When the Body Says No & The Myth of Normal: A Workshop with Gabor Maté

If you would like to purchase tickets to the conversation with Gabor Mate on Friday, March 8th, click here.
Gabor Maté is renowned for his groundbreaking work with patients facing the extreme challenges of drug addiction, trauma, mental illness, and HIV. He has also extensively studied and written about the impacts of stress, trauma, and attention-deficit disorder on our bodies and minds.
In his work, Dr. Maté utilizes scientific research, case histories, as well as his own insights and experience to present a broad perspective that enlightens and empowers people to promote their own healing and that of those around them.
You can choose to take one or both days of this workshop with Dr. Maté.

Day One (Saturday, March 9th): When The Body Says No  Mind/Body Unity and the Stress-Disease Connection
We all encounter stress. It plays a role in our personal and professional lives and it can take a heavy toll unless it is recognized and managed effectively and insightfully.
There is strong evidence to suggest that in nearly all chronic conditions, from cancer, ALS, or multiple sclerosis to autoimmune conditions like rheumatoid arthritis or Alzheimer's, hidden stress is a major predisposing factor. In an important sense, disease in an individual can be seen as the end point of a multigenerational emotional process. If properly understood, these conditions can provide important openings for compassion and self-awareness, which in turn are major tools in recovery and healing.
This workshop provides insights into why stress remains hidden in our culture, and shows how to recognize and prevent it. Drawing on research findings and his own extensive experience in family practice and palliative care, Dr. Maté discusses the mind/body stress connection and the physiological consequences of stress. Understand the nature of stress and how our early environment programs us physiologically and psychologically into chronically stressful patterns of feeling and behavior.
This workshop is open to all individuals including clinicians who wish to learn about the stress-disease connection.
Day Two (Sunday, March 10th): The Myth of Normal Depression, Anxiety and Addictions from a New Perspective
For all our progress in understanding and treating mental illness, it continues to be a subject of misapprehension, prejudice and stigmatization. Perhaps the reason for that is not its strangeness but its familiarity. Very few individuals or families are untouched by at least some aspects of mental dysfunction, some periods of the discouragement, disconnect or anxiety that, on a deeper and more chronic level, characterizes the mind state of the mentally ill. Beyond individual experience or predisposition, many factors in this stressed and confused culture are conducive to mental malfunction on a broad social scale.
In this workshop, Dr. Maté explains the bio psychosocial nature of physical and mental illness, and how early experiences shape not only the mind, but also the brain. Drawing on his own extensive experience in family practice and palliative care, Dr. Maté shares how addiction, depression, and anxiety are often consequences of early trauma.
This workshop explores the causes and "normality" of depression, anxiety and addictions in our society. It is open to all individuals including clinicians.
 
Gabor Maté (pronunciation: GAH-bor MAH-tay) is a retired physician who, after 20 years of family practice and palliative care experience, worked for over a decade in Vancouver’s Downtown East Side with patients challenged by drug addiction and mental illness. The bestselling author of four books published in twenty-five languages, Gabor is an internationally renowned speaker highly sought after for his expertise on addiction, trauma, childhood development, and the relationship of stress and illness. His book on addiction received the Hubert Evans Prize for literary non-fiction. For his groundbreaking medical work and writing he has been awarded the Order of Canada, his country’s highest civilian distinction, and the Civic Merit Award from his hometown, Vancouver. His books include In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts: Close Encounters With Addiction; When the Body Says No; Exploring the Stress-Disease Connection; Scattered: How ADD Originates and What You Can Do About It; and (with Gordon Neufeld) Hold on to Your Kids: Why Parents Need to Matter More Than Peers. Visit his website to learn more.

Continuing Education Credits (available for an additional $50): 12 CEs Available. 6 CEs Available for single day.
• CE credits for psychologists are provided by the Spiritual Competency Resource Center (SCRC) which is co-sponsoring this program. The Spiritual Competency Resource Center is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education for psychologists. The Spiritual Competency Resource Center maintains responsibility for this program and its content.
• The California Board of Behavioral Sciences accepts CE credits for LCSW, LPCC, LEP, and LMFT license renewal for programs offered by approved sponsors of CE by the American Psychological Association.
• SCRC is approved by the California Board of Registered Nursing (BRN Provider CEP16887) for licensed nurses in California.
• For questions about receiving your Certificate of Attendance, contact CIIS Public Programs at [email protected]. For questions about CE, visit https://www.spiritualcompetency.com or contact David Lukoff, PhD at [email protected].
• LCSWs and MFTs from states other than California need to check with their state licensing board for approval.