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Bereavement & General Grief Consultation: 

Individual and Group Work

(In-person and Online. Sliding Scale Services)

 

Laurie Lynn Clark is a trauma informed Grief Companion serving clients challenged by a loss of a loved one or triggered by profound life transitions: divorce, loss of family home or employment, retirement, menopause.

Therapeutic Interventions:

Somatic EMDR Intervention and Breath Work

Parts Work

Somatic Exploration & Integral Sound 

Embody Resilience

Inner Child Work

Online Grief Journals

Nature Connection

​2024

Somatic EMDR Therapy Certification

  https://www.theembodylab.com​
with Dr. Arielle Schwartz, Karee Powers, Craig Penner, Dr. Scott Lyons                 Foundations of EMDR: 

EMDR Intervention helps people heal from the symptoms and emotional distress of traumatic memories. It involves stimulating the brain with eye movements, taps, or other stimuli while the client focuses on the disturbing memory 

● Utilize the 8 phases of EMDR Therapy as an evidence-based approach to trauma treatment.

● Understand the therapist’s role in an EMDR session.

● Understand how to assess for EMDR treatment appropriateness.

● Address the strengths and limitations of the EMDR standard protocol.

● Understand how to approach the EMDR framework with flexibility and fidelity integratively.

● Understand how to respond to blocks in EMDR processing

Safety and Special Considerations

● Understand 7 elements to enhance safety within the EMDR process.

● Describe why the basic EMDR protocol may need to be modified for individuals with dissociative symptoms or CPTSD.

● Explain the value of how relational-cultural and parts work therapy interweaves in EMDR Therapy to help reduce the intensity and frequency of dissociative symptoms in individuals with C-PTSD.

● Understand the importance of creating communal safe spaces for individuals with complex trauma and from marginalized communities throughout the EMDR process.

● Understand ways to enhance connection and ventral activation within a group setting.

 Internal Parts Level 1. Instructor Fran Booth

2023

Master Classes with The Embody Lab 

(https://www.theembodylab.com

*  HEALING TRAUMA WITH EMDR AND APPLIED NEUROSCIENCE: Experiential Master Class with DR. ARIELLE SCHWARTZ: The Preparation Phase: Somatic Approaches to Resource Development in EMDR Therapy.

* An Experiential Master Class with DR. ARIELLE SCHWARTZ

We cannot deny the impact of unresolved trauma on the body. It is often said that our issues are in our tissues. Therefore, we must include the body in the healing process: Core principles of somatic psychology as applied to trauma treatment. 

* Master Class- Experiential Lesson: ​Healing the Nervous System through Breathwork with DR. ARIELLE SCHWARTZ.

Healing Trauma Master Series- Live Certification Course w/ Dr. Peter Levine: Working with Somatic Wounds 

-  Peter A. Levine PhD, the developer and founder of Somatic Experiencing (SE™) : A  four-part workshop series exploring  Somatic Experiencing™. Dr. Levine demonstrates a deep understanding of how complex trauma originates––and how somatic-based therapy can help clients address, process, and begin healing more quickly and effectively. 

(https://www.theembodylab.com)

*Master Class:  Embodied Social Justice Seminar 

with ANOUK SHAMBROOK, DR. KESHA FIKES, NKEM NDEFO, DR. RAE JOHNSON & DR. SCOTT LYONS: introduces an embodied approach to understanding and transforming patterns of relating to ourselves and others based on inequitable social power dynamics.  

* Master Class- Experiential SessionAttachment and Inner Relationship with DR. MAUREEN GALLAGHER: Healing our inner relationships can become the basis of a more secure attachment to self, trust in self and transform relationships as well.

*Master Class: Tremoring with DR. DAVID BERCELI: EXPLAINING & DEMONSTRATING THE BODY’S ANCIENT WISDOM THROUGH MODERN SCIENCE

Body tremors are an overlooked and undervalued self-regulating mechanism of our nervous system: reviewing psychological, neurological & physiological perspectives.  

* Reframing the value of body tremors as a restorative tool.

* Medical perspectives on body tremors.

* Personal experience of body tremors and their applicability to a diversity of stressful and traumatic experiences.

*Master Class: Experiential Lesson: Polyvagal Informed EMDR with REBECCA KASEDiscover how these cutting-edge models provide a powerful framework for understanding the connection between the autonomic nervous system, vagus nerve, and memory storage. 

Master Class: Three States of Embodied Self-Awareness with

DR. ALAN FOGEL, Ph.D., is a Professor of Psychology Emeritus at the University of Utah. This presentation will focus on three ways in which we can be aware of our bodies -- Dysregulated, Modulated, and Restorative -- and how we can facilitate a shift toward Restorative states of being:

  • The definition and neurophysiology of embodied self-awareness and its three states: Restorative, modulated and dysregulated.

  • The importance of embodied self-awareness for health and recovery.

  • Practical tools for enhancing restorative embodied self-awareness.

 

Master Class with DR. STEPHEN PORGES & DR. SCOTT LYONS: Demystifying the Body’s Response to Trauma - A Polyvagal Perspective (stephenporges.com)

 A theory that emphasizes the importance of physiological state in the expression of behavioral, mental, and health problems related to traumatic experiences.

 

2022

Trauma Informed Mental Health, Grief Facilitation 

& Restorative Communication Training

 ASIST: Applied Suicide Intervention Skills. Instructors: Breanne Pizzuto and Maria Redpath. Talktoolstraining.com. 

LAST AID COURSEFacilitated by Julie McIntyre & Linda Hochstetler-

 https://www.hpco.ca/last-aid/. 

The Last Aid program is designed to provide palliative care education to the public through a series of facilitated sessions with interactive online or in-person programs.  1.Dying as a normal part of life.   2. Planning ahead.   3.Relieving suffering.   4.Final goodbyes

 

Restorative Practice Circle Keeping For Educators and Facilitators. Lanark County- 

Laying foundations for building relationshipsRestorative Communication with co-workersBenefits of Restorative Practices in SchoolsKey Components of a restorative circleUsing a circle to celebrate differencesParaphrasing reframing and non-violent communicationListening to understand. What happened?Who was harmed/ How were they harmed?How to weave restorative practice into the curriculumSocial and emotional learning

2021 

Bereavement Facilitation 

Module References: Center for Loss with Dr. Alan Wolfelt: https://www.centerforloss.com 

Course Trainer: Maria Kliavkoff. 

Module 1 – Basics of Group Facilitation

Group Agreements / Intentions /Creating a Safe Environment / Flags of Resistance /Power of Intention
Module Two: Volunteer Training
Categories of Grief: / Grief Journey (Parts 1, 2 and 3) / Common Grief Responses . /“Mourner’s Six Reconciliation Needs” / “Mourner’s Bill of Rights” 

 Facilitator Training Module 3 Working With A Group 

Working with Group Resistance – The Victim Prison / Building Trust in the Group / Needs of the Group and the Mourner’s Six Reconciliation Needs / Role of the Support Group. 

Training Module 4 Challenges and Opportunities 

• Role of the Support Group By Dr. Alan Wolfelt / Developmental Phases of a Group / Grief Leader’s Qualities / Grief Leader’s Skills Seeing Challenges as Opportunities 

Mourning in a Grief Pandemic 

Module 5: 6 Needs of Mourning Overview of the Module 

 Needs of Mourning
o Develop a New Self-Identity.  Search For Meaning . Receiving Ongoing Support from Others o Develop a New Self-Identity. Search For Meaning 

Module Six - Stepping into Self Care 

• Self Care Terms of Reference / Symptoms of Caregiver Burnout / Burnout Survey / 12 Steps of Self Care / The Gift of Self Love 

 Trauma-Informed Care 

Building a Culture of Strength © CTRI Crisis & Trauma Resource Institute.

-TRAUMA’S RIPPLE EFFECT -WHAT IS TRAUMA-INFORMED CARE?  -BUILDING A TRAUMA-INFORMED CULTURE  -TRAUMA INFORMED CARE ASSESSMENT WHAT IS TRAUMA

-PROMOTE AWARENESS -SHIFT ATTITUDES -FOSTER SAFETY -PROVIDE CHOICE-HIGHLIGHT STRENGTHS -STEPS TO IMPROVING

 

2020 

Bereaved Families of Ontario. 

BFO Halton/ Peel Region

https://www.bereavedfamilies.ca/professionals

NAVIGATING THROUGH GRIEF : Support Systems. Coping Strategies. Self-Care. Myths and Misunderstandings. Grief and Culture. Grief and Guilt. Coping with Death in the Workplace, School, and Community. Grief and Mourning: How it is different for everyone​. Finding a New Normal.

 

2018

 Palliative Care Course / Hospice Training

 Lanark County Home Support

Understand the impacts of loss and grief at end of life . Be able to identify symptoms and how to employ strategies to manage those symptoms . Understand and apply comfort measures at end of life. Understand ethical challenges at end of life and how to address them • Understand communication and other practical challenges at end of life and how to address them. 

2016-2019

Restorative Communication Circles in the Elementary School Outdoor Classroom.- Lanark County Community Justice

Restorative Justice Seminar:

Alan Howard and Vanessa Slater:  An engaging discussion with four front line leaders in the field of Restorative Justice. Why Restorative Justice? Because it works. It is universal, humane, real and has been proven effective for countless generations across every community and cultural setting.

1995

Somatic Reflexology - Private Practice/Consultation

Reflexology Certification. Reflexology Association of Canada.

Youth Work 
Early Childhood Education

Empathy Circles

Nature Connection

Early Childhood Education 

1998-present

Laurie  is keenly aware of the children's need, as well as the Early Childhood Educator's need to connect with nature to revitalize health and well being. Her mentoring approach with youth in the Outdoor Classroom is highly influenced by her involvement (2003-2009) with the Rediscovery Program in Alberta's Ghost River Valley located on the cusp of Banff National Park. . 

 Empathy Circles in

the Outdoor Garden Classroom:

 The Restorative Communication Circle offers children opportunities to revitalize 

sensory awareness in nature's classroom.

Creating children's gardens as

an outdoor classroom and to

beautify

playgrounds.

 

2012 Early Childhood Education, RECE

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