This is an important time to be involved in East Bay CAMFT. With all of the exploration of the mission of Marriage and Family Therapists and what our role should be vis-a-vis our clients and ourselves, it is a good time to ponder what we do and how we do it.  [ read more ]

East Bay CAMFT President-elect Guillermo Alvarez is the subject of this month's column. Guillermo came to his work as a therapist in a roundabout way: "I found myself drawn to the field after taking some introductory psychology courses while pursuing a degree in my original major, biology." About East Bay CAMFT membership Guillermo says, "Membership has been an invaluable component of my professional development. First and foremost, it has allowed me to network with other professionals in the field. Additionally, I have found it a great resource for finding internships, paying job opportunities and for referral purposes." [ read more ]

East Bay CAMFT Continuing Education Presentation

Presented by
Ruth Cohn & Mary Ann Miner

Saturday, May 9, 2009

Ruth Cohn and Mary Ann Miner will present an overview of issues surrounding midlife sexuality, particularly as it pertains to couples and couples therapy. As the baby boom generation is well into mid-life and beyond; and erection enhancing drugs have hit the mainstream in a way that opens a wider conversation, a growing number of potential clients worry or struggle with sex. It is important for the well equipped MFT to be prepared to help.
 [ read more ]

East Bay CAMFT Continuing Education Presentation

Presented by
Lee Ann Morgan, M.A., LMFT

Saturday, June 13, 2009

Grief after the death of someone important to us can be a surreal experience. The bereft report feeling like they are losing their minds. They plod through life detached and numb; part of the time living in the present without their loved one and part of the time living in the past with their loved one.

This event takes place in Orinda. Attendees earn two CE units. [ read more ]

This past summer, the Board of Directors of the East Bay Chapter of CAMFT became aware of proposed Bylaws revisions by the State CAMFT Board. Of particular interest was the concern that the revised Bylaws specifically stated that all Chapter Boards could only be comprised of LMFTs, except for the Prelicensed Board position. This brought a tremendous number of objections from other Chapters communicating back and forth on the Chapter Leadership Listserve. [ read more ]

Process, I've observed, is what one colleague called "a molasses-like movement of ideas or action within a hierarchical system." In my role as group therapist, I am constantly on alert for moments of multi-layered communication and I have noticed an interesting array of resistances to process orientation. These are explored in detail.

Although a content focus is safer and easier, I implicitly advocate for a style of group facilitation that challenges order, hierarchy, even safety, and in so doing enter that ambiguous space wherein client/patient and therapist responsibility is negotiated.  [ read more ]

Acting upon the findings of a recent survey of the chapter membership, the Board of Directors has issued a statement in support of marriage equality for all. The statement reflects the opinion of a large majority of the 314 members who participated in an online survey during March 2009.

The survey was conducted as a response to the intense debate among the membership that took place following the passage of California's Proposition 8 in November 2008, which eliminated the marriage rights of same sex couples. [ read more ]

The passage of California's Proposition 8 has sparked intense debate amongst the East Bay CAMFT membership on the issue of same-sex marriage. Some members wanted the board to issue a statement in support of same-sex marriage, similar to what some other professional, mental health organizations have done. Other members felt the chapter should remain neutral, considering that the chapter's diverse membership includes people with varying opinions on the subject.

To help decide the matter, the board conducted an opinion survey of its members. [ read more ]

As Sexual Addiction becomes more frequently recognized as a diagnostic label, sex addicts are more easily identified and referred for treatment. Addiction being a family disease, the more sex addicts referred for treatment, the more it becomes apparent that there is an entirely new group of co-addicts that urgently require attention.

The partners and spouses of sex addicts, while sharing many similarities with partners/spouses of alcoholics, gamblers, et al., have many unique characteristics that significantly impact treatment failure or success. [ read more ]