Befriending Your Nervous System

This workshop is being hosted live online only and will not be recorded to maintain the privacy of all attendees. Instructions on how to join will be emailed to registrants shortly before the workshop start date. 

6 CE credits are available for an additional fee of $45. After you register for the workshop, your confirmation email from Eventbrite will contain a link to the site where you can purchase the CEs from our co-sponsor, Spiritual Resource Academy (SCA). CEs may be purchased at any time before the workshop, but only those who have purchased in advance will receive the credits. See below for details.

If you need to request accessibility accommodations, please email publicprograms@ciis.edu at least one week prior to the workshop start date. For more information, explore our Frequently Asked Questions. 

We all have moments in conversations with a boss, coworker, partner, or friend where stress creeps in. The way we respond to those stresses is directly connected to our autonomic nervous system, which is at the heart of daily living, shaping our experiences of safety, and influencing our capacity for connection. What if, instead of fighting our nervous system, we paused and allowed it to teach us about how to relax, make space in our lives and in ourselves, and find calm?   
 
Polyvagal Theory posits that our most hardwired survival responses are regulated by the vagus nerve and can be consciously shaped through repeated exercises. According to research, the same neurological processes that cause unwanted stress can also be harnessed to summon relaxation, spaciousness, and equanimity.  

Join clinician and Polyvagal Theory expert Deb Dana for an insightful workshop exploring the Polyvagal Approach for greater wellness, self-awareness, and emotional resilience. Drawing on the explosion of research in Polyvagal Theory, Deb teaches ways of working with the body’s innate ability to pick up social signals and cultivate micro-moments of safety, retraining your automatic responses to stress, conflict, and hardship.  

In this workshop, Deb provides an examination of the organizing principles of Polyvagal Theory, teaching you to interpret the language of the nervous system through practices such as guided imagery, exploring present-moment awareness, and the mechanics of choice. Discover ways to reliably return to regulation, and how to become a regulating resource for others. Explore what it means to be a polyvagal informed person, personally and professionally.   

When we come into better awareness of how our nervous system impacts the people around us and the places we inhabit, we gain the understanding of how to create better outcomes in our relationships, in our workplaces, and within ourselves.

Teachings are appropriate for healthcare professionals as well as the general public. Healthcare professionals will be able to incorporate the tools and practices offered in this program in ways beneficial to clients or patients.

 
Deb Dana, LCSW, is a clinician and consultant specializing in using the lens of Polyvagal Theory to understand and resolve the impact of trauma and create ways of working that honor the role of the autonomic nervous system. She developed the Rhythm of Regulation Clinical Training Series and lectures internationally on ways Polyvagal Theory informs work with trauma survivors.  She is a founding member of the Polyvagal Institute, clinical advisor to Khiron Clinics, and an advisor to Unyte. 

Deb’s clinical work published with W.W. Norton includes The Polyvagal Theory in Therapy: Engaging the Rhythm of Regulation, Polyvagal Exercises for Safety and Connection: 50 Client Centered Practices, and the Polyvagal Flip Chart.  She partners with Sounds True to bring her polyvagal perspective to a general audience through the audio program Befriending Your Nervous System: Looking Through the Lens of Polyvagal Theory and her forthcoming print book Anchored: How to Befriend Your Nervous System Using Polyvagal Theory.  To learn more, visit rhythmofregulation.com or polyvagalinstitute.org 

• Describe the autonomic hierarchy
• Describe the process of neuroception
• Use the co-regulating pathways of the Social Engagement System
• Describe & compare common body responses, behaviors, and beliefs for each autonomic state
• Create a basic autonomic map
• Discuss the responsibility of being autonomically regulated in professional and personal domains

Information on Continuing Education Credit for Health Professionals

After you register for the workshop, your confirmation email from Eventbrite will contain a link to the site where you can purchase the CEs from our co-sponsor, Spiritual Resource Academy (SCA). CEs may be purchased at any time before the workshop, but only those who have purchased in advance will receive credits. Unfortunately we are unable to issue CEs retroactively.

• CE credits for psychologists are provided by the Spiritual Competency Academy (SCA) which is co-sponsoring this program. The Spiritual Competency Academy is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education for psychologists. Spiritual Competency Academy 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.
• LCSW, LPCC, LEP, and LMFTs, and other mental health professionals from states other than California need to check with their state licensing board as to whether or not they accept programs offered by approved sponsors of CE by the American Psychological Association.
• SCA is approved by the California Board of Registered Nursing (BRN Provider CEP16887) for licensed nurses in California. RNs must retain this document for 4 years after the course concludes. 
• SCA is an approved CE provider for National Board Certified Health and Wellness Coaches (CEP Number 100196).
• For questions about enrolling in CE or receiving your Certificate of Attendance, contact us at publicprograms@ciis.edu.
• For other questions about CE contact David Lukoff, PhD at CE@spiritualcompetency.com.

CIIS students, staff, and faculty receive discounts on all events. CIIS Public Programs Members receive a 20% discount on all events. Contact us for more information, publicprograms@ciis.edu.