Welcome!
Thank you for visiting my website! Before telling you about my work in attachment and trauma, I’d like to acknowledge the three monumental issues that have erupted globally in the past couple of years and that concern me deeply: the climate emergency, the pandemic, and systemic racism. Since late 2019, I have devoted space here to those concerns. Now in August of 2021, I’ll be brief and simply put forth a plea: please understand that the terrible crises of wild fires, drought, rising sea-level, and flooding around the world are all accelerating at an exponential rate.
Mother Earth, perhaps the ultimate attachment figure, needs us to stop our abuse right now, and take action to become carbon-neutral. Our lives and the lives of our children and grandchildren literally depend upon it; in fact, all life on this planet depends upon it. Please take it seriously. This is not abstract, down the road, something that can be put off while other issues are dealt with. It’s happening right now. Educate yourself and recognize the small contributions you can make; they do help in the aggregate. However, fixing structural problems with the system is essential, so show governments and corporations it matters to you. Promote behaving as if life on earth matters.
And even more urgently now, prayers for Ukraine. Thank you for listening.
And moving on…
I’m an EMDRIA-Approved Consultant and Credit Provider offering consultation and training for psychotherapists trained in EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing). After 20 years of working with clients with histories of trauma, neglect, and abuse, and with attachment issues, I have retired from client work. It has been an honour to accompany these clients on their healing journeys.
EMDR has been central to my work since 1998 because of its incredible effectiveness in moving disturbing memories into the past. Developing a Secure Self, the attachment-based approach I have created with Imaginal Nurturing, directly addresses early deficits that can lead to low self-esteem, depression and anxiety, problems in relationships, and a myriad of other problems.
You will find information on this site about these approaches, my training and consultation, as well as my book and Imaginal Nurturing guided imagery sound tracks.
2020 edition of Developing a Secure Self now available!
I’m delighted to be able to offer a revised (2020) edition of my book, Developing a Secure Self: An Attachment-Based Approach to Adult Psychotherapy. It is available in both hard copy (spiral-bound paperback) and digital (pdf) formats.
Distance Training now available online only
My distance training program, Imaginal Nurturing, Ego States, and Attachment: An Integrated Approach to Early Deficits, is now available for therapists online. I have discontinued the original format of DVDs and manual, due to little demand with the changing technology. The training program has been approved by EMDRIA for 13 credit hours.
Here are some comments from therapists who have taken this training program:
~ “I have used this [approach] successfully in the forensic setting as well, including a death row unit with very good success. In fact much better results than I would ever expect. Further trauma processing goes much more smoothly when past traumas related to attachment are repaired, and one cannot imagine the traumas incurred by some of the folks on a death row unit. Pretty bad stuff.” ~ Brad Croyle, MA LPC
~ “I encourage every therapist to take this course. Thank you, April. You have taught me many invaluable skills and knowledge which can only greatly benefit my clients…. Thank you for your grace and genius.”
~ “Thank you for the wonderful training. I’ve been using I-N for the past week and a half, and have had incredible results. My clients are reporting feeling profoundly touched and changed by the experience. In a couple of cases, some things have happened that can only be described as miraculous. Thanks for putting this training together so that those of us who live far from you can bring the help and relief to our clients.”
I think distance training makes a lot of sense. It gives you much more flexibility since you can fit it into your schedule as you see fit, and it is more economical too. You can also review the material whenever you like, and there is no waste from packaging or the cost and wait with shipping.
Details are available on the “Training” page I will not be giving any more in-person trainings.
Consultation for therapists
One of the wonderful things about how “small” the world has become is that you are not restricted by geography in choosing a consultant. If you are wanting to become more adept with EMDR, and/or deepen your ability to work with ego states and attachment, please do check out my page on consultation. One consultee writes:
“As I learn more from you, I realize how I was doing EMDR without really knowing what I was after. It’s been a wonderful learning process.”.
Go to the Consultation page for more information
Imaginal Nurturing Guided Imageries
I received lovely notes from a couple of women who have used these recorded imageries:
“I just wanted to let you know how much I love your guided imagery CDs. I’ve been going for EMDR therapy for several months and it’s been an incredibly healing experience. But while I have been able to heal my childhood traumas, I was left with a very young part of myself who felt extremely lonely and needy. Nothing I have ever done on my own or in therapy was able to touch that part of me. But while listening to your CDs, especially ‘I’m So Glad You’re Here!’ (Feeding the Infant), I found imagining myself as the infant really helped. After doing that several times I realized those feelings of loneliness and neediness were gone!
So thank you so much. You have changed my life.”
“… I really enjoyed your recording today. It’s helped me access a part of myself I have had a lot of difficulty accessing despite repeated ego states therapy.”
I originally created these recordings to meet the requests of clients who wanted more Imaginal Nurturing experiences between sessions. They are not essential to the Developing a Secure Self/ Imaginal Nurturing approach, but have been appreciated by many whether or not they are working with a therapist. They are available in MP3 format.
You can listen to clips from these recordings when you go to the Guided Imagery page.
Thich Nhat Hanh and Imaginal Nurturing
I often suggested my clients check out exiled Vietnamese monk, Thich Nhat Hanh, who has devoted his life to world peace (he was nominated by Martin Luther King for the Nobel Peace prize of 1967) and to making Buddhist practices such as mindfulness accessible and relevant to people throughout the world in the 20th and 21st centuries. Because he is such a beautiful embodiment of calm, he has much to offer our society in which anxiety has become a serious widespread problem. (Mindfulness has become increasingly acknowledged as significant in treating anxiety problems.)
Thich Nhat Hanh has published many books all of which are very down to earth – Peace is Every Breath is one of my favourites. If you are looking for his work at a library, look under Nhat Hanh rather than Hanh. I have long admired his psychological insight but was surprised in his book Reconciliation to read material that is totally in keeping with Imaginal Nurturing:
The five-year-old child within needs a lot of compassion and attention. It would be nice if every day we would find a few minutes to sit down and practice this meditation [Breathing in , I see myself as a five-year-old child. Breathing out, I smile with compassion to the five-year-old child in me]. It would be very healing and very comforting, because the five-year-old child in us is still alive and needs to be taken care of. With acknowledgement and communication, we can see that child responding to us and she or he begins feeling better. If she feels better, we feel better also and we start to feel great freedom. [p. 66]
You may also wish to check out this remarkable man online.
Thank you for visiting my website. Please come again!