After having spent the last year focused on writing a book, I am delighted to hit the road this Spring and Summer with conference presentations and webinars. Buckle up for a handful of exciting events and, of course, a free resource for you included!
United States Association of Body Psychotherapy Conference, San Francisco, May 18 – 21
In just a few weeks (May 21st), I will be giving a presentation at the United States Association of Body Psychotherapy conference in San Francisco. The title captures the mission of my forthcoming book as well as my current mission: “Somatic Maternal Healing: Bringing the Body into Perinatal Mental Health”. After a pandemic and a year of being in writing mode, I can’t describe how much I am looking forward to going to an in-person conference again! I am also looking very much forward to Jessica Benjamin doing the opening keynote (read my short intro to her work here). My work is deeply influenced and inspired by Dr. Benjamin’s work. She is a central thinker in modern feminist psychoanalysis, which is one of the branches of my integrative biopsychosocial model for treatment of trauma in the perinatal period.
Postpartum Support International Conference, Kansas City, June 28 – July 2
In late June, I will be attending and presenting at the Postpartum Support International conference in Kansas City. Needless to say, this is the most important gathering of Perinatal Mental Health professionals of the year. This is a conference where I truly feel like I am gathering with my tribe! I will be meeting so many wonderful people I know from this field. My session at the conference is titled “From Trauma-Informed to Trauma-Responsive: Making Perinatal Psychotherapy Whole with Coregulation”.
As a Somatic Experiencing Practitioner working to bring the body into Perinatal Mental Health, this is my favorite topic. The somatic tools of coregulation are foundational to trauma-informed care, in fact they make our work trauma-responsive, regardless of how much direct trauma treatment we are doing. All clients need and deserve therapeutic safety. The target audience for my presentation are all providers who are working in relational contexts where trauma is going to be a factor, meaning everything from the clinicians doing individual therapy to home visitators and intake technicians having the initial line of contact with clients. Attendees will walk away with a deepened focus on the nervous system aspects of building the therapeutic alliance and concrete tools for how to start practicing it today.
Psychology and the Other Conference, Boston College, October 6- 8
I just received the good news that I will be presenting at a panel at the Psychology and the Other conference in Boston. At this panel presentation, I will be in the company of some remarkable people, including Ellen Toronto who was the editor of the book A Womb of Her Own that I contributed a chapter to. Dr. Toronto has a book coming out this Summer titled “Maternal Subjectivity: A Dissociated Self-State” which I had the pleasure of reviewing and endorsing. The other panelists include Dr. Aurélie Athan and Dr. Tracy Sidesinger. You might know Dr. Athan’s work as she is nothing less than a star in maternal studies; her tireless work on matrescence and reproductive identity is shaping the development of the field. Dr. Sidesinger is a New York-based clinical psychologist that I am deeply inspired by. I can highly recommend her latest article “The Feminine Yes: Return Me to Excess” on the feminine principles of imagination, desire, and excess. Our panel is titled “M/Other: Rethinking Excess through Maternal Subjectivity”.
Webinars
I will also be doing some online presentation this Summer. August 10th, I will be doing a webinar with Somatic Experiencing International, more info to come. On August 18th, I will be presenting a webinar for the Office of Continuing Education Summer Speaker Series at The Chicago School of Professional Psychology (my alma mater if you will). The webinar is titled “From Trauma-Informed to Trauma-Responsive: Concretizing Trauma-Informed Care with Clinical Skills of Co-Regulation”. I recently also had the pleasure of doing an online presentation at the National Association of Perinatal Social Worker Virtual conference which was recorded and will become available (I will keep you posted).
Forthcoming Book
In February I submitted my manuscript for my forthcoming book, Somatic Maternal Healing. Psychodynamic and Somatic Trauma Treatment for Perinatal Mental Health. It is in production as I write and can already be pre-ordered. It has of course been a long and deep journey from its conception, gestation, and pending birth (yes, you will get ALL the reproductive puns from me!). You can rest assured I will be delightfully focused on bringing this book into the world this year, so stay tuned for more info over the next months. Don’t hesitate to let me know if you want to connect or if you have some conference or event or other project that could foster a collaboration. You know I love to speak and present and be OUT in the world to connect with our powerful communities, whether online or in person.
Free Weekly Online Somatic Meditation for Perinatal Mental Health Professionals and Birth Workers
In alignment with my mission to bring the body into Perinatal Mental Health, I offer a FREE weekly online somatic meditation every Monday at 8.45 – 9 AM PST. Find the zoom link in my instagram bio. This is a hassle-free resource: no signup needed, just show-up with or without your camera on, whether you have a moment to sit or you are going about your Monday morning. I will do a guided sensory awareness meditative exercise to get your week started off right. Please share this resource with any colleague who might be interested. I am considering offering more and longer online meditations at different times, so please let me know if you have an interest in this.
Much more to come! Don’t hesitate to reach out with any questions or thoughts. Get a monthly email with updates directly to your inbox here.
Yours,
Helena Vissing, SEP, PMH-C
