September 10, 2018
I. Announcements

I am excited to announce the launching of my new podcast site "Relationship Unconscious." The site focuses on how the mind’s unconscious influences the way we think, feel, and behave in our relationships and offers the following:

  • (1) audio presentations on the psychology of relationship dynamics among couples, between parents and children, and in the workplace;

  • (2) webinar events;



Strategies for Responding to Manipulative and Narcissistic People and "Emplotment" Pathways are a few of the educational seminar recordings now available.

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II. Group Schedule on Saturday, September 15, 2018
The Relationship Group: " Mystification" in Couples*
11:45 AM to 1:00 PM

Couples usually present to my practice immersed in conflict in which one partner has done something "unbelievable" (such as had an affair) which the other partner literally cannot comprehend. Or, the conflict centers on one partner learning something about the other that has been concealed or hidden for years; the secret, and its implications, fly in the face of what had been previously known or assumed about the partner's life and value system. I call these incomprehensible experiences "mystifications" and they are actually quite common in long-term committed relationships. Yet their emergence often spells disaster for couples.  In the next meeting of the Relationship Group on Saturday, September 15, 2018 (11:45 AM to 1:00 PM ), we will review how mystification can actually be used as an opportunity for personal growth and deeper intimacy. I will compare mystification to a psychological model of trauma in which intolerable experience fractures outdated modes of one's personality. 
The Men's Group: Jordan Peterson on Men and Masculinity * 10:15 to 11:30 AM
A Canadian psychologist, professor of psychology at the University of Toronto, and author, Jordan Peterson has been receiving much attention in recent years.  In the next meeting of the Men's Group on Saturday, September 15, 2018 (10:15 to 11:30 AM) , we will explore his ideas concerning men and masculinity. Specifically, we will explore video presentations of his talks on (1) attractiveness , (2) intimate relationships and meaning , (3) virtuosity, free will, and evil , (4) agreeability and the "nice guy," and (5) the Peter Pan ("Man-Child") phenomenon .
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, September 15, 2018 (1:15 to 2:30 PM) in the Laguna Hills office location.  A second process group that will be meeting on a weekday evening at my Newport Beach office is starting soon; interested persons may contact me directly at 949-338-4388 or jt@jamestobinphd.com for more information.  
* If you would like to attend the Men's Group and/or the Relationship Group on September 15, 2018, 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. 

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