WC25 Program_LR 8

TRACK WORKSHOPS

emotional regulation, empathy, and more. Additionally, par ticipants will assess how betrayal trauma from pornography use often manifests in relationships as intense emotional pain, distrust, and feelings of insecurity, leading to difficulty in establishing emotional intimacy and communication be tween partners. Learning Objectives 1. Identify key indicators of problematic pornography use and develop skills for assessing its impact of pornography use on both the individuals and the relationship as a whole. 2. Assess how betrayal trauma from pornography use pres ents in relationships, including emotional pain, distrust, insecurity, and challenges in rebuilding emotional intimacy and communication between partners. 3. Outline a comprehensive approach to addressing por nography use in relationships, focusing on key areas such as trauma, conflict, emotional regulation, empathy, and trust restoration. 210. Sandtray Therapy: A Practical Intervention When Working with Traumatized Youth 1.25 credit hours Continuing Education Accreditations applicable to this workshop: APA, ASWB, NBCC, IBCC, Florida Board of Clinical Social Work, Marriage and Family Therapy, and Mental Health Counseling Level: Advanced Summary Sandtray therapy offers traumatized youth a clinically safe and therapeutic environment to process and resolve trauma. This modality engages symbolism, where materi als represent aspects of the trauma; projection, allowing intense emotions to be externalized onto the sandtray me dia; and sublimation, enabling the redirection of negative emotions onto the materials. According to van der Kolk (2014), neuroimaging studies reveal that trauma impacts brain function by reducing activity in the prefrontal cortex, which is responsible for executive functioning, and Broca’s area, which is associated with language, while increasing activation in the limbic system. This dynamic often leaves individuals with PTSD in a state of “speechless terror,” im peding their ability to articulate traumatic experiences. For youth, these neurological and psychological barriers fur ther complicate verbal expression of their pain. Sandtray therapy emerges as a powerful intervention with strong potential for both psychotherapeutic and neurotherapeutic benefits, allowing youth to express and process their trau ma nonverbally. This workshop, tailored to psychologists and licensed mental health professionals, emphasizes ethi cal and clinical recommendations for further training in sandtray therapy while introducing its foundational tech niques and applications for addressing trauma in youth. Daniel Sweeney, Ph.D. George Fox University

Learning Objectives 1. Discuss the psychological and neurobiological effects of trauma on youth and the neurotherapeutic benefits of sandtray therapy. 2. Identify the essential materials required for conducting sandtray therapy. 3. Explore evidence-based strategies and techniques in volved in implementing sandtray therapy in clinical practice. 211. Seeing Red: Disarming Angry People 1.25 credit hours Continuing Education Accreditations applicable to this workshop: IBCC Bible CEUs applicable to this workshop: ACSI Educational CEUs applicable to this workshop: ACSI Level: Beginner Ed Welch, Ph.D. Christian Counseling & Educational Foundation Summary While much of the current research in Christian Counsel ing focuses on critical issues such as abuse and trauma, it is essential not to overlook the age-old human struggles, par ticularly anger, which plays a significant role in both. Anger remains one of the most persistent and complex emotional challenges, often rooted within Christian clients. Individu als who experience intense anger often believe with certain ty that they are correct, which can obscure the true nature of the emotion. In this workshop, licensed mental health professionals, coaches, and pastors will explore therapeutic strategies to help Christian clients recognize and confront anger. Participants will understand why blindness to anger occurs and develop strategies to see it more clearly. This workshop will also examine the difference between healthy and unhealthy expressions of anger, particularly from Jesus’ biblical perspective. Additionally, participants will learn sim ple, practical methods to reach the heart of an angry Chris tian client, fostering a greater understanding and healing. Learning Objectives 1. Identify the psychological and emotional reasons behind the blindness to anger of Christian clients and develop strat egies to help those clients recognize it more clearly. 2. Differentiate between healthy and unhealthy expressions of anger, using the biblical perspective of the life of Jesus as a model for appropriate emotional expression. 3. Apply practical methods to reach the heart of an angry Christian client, facilitating deeper emotional awareness and healing through simple, effective interventions. 212. Sleep and Chronic Insomnia: Empirical Evidence and Clinical Applications from a Christian Perspective 1.25 credit hours Continuing Education Accreditations applicable to this workshop: APA, ASWB, NBCC, NAADAC, IBCC, Florida Board of Clinical Social

2025 AACC UNITED WORLD CONFERENCE

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