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Continuing Education

While loss and the grief that accompanies it are universal experiences, the grief process is also commonly neglected and misunderstood, both by grievers and their supports. This workshop will provide participants with an understanding of the experience of grief using insights from both grief counseling and existential psychotherapy, as well as offering practical skills that can be used to help clients work through the grieving process. 
 

Social workers and other helping professionals in the Southwestern Pennsylvania region are sure to work with many active military, veterans, and their families, as this region continues to have one of the largest veteran populations in the country. Hence, we need to better understanding the cultural context, military experiences, and veteran issues and resources of and for this population and their families, including issues of suicide, post-traumatic stress, military sexual trauma, and other challenges that veterans face. 

Clinicians who experience a loss of a client or loved one to suicide may go thru isolation, may have fear of judgment or negative reactions, and may struggle with shame as well as grief and traumatic stress. The statistics are staggering: 1) There is one death by suicide in the US every 12 minutes. (CDC) 2) Suicide takes the lives of over 44,965 Americans every year. (CDC) 3) Only half of all Americans experiencing an episode of major depression receive treatment.