2023-24  LMAO Seminar Summaries

This section is a monthly summary of each seminar with links and downloads. Each month you'll find a summary of what will be covered about two weeks in advance. It will remain posted for reference following the seminar. It is available for the exclusive use of those registered for the seminar.

  • March 7, 2024

    Playfulness & Paradox

    Homework:

    Think ahead: 

    What do you wish to share with the group during Check-In. You'll have about 20 minutes. 

    • What do you do that's playful? 
    • What keeps work so serious? 
    • What about your work or home situation is funny?
    Read/Review
    1. Read blog entry entitled:  PlayBook: Generation to Generation
    2. Read blog entry entitled:  The Wisdom of Play: A little playfulness can go a long way
    3. Read:  No Laughing Matter a Counseling Today  feature by Kathleen Smith
    4. Watch: Leading with Laughter: The Power of Humor in Leadership.  In this TEDx Talk Paul Osincup talks about his idea for using laughter to building stronger leaders.  Where do you see BFST in this talk?

    Assignments: 

    • Make a list of the most outrageous comments people have shared with you in the last year and email them to Tim.  We'll play with them at the LMAO Seminar.
    • Think of an anxious situation when when you were too serious.  Be prepared to share the short story.

    Consider:

    • Rabbi Ed Friedman said, “Playfulness can get you out of a rut more successfully than seriousness.” This morning we’ll discuss “playfulness” as a way to foster “non-anxious environments.” 
    • Submitting a Case Presentation that has you stumped.  How could you use playfulness to as a way to reduce your anxiety in this situation?

  • February  1,  2024

    Sibling Position

    Homework:


    Think Ahead:

    • Monthly Check-In (you'll have about 20 minutes): What's making you anxious this month? What keeps this issue so serious? How would your parents advise you to manage your anxiety? How might the theory help you to reflect on these issues?
    • Consider In your family of origin & nuclear family: What is your sibling position?  What is the sibling position of your parents?  Can you identify emotional reactions and behaviors that are characteristic of your sibling position?  How might this help you navigate family anxiety? 

    Read, Watch, Review:

    Extra Stuff:
    • Extra Credit Short Read:  Which Family Were You Born Into? Explain Bowen's letter  in response to a patient looking at her own functioning from the oldest sibling position.
    • Extra Credit Short Watch:  Stay Curious, Ask Questions, Make Contact.   Watch the 3.5 minute video that seeks to answer the question, How do you make contact with even the lowest functioning person, especially if they aren’t very verbal?
    Case Presentations:
    • Case presentations focused on an issue in your family of origin related to Sibling Position will be considered for the morning discussion.

  • Homework:

    Think Ahead:

    What do you wish to share with the group during Check-In. You'll have about 20 minutes. 

    • What have you been thinking about for the past month? 
    • How did you prepare for family gatherings during the holidays?
    • What about your family makes you curious?
    • What questions did you ask?
    • What does it mean to be differentiated?
    • What does differentiation look like in your immediate family and your extended family? 

    Read, Listen, Watch or Review:

  • Homework:

    Think ahead:

    What do you wish to share with the group during check-in? You'll have about 20 minutes. What family systems work have you been doing in the last month? What are you thinking about? What's making you anxious? How are you managing your anxiety? How are you preparing for family gatherings during the holidays? What about your family makes you curious? What questions will you ask?

     

    Questions to consider:

    • Can you identify the four basic relationship patterns in your family of origin?
    • Where do you see these patterns at work in your family tree as you go back a generation or two?
    • Which pattern was most common in your nuclear family?
    • Which pattern is most common in your family of origin? 

    Read, Watch, & Review:

  • November 2, 2023

    Triangles

    Think ahead:

    What do you wish to share with the group during Check-In. You'll have about 10-15 minutes. 
    • What have you been thinking about this past month? 
    • What new insights has your reflection on Family Systems Theory brought you? 
    • What are the triangles in your family?
    • What are the triangles at work?
    • What are the triangles that your in that are the most difficult to figure out?

    Read/Watch/Review:

    Prepare for Family of Origin Time:

  • October 5, 2023

    Submit:

    Think ahead:

    • What do you wish to share with the group during Check-In. You'll have about 20 minutes (we will take a little longer this month since it's our first time together this season). 
    • Tell us about: yourself, your job & your job challenges, your family & your family challenges, and your experience with Family Systems Theory. 
    • What brought you to this seminar? 
    • What are your hopes and expectations?
    Read/Watch/Review:

    Read this article from the Atlantic Monthly 1988 written by Michael E. Kerr: Chronic Anxiety & Defining a Self. 

    • If it's your first time reviewing this article, what idea was most new to you?
    • If you've read this article before, what did you see new this time through?

    Watch this video: Bowen Family Systems Therapy: Short Explanation by Dr Kirk Honda.

    • What did you learn from Dr. Kirk Honda?

    Read & Review Bowen Family Systems Theory OR  Watch this video review.  


    Consider buying five books: 

    1. One Family's Story: A Primer on Bowen Theory
    2. Generation to Generation: Family Process in Church and Synagogue
    3. Friedman's Fables
    4. A Family Genogram Workbook
    5. Everything Isn't Terrible