance abuse and trauma in Southeast Idaho, which was voted best in practice for 2019.

Her trainings have helped thousands of clinicians across the US get the most of EMDR, trauma and addiction-based skills and practices. She has been invited to train internationally at the International Society of Addiction Medicine in India, the International Conference on Addiction Research and Therapy in Amsterdam and at the Psicologia Institute of Italy. Megan has extensively been trained on the use of EMDR as a protocol and uses EMDR in her practice to achieve improved outcomes with a broad spectrum of clients in the areas of trauma, abuse, attachment and substance abuse. She is an expert witness at the State and Federal level for her expertise in areas surrounding trauma.

Megan is the author of EMDR Workbook for Trauma and PTSD: Skills to Manage Triggers, Move Beyond Traumatic Memories, and Take Back Your Life set to be released by New Harbinger Publications in 2023. She earned her master’s in Clinical Social Work from Northwest Nazarene University in 2011 and is an active member of the International Society of Addiction Medicine and the National Association of Social Workers. She currently owns and operates her own Counseling, Consulting and Training Business and is passionate about genuinely changing the landscape of trauma treatment through an authentic, hands-on perspective that she has uniquely made her own.
 

Speaker Disclosures:
Financial: Megan Salar has an employment relationship with Recoverhe Counseling & Consulting. She receives royalties as a published author. Megan Boardman receives a speaking honorarium and recording royalties from PESI, Inc. She is a paid consultant for Evergreen Certifications. Megan Boardman has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible organizations.
Non-financial: Megan Salar is a member of the International Society of Addiction Medicine, the EMDR International Association of EMDR Trauma Specialists, and the National Association of Social Workers.

Objectives

1. Assess how male roles and stereotypes are formed from society, culture, and family roles.
2. Analyze how self-esteem, self-worth, and self-efficacy are impacted through these roles and lead to maladaptive coping.
3. Determine how stereotyped behaviours drive rigid, addictive tendencies and develop solutions to increase willingness to change while keeping integrity intact.
4. Evaluate the clinical research related to suicide, substance abuse, and gender differences.
5. Integrate skills to help men increase their voice and choice since they are often the ‘forgotten, silent sufferers’ as it pertains to trauma.
6. Utilize reframing interventions, cognitive restructuring, and distress tolerance techniques that cultivate and demonstrate the importance of vulnerability and intimacy in their lives.

Outline

Male Gender Roles and Stereotypes: Understand What Drives the Behaviour

• Male gender roles and stereotypes
• The meaning/impact of gender roles
• ACE Study
• Male messages and trauma
• Cultural differences among male messages
• Prevalence of trauma in men

Identify the Root of Trauma and Addiction in Men: Understand the Research and Effective Assessment

• The addicted family system
• Chaotic and rigid family roles
• Suicide rate among men
• Impact of opioid epidemic
• Current limitations of successful long term recovery with men
• Barriers of change in treatment for men

Open Male Clients to Vulnerability and Change: Clinical Interventions to Overcome Male Shame and Stigma

• Healthy power vs. abuse of power
• Interdependence, independence, and codependence
• Self-esteem and emotional sobriety
• Vulnerability and supporting/validating attempts of openness
• Cognitive-behavioural techniques
• Solution-focused techniques

Therapeutic Adjustments for Men Who Struggle with “Talk Therapy”: 5 Techniques to Get Off on the Right Foot and Keep Men in Treatment

• Trauma adaptation in men
• MTREM and Seeking Safety for Men and other effective treatment approaches
• Biopsychosocial considerations for the male in treatment
• The “strong man” techniques for connection, courage, and strength
• Meaning, redefining values, grounding, and self-regulation

Other Treatment Roadblocks: Solutions for Common Concerns When Treating Men

• Angry clients
• Boundary concerns
• Attachment
• Intimacy
• Suicidality
• Trust & vulnerability

Target Audience

• Counselors
• Social Workers
• Psychologists
• Addiction Counselors
• Therapists
• Marriage & Family Therapists
• Nurses
• Case Managers
• Other Mental Health Professionals