CHOICES Adoptive Family Support
Concurrent Group Therapy Programs for Children & Parents
The Adoptive Family Group Therapy Program at CHOICES
The Program Meets On Thursdays During the Fall of 2016 from 6:00 pm-7:30 pm
Our group program is trauma informed and attachment focused. For the Parents we focus on developing the skills to be a therapeutic parent for the traumatized attachment challenged adopted child. We use Attachment Theory concepts as well as the Internal Family Systems Model of Psychotherapy developed by Richard Schwartz PhD to help parents better understand how the traumatized parts of their special needs children may activate their own parts if there is unresolved hurt within. While there are some skills taught in the parent group in order to assist with de-escalation and to promote positive behavior the group's main focus is on helping parents heal their own hurts so they will have more space and understanding in the parenting of their children.
The Youth Group focuses on the identity of being an adopted child and on the way that past trauma can lead to behavioral, emotional and cognitive dysregulation. The children and teens are helped through the group in learning mindfulness based strategies (we use the Mind UP Curriculum) to increase regulation of all kinds as well as how to identify their own parts that have formed through past abuse, neglect and abandonment. Fun creative expressive techniques are used to help the group members learn and transform in safe and constructive ways.
Periodically both groups come together to do a joint family exploration and bonding activity together.
The Topics of the Self-Led Parent Therapy Group
09/29/2016 Week 1: Introductions; Goals; Our Unique Family; Child Development and how Trauma Impacts it
10/06/2016 Week 2: Trauma Informed De-escalation Strategies and Positive Discipline
10/13/2016 Week 3: Our Personal Family Legacies; Genograms and the Parts they Stir up
10/20/2016 Week 4: Whole Family Group Bonding Exercise on Family Identity
10/27/2016 Week 5: Our Children's Internal Working Models in Comparison to Our Own
11/03/2016 Week 6: Our Own Internal Family Systems Map
11/10/2016 Week 7: Whole Family Group Sand Tray Exercises
11/17/2016 Week 8: What Parts of my Traumatized Child activate My Own Parts; The IFS Z-Process
12/01/2016 Week 9: Taking Care of my Own Parts in order to be the Therapeutic Parent my Child Needs
12/08/2016 Week 10: Whole Family Group What's Next on the Journey?
Topics of the Youth Group
Meet The Adoptive Family Group Program Team
Lois A. Ehrmann PhD, LPC, NCC
Lois is the founder of CHOICES, a holistic counseling group in State College, PA which specializes in trauma informed care. She is a Licensed Professional Counselor who has been working in the field for over 29 years and an Assistant Professor in Counselor Education and Supervision at PSU. She holds the following credentials: Certified Clinician and Approved Consultant in EMDR (EMDRIA); Certified Therapist in Internal Family Systems (CSL) and in Clinical Hypnosis (ASCH); Having completed Levels 1, 2, and 3 of Internal Family Systems she has introduced the IFS model to groups of parents of traumatized children and to professional healers who work with traumatized families. She is a Registered ATTACh Clinician, Certified Attachment Focused Family Therapist/Consultant and an Approved Clinical Supervisor (NCE). She works with individuals and families who suffer from trauma, abuse and attachment issues.
Lois has facilitated many group processes for parents and developed the program and manual used in the Self-Led Parent Therapy Group. She has been the group therapist for this group program at least 8 times at CHOICES.
Jessie Westrick Starks MA, LPC, NCC
Jessie has experience working with families, children, adolescents and survivors of domestic and sexual violence. She has a Masters degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from Appalachian State University, where she also studied body-centered therapies and obtained a certification in Expressive Arts Therapy. In working with clients, Jessie supplements traditional talk therapy with expressive arts through imagery, storytelling, movement, therapeutic writing and visual arts to foster growth and healing.
Jessie has recently completed formal Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing (EMDR) training and is enjoying using this set of strategies for helping individuals who struggle with Trauma. She is in the certification process at this point. Jessie is known for her gifted ability to connect with her clients resulting in the development of safety within her session room. We at CHOICES appreciate Jessie and her gifts in all ways. Jessie has facilitated either the adolescent or children's group therapy of this program for the last two years.