I. Relationship Unconscious Podcast Series and Group Seminar Recordings
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II. Group Seminar Meetings on Saturday, September 7, 2019 *
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The Men's Group Seminar:
Prospection and the Intertemporal Lens
10:15 to 11:30 AM
Prospection is a psychological concept that involves predicting, anticipating and planning for future events, both in the near and more distant future. Originally theorized by cognitive psychologists who disagreed with the Freudian notion that the past predicts the future, prospection has gained considerable scientific support and has been applied to a range of human problems including bias, impulsivity, fear, and the failure to achieve goals. Prospection centers on the ability to identify events likely occurring in the future and directing one's mind to consider and plan for a range of pathways that will anticipate and/or overcome these events. An important factor in prospection is viewing the future with an eye on intertemporal components, i.e., identifying the immediate and longer-term consequences of a decision or behavior and, what's more, linking each. In activities such as gambling or dieting, for example, the intertemporal lens becomes fogged as the domino-effect of one's actions fails to be predicted and interrupted.
In the next meeting of the Men's Group Seminar on Saturday, September 7, 2019 (10:15 to 11:30 AM),
we will explore the concept of prospection and attempt to apply it to the problems and issues with which men are often confronted.
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The Relationship Group Seminar:
Straining and Stretching (and Recognizing the Difference)
11:45 AM to 1:00 PM
In a prior meeting of the Relationship Group Seminar, "straining" was described as the psychological tendency to accommodate to situations and/or people who do not meet one's needs. Often this tendency begins in early childhood when the child is subjected to direct or indirect forms of control, domination, and even trauma. For many in these circumstances, a characterological predisposition to deny one's authentic feelings and desires emerges, and perseveres, into and throughout adulthood. Many forms of codependence, self-destruction, masochism, and fear-based decision-making can be linked to lifestyles driven by straining, i.e., bending, twisting, and configuring oneself again and again to fit situations that do not match who one is nor who one wants to be. The corollary of straining is "stretching." Stretching involves the beneficial, growth-producing utilization of a relationship to overcome one's limitations and develop new and more effective ways of being in the world. Typically, stretching occurs when a person joins a new culture whose value system engenders both support and confrontation and negotiates the tension between the needs of the individual and the needs of the culture. Good examples of straining are cults; finding your soul mate exemplifies stretching.
In the next meeting of the Relationship Group Seminar on Saturday, September 7, 2019 (11:45 AM to 1:00 PM),
we will explore in more detail the notion of "the strain" and unpack the elements of stretching. We will then direct our attention to distinguishing situations and people that pull for or demand straining vs. stretching responses: unfortunately, it is often difficult to tell if you are merely accommodating for all the wrong reasons, or "hanging in there" for all the right reasons.
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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 7, 2019 (1:15 to 2:30 PM) at the Laguna Hills office location.
T
he Dynamic Psychotherapy Process Group is a therapeutic experience and entry occurs only after a pre-group screening interview.
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* If you would like to attend the Men's Group Seminar and/or the Relationship Group Seminar on September 7, 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 Seminar and the Relationship Group Seminar are psychoeducational in nature, not therapeutic, and do not constitute psychotherapy or counseling.
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