About this Event
Who should attend
Professionals working in the field of mental health including but not limited to clinical social workers, psychologists, therapists, counsellors, and psychiatric nurses.
A Certificate of Completion will be provided after the workshop.
Workshop Description
What happens when trauma processing is rushed before clients are grounded in the present? Why do some clients destabilize despite sound interventions? Many trauma survivors have rarely experienced true safety. What does it mean, neurobiologically and experientially, to feel grounded and secure?
This workshop positions finding solid ground as the essential foundation for all trauma work. Participants will learn how trauma disrupts orienting, attachment, and bodily safety systems, and how clinicians can restore regulation and connection through sensory pathways to healing.
Clinically practical strategies, including the Finding Solid Ground program and parts-informed approaches, will guide participants in helping clients establish physical and internal safety, enhance presence, and build coherence. Deep Brain Reorienting (DBR) will be introduced as a method to resolve traumatic shock at its neurophysiological roots, used only after stability is established, and contrasted with EMDR to clarify its unique approach.
Through theory, experiential practice, and hands-on application, attendees will leave with an actionable framework that integrates neuroscience, parts work, sensory pathways, and both bottom-up and top-down strategies. Clinicians will gain tools to reduce overwhelm, enhance readiness for trauma processing, and anchor therapy in the solid ground that makes lasting healing possible.
By the end of this workshop, participants will be able to:
· Apply neurobiological insights to assess and respond to traumatic stress in real-time.
· Use grounding and stabilization techniques, including Finding Solid Ground, to regulate clients’ nervous systems and prepare them for trauma processing.
· Recognize and work with protective parts to enhance internal safety, coherence, and readiness for intervention.
· Elegantly combine top-down (cognitive, reflective) and bottom-up (sensory, somatic) processing strategies to tailor trauma interventions to each client’s needs.
· Sequence trauma stabilization and processing interventions effectively to reduce overwhelm and support sustainable therapeutic outcomes.
Your presenter
Ruth Lanius, M.D., Ph.D. is a Clinician-Scientist, Psychiatry Professor, and Harris-Woodman Chair in Mind-Body Medicine at Western University of Canada, where she is the Director of the Clinical Research Program for PTSD. Ruth has over 25 years of clinical and research experience with trauma-related disorders.
She has published five books and over 250 research articles and book chapters. She regularly lectures and teaches internationally about psychological trauma. Ruth is passionate about understanding the first-person experience of traumatized individuals throughout treatment and how it relates to brain functioning. She is regarded as a leading specialist in the mind-body effects of trauma and neuroscience-based approaches to trauma treatment.
Event Venue & Nearby Stays
Hotel Arts, 119 12 Avenue Southwest, Calgary, Canada
CAD 529.47
