This month's newsletter announces the June 3 teleseminar with Michael Yapko on Hypnotic and Strategic Approaches To Treating Depression. We also update our training calendar through October. News from the Pain Front features ways to promote self-treatment of pain conditions.

Please be well and stay well,

I am really looking forward to presenting with Michael Yapko on Hypnotic and Strategic Approaches to Treating Depression. Michael is an extraordinary presenter in the area of depression (and many other topics too). One thing you may not know about Michael is that he consults for the San Diego zoo. As you might imagine, working with elephants and other animals with "behavioral issues" really takes a lot of skill. Please learn more about Michael at www.yapko.com.

We'll be exploring some of the following topics:

• Where biology and psychology meet
• Skills vs. Pills: Overselling medication
• Symptoms and symptom management strategies
• How to reduce sleep disturbance
• Brief therapy methods: Behavioral activation, pattern interruption, pattern building
• Relationships as catalysts and buffers to depression
• Learning to think preventively

If you missed the teleseminar with Carol Look on How and Why EFT Heals Pain, there's still time to purchase the audio replay through May 20. Go to www.maggiephillipsphd.com/courses_teleseminars_cl.html.

Here's what one participant wrote about the seminar:

"I just wanted to tell you how much I enjoyed you and Carol today on the EFT phone conference. It was great...Thanks so much!" --JL

And here's a general comment about our teleseminars:

"Thank you for the teleseminars. I really appreciate the 30 day availability of the calls. And you still have the best price for your offerings!" --SH

Please save the dates for two more seminars:

On July 8, I'll be presenting "How to Prepare For and Recover From Surgery" with Dr Eric Greenleaf. This is such an important topic; please let others who'd be interested know about this event scheduled for 9-10:30 am Pacific time. Anyone who is preparing for an invasive medical procedure, or is working with someone who is, can benefit from this event!

Then on September 9, we'll present our fourth in a series of teleseminars with Dr. Peter Levine. The topic this time is Resiliency and Somatic Integration. This event will present new information which we are very excited about so please mark this on your calendar or archive this newsletter in some way so you can find it easily later on.

First, a reminder about the Energy Psychology conference in Orlando, Florida May 28 - 31st. If you're thinking about a get-away that provides healing, training, a wonderful collegial atmosphere, and professional CEU's, this is for you. Go to http://energypsych.org/displayconvention.cfm?conventionnbr=6148. There's still time to get inexpensive flights and some signup bonuses if you enroll in my one-day workshop on Healing the Heart of Pain. Click here for information.

Save the Dates: I also want to mention the European workshops I'll be conducting during the month of October for those of you who like to plan ahead. The weekend of 10-11 October I will be presenting a workshop on "Mindfulness and Mind Body Healing" in Heidelberg, Germany sponsored by the Milton Erickson Institute, directed by Dr. Gunther Schmidt. Then I'll travel to Paris to teach "Empowering the Self Through Ego-State Therapy and Structural Dissociation" on 17-18 October. Following that event, I will be in Zurich, Switzerland 24-25 October to teach "The Body as the Ultimate Healer of Trauma and Pain." From Zurich, I travel to join the faculty of the Child Psychotherapy Conference in Heidelberg where I will present on "Saving the Velveteen Rabbit: Ericksonian Approaches to Pain Management with Children ad Adolescents," followed by a two-day post conference workshop with Dr. Wally Hartman on "Ego-State Therapy with Children and the Child Within" on 1st-2nd November (again at the Milton Erickson Institute in Heidelberg). Finally, I will teach an advanced workshop in Rottweil, Germany on "Ego-State Therapy with Personality Disorders" scheduled for 7-8 November, as well as offering group and individual consultation. More details will be provided in future newsletters. As you can see, I have a very full schedule. Please join me if you can!

I have the firm belief that any effective treatment program for pain or other ongoing health problem t self-treatment. Recently, I heard Jon Kabat-Zinn talk about how models of healthcare need to go beyond alternative medicine to participatory medicine. I couldn't agree more.

There are many ways to participate in your own treatment. One is to understand and participate in the use of medication, if treating professionals recommend that as a part of recovery and healing. Many patients either under-medicate or overmedicate. The main issue is whether pain is poorly controlled or contained in a satisfactory manner.

One of the first questions I ask people I'm working with who are struggling with unregulated pain is whether and how they are taking prescribed medications. The answers can be very revealing. Some individuals are afraid of being addicted to or dependent on these drugs. Gentle probing may uncover the fact that family members or others close to the patient have been caught in an addictive spiral. This can be an opportunity to educate about the nature and frequency of addiction. For those without existing substance abuse problems or family history of addiction, the likelihood of developing an addiction is relatively rare.

More common is the possibility of becoming emotionally or psychologically dependent on medication. Sometimes I have found that this is necessary. That is, the person in pain who needs medication may need to depend on the medication, to trust its effects, and to understand that if the prescribed drug is to help in their recovery, they must take it consistently to obtain those results.

I usually tell my clients that often the first step is to rely on the correct dosage of medication before we can develop more natural alternatives through breathing techniques, guided imagery, or treatment with Energy Psychology. So the first step is stabilization, then creation of alternate pain relief, and then a gradual shift away from the medication.

Sometimes people develop "pseudo addiction" because the drug and dosage are not providing reliable management. If this is the case, these individuals will seek more medication because of the fear that their pain will continue to rage out of control. When medication is fine-tuned so the dosage is effective, pseudo addiction will usually resolve.

Also, some individuals take medication when their pain increases, rather than at regular intervals as prescribed. They then end up in a situation of "chasing the pain," rather than staying ahead of it, which is much more stressful and ineffective. This scenario presents additional opportunities for discussion and education. Many patients are not aware that, especially if drugs are going to be used more long-term, they are best used on a time contingent basis so that the medication stays in the patient's system for an optimal timeframe, thus providing more

Another common fear about medication is the possibility of unwanted side effects. It is usually best to ask clients about specific worries they might have about side effects, which might include anxiety about sexual dysfunction, constipation or other digestive difficulties. Frequently, these worries can be alleviated by decisions to "start low and go slow"-that is, starting at a low or even sub-clinical dose with individuals who have significant anxiety and then gradually and slowly increasing the dosage. If side effects do occur, it is often best to stabilize the patient longer on the last increase before the unpleasant effects surfaced. Often, this strategy, provided the prescribing doctor is willing to participate, will eliminate most of the negative effects.

A second way to participate successfully in treatment is to become aware of factors that increase pain. One of the best tools I've found is the use of a pain chart, diary, or notebook. I recommend that most of my clients begin tracking daily their pain or other symptoms. I usually suggest the daily scaling of their pain or symptom levels from zero (no pain) - 10 (intolerable) three times per day (on awakening, mid-day or afternoon, and evenings or at bedtime). I also ask for a rating of emotional mood or stress at that time and about progress with various assignments or with self-healing techniques. If sleep is a problem, we also track daily quality of sleep and rest.

If there are stress factors that significantly affect pain, it is important to examine those issues and determine goals to help effect change in those important areas. These include stresses in relationships, the workplace, habits related to sleep, exercise and rest. It is important to understand that better pain control needs to result in improved physical functioning in every day life.

Complex pain problems are rarely resolved with medications alone. Good pain self-treatment includes consistent focus on specific behavioral goals that reduce triggers and stresses that can increase the intensity of pain and prolong suffering. This column will address this aspect of self-treatment more specifically in future newsletters so watch for more details. And if you have specific questions, send them by email as I would like to direct my comments to areas of interest for you.

Thanks for taking the time to read this newsletter and to pass along information that would be appropriate to family, friends, and clients.

It is my hope that you are interested in hearing from me periodically with news; however, if at any time, you wish to stop receiving emails from me, just follow the instructions below.

To be removed from my email list, please email assistant@maggiephillipsphd.com with the word "unsubscribe" in the title or body of the email or use the options at the bottom of this email to instantly unsubscribe.