Meeting the ‘Inner Critic’ : Cultivating Awareness, Opening to Empathy and Compassionate Mind
Presenter:
Dr Tina Sideris
How do we address the ‘Inner Critic’? The ‘Inner Critic’ – that internal voice with which we are all familiar; the self critical, self attacking dialogue, inflected by shame, sometimes loud, sometimes just a whisper, the voice we discern in people who present for psychotherapy; and indeed with which we may be all too familiar in our own experiences of self doubt, feelings of personal deficiency and aversion; the voice of the perfectionist, the imposter, the pleaser.
Paul Gilbert, professor of clinical psychology developed Compassion Focused Therapy (CFT) to specifically address high shame and self criticism, in people with histories of abuse and neglect, who have chronic problems, and who find self warmth and self acceptance difficult. Drawing on published literature, a conversation between Gilbert and Fonagy – Compassion and Mentalisation – and on exposure to workshops, this talk is a critical reflection on CFT.
The talk provides an introduction to CFT, reflects on the practice of compassion, and on debates about integrating practices from the contemplative traditions into psychotherapy.
27 October 2021 @ 19h30-20h30 SAST
1 HPCSA point applies
NO RECORDING will be available for this webinar.
About the Presenter
Tina Sideris works in Johannesburg as a clinical psychologist in private practice.
She has combined her clinical work with critical reflection, and field research in trauma, in particular gender related violence and war trauma. In this regard her research reported on responses of women refugees to sexual violence in war.
She also conducted interdisciplinary research on the intersection of relational and psychic dynamics of gender, and socio-political change, with reference to masculinity and violence. As an activist against gender based violence, she co-founded a women’s crisis centre in a remote rural area.
Currently, Tina works in a hospital setting. Her practice includes seeing people who have been diagnosed with life threatening illness and may undergo complex medical treatments and technologies. In this setting she has been struck by condition related trauma, and the paradox that life-saving treatment can leave trauma in its wake.
As a psychotherapist, Tina considers herself privileged to also see people dealing with the wider range of suffering that is part of living.