2019 Fall Chaplains’ Conference

“Coming Down from the Ledge:
Insights and Applications from Dialectical Behavior Therapy for Changing Self-Destructive Behaviors”

Speaker Information
Rev. Michele Guest Lowery is an ordained minister in the United Church of Christ and a board-certified chaplain with the Association of Professional Chaplains (APC). She has almost 20 years of experience in behavioral health chaplaincy as both a direct care provider and program manager. Rev. Lowery currently serves as Spiritual Care Manager at Central Maine Medical Center in Lewiston, Maine. She has presented several workshops and webinars on various behavioral health topics, and has published numerous articles on ministry to those living with a mental illness, most recently “Behavioral Health Basics for Chaplains” in Health Progress. Rev. Lowery has the distinction of being the first (perhaps the only) chaplain to complete Dialectical Behavior Therapy Intensive Training with Behavioral Tech, a Marsha Linehan Institute Training Company (Linehan is the founder of DBT).

Summary of Sessions:
Among psychological disorders, Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) is a striking clinical manifestation of societal brokenness: emotional dysregulation, alienation, self-injury and chaotic relationships. Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) is an evidence-based treatment approach to addressing these issues, uniquely blending behavioral science and spiritual practice. This conference will provide an overview of both the complex world inhabited by those living with BPD and DBT’s paradoxical treatment philosophy, offering hopeful perspectives on a challenging clinical conundrum, with broader implications for healing change in a broken world.

Objectives of Sessions:

• Session 1: Introduce the basic characteristics of Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) and the distinctive treatment philosophy of Dialectical Behavior Therapy.
• Session 2: Describe emotional dysregulation as the core dysfunction underlying self-destructive behavioral patterns associated with BPD, including self-injury.
• Session 3: Identify mindfulness-based skill-sets that can provide a foundation for emotional regulation.
• Session 4: Discuss and explore behavioral principles and strategies for reducing emotional reactivity and improving quality of life for people living with BPD and other behavioral disorders.

Agenda

Thursday, September 12th
2:00-2:45 pm Registration
3:00 pm Welcome and Prayer
3:15 pm Session One
5:00 pm Break
5:15 pm Dinner
6:45 pm Session Two

Friday, September 13th
8:00 am Breakfast
8:45 am Morning Prayer
9:00 am Session Three
10:45 am Break
11:30 am Education Committee Discussion
12:00 pm Lunch
1:00 pm Session Four
2:45 pm Closing Prayer/Evaluation

Participants are invited to bring resource materials you have found helpful from your work or community to share with other participants during the conference.

7.5 Continuing Education Hours have been granted by the National Association of Catholic Chaplains

For more program information, please contact:
Brent Derowitsch: 952-892-2725 (work), [email protected]

Conference Registration (all prices include meals)
1. Full registration with private room $190
2. Full registration with shared room $170
3. Student with private room $155
4. Student with shared room $135
5. Full registration for commuters $130 (includes meals)
6. Full registration for student commuters $95 (includes meals)
*Students include: CPE and Graduate

Registration Deadline: September 4, 2019

Lodging
For participants intending to stay overnight, the registration fee includes one night’s (Thursday, September 12) lodging at the Retreat Center plus three meals (dinner on Thursday, breakfast and lunch on Friday). For commuters who are not staying overnight at the Center, the registration fee includes dinner on Thursday and lunch on Friday.

Christ the King Retreat Center, 621 South First Avenue, Buffalo, MN 55313

Roommate Referral
Lodging at the Retreat Center is limited, so a roommate referral program for the conference has been set up for all persons interested in securing roommates. To participate in our roommate referral program, please click here.

Registration
For registration, you have the option of sending in a completed paper registration form, or registering online. To register online, click here: REGISTER.

PLEASE NOTE: Registration will NOT be considered complete until the NACC receives your registration and payment. All registration fees MUST be received prior to the event in order to participate