UAMFT Annual Spring Conference
May 16-17, 2008

Landmark Inn
Kimball Junction, Utah

Friday, May 16 Breakout Sessions

Registration via Internet is Now Closed
Please Come to the Conference to Register and Pay

Saturday, May 17:

"In the Presence of Grief"
Dorothy Becvar, Ph. D.

Workshop Description

Recent research indicates that bereavement never fully ends for those who have lost a loved one. Contrary to older models, new data indicate that persons who have entered the “valley of the shadow of death” live thereafter, to one degree or another, in the presence of grief. More than picking up the pieces and moving on, individuals are challenged to create an entirely new picture, or story, about themselves, their world, and what it means to live. This may involve acknowledging grief as a constant companion while also learning to open up once again, to reclaim joy, as well as sadness, as valid and acceptable parts of experience. Similarly, awareness of being in the presence of grief, regardless of the passage of time, is crucial for therapists working to help family members resolve death, dying, bereavement, and related end-of-life issues. Understanding grief as an inevitable part of the context may enhance the ability to provide meaningful assistance. And having an awareness of the impact on the therapist of such work, as well as of personal losses, is essential.

Participants will have an opportunity to gain understanding of various grief reactions and to learn ways to support not only their clients but also themselves on healing journeys consistent with evidence derived from the latest research studies. They will be provided with an overview of various contexts of grief including: anticipated and unanticipated death; euthanasia issues; child loss; sibling loss; parent loss; spousal loss; and loss of an extended family member or friend. Also discussed will be grief in the context of therapy, with a focus on strategies related to creating funerals, ceremonies and other healing rituals; searching for meaning; and the process of reclaiming joy, as well as consideration of ways in which therapists may take care of themselves and deal with personal losses when these occur.

 Dorothy S. Becvar, Ph.D., M.S.W., is a Professor in the School of Social Work at Saint Louis University, St. Louis, MO. A Licensed Marital and Family Therapist and a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, Dorothy has published extensively and is the author of the books, Families that Flourish: Facilitating Resilience in Clinical Practice (W. W. Norton, 2007); In the Presence of Grief: Helping Family Members Resolve Death, Dying and Bereavement Issues (Guilford Press, 2001); and Soul Healing: A Spiritual Orientation in Counseling and Therapy (Basic Books, 1997), as well as the editor of the book The Family, Spirituality and Social Work (Haworth, 1997). With her husband, Raphael J. Becvar, she has co-authored four books: Family Therapy: A Systemic Integration (Allyn & Bacon, 1988, 1992, 1996, 2000, 2003, 2006), Pragmatics of Human Relationships (Geist & Russell, 1998), Hot Chocolate for a Cold Winter's Night: Essays for Relationship Development (Love Publishing, 1994), and Systems Theory and Family Therapy: A Primer (University Press of America, 1982, 1999). And she is co-editor, with William Nichols, Mary Anne Pace-Nichols and Augustus Napier, of the Handbook of Family Development and Intervention (Wiley, 2000). In addition to a small private practice, Dorothy is also President/CEO of The Haelan Centers ® , a not-for-profit corporation that is dedicated to promoting growth and wholeness in body, mind and spirit. In January, 2007, she assumed the role of Editor of Contemporary Family Therapy: An International Journal.

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