Working with Chronically Depressed Patients

with Dr Maggie Turp

Course information

In this workshop, we will explore the challenge – familiar to all practitioners – of working with a person who describes himself or herself as ’depressed’, ’clinically depressed’,or ’chronically depressed’.

Different theoretical perspectives offer different accounts of the nature and possible roots of depression and these have implications for the clincial approach adopted. In the morning, we will explore a number of ways of conceptualising depression. We will consider the pros and cons of the widely accepted ’medical model’of depression, revisit Freud’s landmark paper ’Mourning and Melancholia’ and discuss the extent to which depression may be founded in childhood experiences of loss, neglect or trauma. A narrative perspective, which takes into account the context within which a story of self as ’depressed’ evolves, will also be explored.

In the afternoon, the focus will be firmly on clinical work, as we consider the implications in terms of practice of each of the perspectives introduced. We will think also about the particular challenges associated with the experience of being with a chronically depressed person, in terms of bodily resonance and experience in the countertransference.

Throughout the day, Maggie will be drawing on case examples from her own practice. Prticipants are also warmly invited to bring along their own clinical and personal experiences for inclusion in the discussion.

Speaker

Maggie Turp is a n HCPC registered psychologist, psychotherapist and supervisor in private practice, a ‘hybrid’ author of fiction and non-fiction and an independent trainer, offering clinically themed workshops across the UK. She is an active member of Ecopsychology UK and the Climate Psychology Alliance (CPA).

Maggie’s publications include a numerous journal papers and two books, Psychosomatic Health: the body and the word (2001 Palgrave) and Hidden Self-Harm: narratives from psychotherapy (2003 Jessica Kingsley). A third book, ‘Narrative Repair in Psychotherapy: stories of self and the psychic skin boundary’, is scheduled for publication in 2021.

What previous participants have said about this course

This is a new course.

Course programme

Saturday, 14 November 2020

Course venue

Radisson Blu Hotel, Argyll Street, Glasgow

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