I. Upcoming Talk at University High School (Irvine)
|
|
|
|
Responding to the Narcissistic Epidemic:
How to Help Our Teens Avoid Indoctrination and Live Original Lives
Contemporary culture idolizes exteriors. The pervasive glamorization of success, beauty, wealth and prestige, the widening scope of celebrity influence, and the proliferation of idealism in social media not only emphasize the value of image and appearance but also promote universal narcissism. At its core, narcissism denies certain components of inner experience that are fundamental to the human condition: vulnerability, insecurity, disappointment, and the recognition of weakness and limitation. Living in this cultural environment, contemporary adolescents are socialized to find narcissistic solutions for their increasingly complex, turbulent and fragile internal and relational lives. Ironically, while these solutions often provide immediate psychological relief, they ultimately hijack adolescents’ emerging self-agency and capacity for achieving an authentic life. In this talk, Dr. Tobin outlines a pragmatic approach toward helping adolescents bypass culturally-sanctioned narcissistic solutions in order to access alternative, and more fulfilling, attitudes, values, and lifestyle choices.
For more information on this talk, please email Dr. Tobin at jt@jamestobinphd.com.
|
|
|
|
II. Group Seminar Meetings on Saturday, February 15, 2020*
|
|
|
|
The Men's Group Seminar:
Is the Midlife Crisis Real?
10:15 to 11:30 AM
Confrontation with mortality, the disillusionment of aspirations not likely to be met, and the troubling search for something more in life beyond family obligations and the never-ending responsibilities of everyday life have long been associated with midlife. But is there really a
crisis
that occurs at midlife? Is it distinctly different from struggles occurring at other important stages of life transition? And, if there is a midlife crisis, what is its purpose and what does its successful resolution look like?
In the next meeting of the Men's Group Seminar on Saturday, February 15, 2020 (10:15 to 11:30 AM),
we will consider these questions in light of scientific findings from economists and psychologists and views from social theorists and cultural critics.
|
|
|
|
The Relationship Group Seminar:
"The Drama of the Gifted Child"
11:45 AM to 1:00 PM
In 1981, the European psychologist and psychoanalyst Alice Miller published her groundbreaking book,
"Prisoners of Childhood"
; the book was later revised and re-titled
"The Drama of the Gifted Child"
in 1978. Miller's primary thesis is that certain children become adept at sensing, and responding to, their caregivers' needs. If the parent has unresolved narcissistic issues, Miller argues, the gifted child must adapt by developing sophisticated capacities of attunement and empathy, and by finding ways to regulate the parent (as opposed to the typical child position of being regulated
by
the parent). According to Miller, the gifted child compromises his/her own individuality for the sake of the parent; adulthood is eventually entered and characterized by the gifted person's profound relational skills which, ironically, stymie the capacity to find contentment.
In the next meeting of the Relationship Group Seminar on Saturday, February 15, 2020 (11:45 AM to 1:00 PM),
we will discuss Miller's ideas and how they inform our understanding of many issues that arise in romantic relationships.
|
|
|
|
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, February 15, 2020 (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.
|
|
|
|
* If you would like to attend the Men's Group Seminar and/or the Relationship Group Seminar on February 15, 2020, 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.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
