January 14, 2019
I. Interesting Voices and Perspectives
II. Group Meetings on Saturday, January 19, 2019
The Relationship Group: The Corrective Emotional Experience *
11:45 AM to 1:00 PM

The notion of "the corrective emotional experience" was originally conceptualized in the psychotherapy literature, but it has profound implications for interpersonal relationships and romantic love. The term initially referred to a perspective on psychotherapy which suggests that the patient is most helped by a relational experience with a therapist who does not hurt, shame, or negatively impact the patient in ways that the patient has been hurt before. If a new non-traumatic "corrective" relationship can be experienced and internalized, the patient will be more likely to cultivate other similarly healthy relationships in his or her life.  In the next meeting of the Relationship Group on Saturday, January 19, 2019 (11:45 AM to 1:00 PM) , we will explore the applicability of "the corrective emotional experience" to romantic relationships. I will argue that a person enters any new relationship with competing unconscious motivations: one is to finally experience the love, support and acceptance one has always longed for, and the other -- paradoxically -- is to have, yet again, an experience of hurt and rejection.
The Men's Group: Why We Need to Distort Others *
10:15 to 11:30 AM
It is an undeniable truth that we often (1) misperceive others and, by extension, (2) are misperceived. Social reality is highly skewed, biased, and faulty. These distortions tend to accumulate over time and may become so dramatized that who a person is profoundly diverges from the impressions others have formed of that person. Freud's notion of "transference" provides one perspective on understanding the nature and origin of interpersonal bias. In the next meeting of the Men's Group on Saturday, January 19, 2019 (10:15 to 11:30 AM) , we will unpack the dynamics of transference and explore their implications for interpersonal relationships. A central idea we will consider is the need of the unconscious mind to misperceive others in order to enact unresolved issues.
The Dynamic Psychotherapy Process Group *
 1:15 to 2:30 PM
This therapy group utilizes the emerging dynamics among group members, and between the group members and facilitator, as a basis from which to examine one's characteristic ways of thinking, feeling, and relating to others.  Our next group session will be on Saturday, January 19, 2019 (1:15 to 2:30 PM) at the Laguna Hills office location.  
* If you would like to attend the Men's Group and/or the Relationship Group on January 19, 2019, please RSVP to me at 949-338-4388 or  jt@jamestobinphd.com . There is a limit of 14 attendees for each group and registrants will be accommodated on a first-come/first-serve basis. The fee is $25.00 (payable via cash or check at the time of the group meeting).

Location:
The Water Garden Business Center
23421 South Pointe Drive, Suite 130
Laguna Hills, CA, 92653

Please note that the Men's Group and the Relationship Group are psychoeducational in nature, not therapeutic, and do not constitute psychotherapy or counseling. In contrast, the Dynamic Psychotherapy Process Group is a therapeutic experience and entry occurs only after a pre-group screening interview.
James Tobin, Ph.D., PSY 22074 | 949-338-4388 |   jt@jamestobinphd.com