Liefde Wellness Centre, 56 Hartnett Drive, Seaford VIC, 3198 & Online Tel: +61 422 139 882

Focusing Foundations Training Programme

"Focusing is based on the very positive expectation of change. It doesn't envision a human being as a fixed structure whose shape can be analyzed once and for all. It envisions a person as a process, capable of continual change and forward movement. The 'problems' inside you are only those parts of the process that have been stopped, and the aim of focusing is to unstop them and get the process moving again. When you are focusing correctly, you not only expect change; you create it in the very act of focusing."

- Eugene Gendlin

Focusing is a transformative process that stems from the philosophy of Eugene Gendlin. Gendlin believed that everything in life is constantly evolving and in motion, including ourselves. This understanding forms the foundation of focusing, which serves as a means of healing and personal growth. In this 10 week Focusing Foundations Level 3 & 4 Students will develop key skills allowing them to change their relationship with their inner experiences. By engaging in focusing, individuals learn to be present with themselves in a new and profound way. They come to realize that their experiences, no matter how challenging, do not define them. Rather, these experiences are merely sensations and emotions that can be acknowledged and embraced. Through focusing, individuals gain access to a deep sense of self-love and trust, cultivating a quiet confidence that permeates their lives.

Focusing offers a rich potential for change. It opens a doorway to a space where it is possible to transform your life in a way that feels right for you. Focusing is a practice everyone can learn without undertaking years of professional development or going to see a therapist. With a little training, you can learn to access the space beyond your thoughts to find the "more" that is happening in any situation. When we are in contact with our direct experience of the “more”, small steps of change begin to emerge, and this can lead us on to fresh life-giving directions. The wonderful thing is that when you learn focusing you can use it whenever you need it for the rest of your life.

Foundations in Focusing Level 1 & 2 is a prerequisite to this course.

This course is for you if you would like to...

Be part of an embodied empathetic, warm group of human beings who can listen deeply to one another and inside themselves.
Learn to pause, slow down, and regulate uncomfortable states by coming into relationship with your direct experience of this present moment.
Learn to be with the pain of life in yourself and others in ways that bring relief, transformation, and a return to wholeness.
Get enough personal attention in your experiential learning inside a small group (Maximum 10 people).
Experience relief from physical and psychological tensions and chronic pain.
Connect to the authentic truth within your embodied self.
Gain more clarity and direction about what you need to bring your life forward.
Experience more fullfillment in your relationships and your life situations
Become a Focusing professional, this course is the foundation for further certification.

With Marie Connors

Levels 3 and 4

10 Class Course

Class Duration: 2hr 30mins

Online through Zoom

Course Dates

Tuesday 30th July
Tuesday 6th August
Tuesday 13th August
Tuesday 20th August
Tuesday 27th August
Tuesday 3rd September
Tuesday 10th September
Tuesday 17th September
Tuesday 24th September
Tuesday 1st October

Greenwich Mean Time

9:00am to 11:30am

Australia Eastern

Standard Time

6:00pm to 8:30pm

Cost: $700 AUD

In level three and four trainees learn how to guide the Focusing process from a place of empathetic attunement. They learn how to follow the information that is emerging from the Felt-Sense so that it can lead the way. Advanced companioning skills are taught such as, offering suggestions, how to intervene in a Focusers silence and how to take back what they suggested if it wasn’t helpful. Companions are receptive to the needs of the Focuser including guidance or reflection or silence. They learn how to help with conflicting parts, exiled parts, painful parts and an inner criticizing process. They learn and share ways of responding when the Focusing process seems blocked, including when the Focuser feels nothing, “resistance,” when the Focuser feels overwhelmed, when the Focuser is experiencing pain, when the Focuser tells stories or is “in the head.” Trainees will learn a Focusing approach to meeting Traumatic experiences as well as a Focusing through a polyvagal informed lens. Focuser and Companion will practice trusting the inner sense of rightness that is deeper than any rule or guideline.

All 10 class sessions will incorporate a hands-on approach to learning by including group attunements, experiential exercises and paired Focusing practice. This interactive method is considered the most effective way to grasp the concepts and allows each student to discover their own unique style of supporting this process. It will be accompanied by informative discussions on theory and technique. Additionally, there will be live demonstrations of one-on-one focusing sessions involving class participants.

This course, led by Marie Connors, is a powerful and deep Foundation to this empowering body centred process of listening to your inner self.

Week 1 Advanced Reflecting Skills

Clearing a Space
Reflecting Images, non verbal, stories and more.
Experiential practice in groups and pairs
Demonstrations, discussion and debrief

Week 2 Supporting the Living Forward Energy

Tracking what is needed moment by moment
Exploring Carrying Forward Energy
Group Focusing with Advanced Reflecting
Experiential practice in groups and pairs
Demonstations, discussion and debrief

Week 3 Using Self-Guiding

Noticing how you already self-Guide your process
Exploring the Natural Order of Steps
Demonstration, discussion and debrief
Experiential group and paired practices

Facilitating Carrying Forward Steps as Focuser
Facilitating Carrying Forward Steps as Listener
Experiential focusing practice, group & paired
Demonstration, discussion and questions

Week 4 The Listener supports the Felt-Sense

Week 5 Using Presencing Invitations

When it is useful to offer invitations
Using Cushions
Experiential focusing practice, group & paired
Demonstration, discussion and questions

Week 6 Bringing Focusing to Pain

Bringing a larger embodied awareness to pain
The pain and the feeling about the pain
Carefully created exercises with practice card
Experiential focusing practice, group & paired
Demonstration, discussion and questions

Week 7 Bringing Focusing to Self-Critical Voices

Tools to shift the way you interact with your inner critic
Exploring the inner critic from its own point of view
Attention to the one being criticized
Experiential focusing practice, group & paired
Demonstration, discussion and questions

Week 8 Bringing Focusing to Trauma

Trauma as a stoppage of Living Forward Energy
Leaning into our animal body to find our way home from stopped life process
Carefully created exercises with practice card
Experiential focusing practice, group & paired
Demonstration, discussion and questions

Week 9 Felt-Sensing through the lens of Polyvagal Theory

Understanding our evolution as mammals
How Focusing through the lens of polyvagal can enhance our human experience
Carefully created exercises with practice card
Experiential focusing practice, group & paired
Demonstration, discussion and questions

Week 10 Focusing with Close & Distant Process

Understanding close process and how to facilitate it
Understanding distant process and how to facilitate it
Carefully created exercises with practice card
Experiential focusing practice, group & paired
Demonstration, discussion and questions

Weekly Schedule

By the end of the course....

After completing this course, you will acquire a strong foundation to engage in Focusing with a partner, either in a group setting or individually. This comprehensive training equips you with essential skills and knowledge to effectively practice Focusing. Furthermore, as a direct benefit, you are now eligible to join the International Focusing Partnership Network without any fees. This network provides a platform for individuals to connect and collaborate with fellow Focusing practitioners from around the world. By becoming a member of the International Focusing Institute, you gain access to a vibrant community dedicated to personal growth and mutual support. Joining this network opens up countless opportunities for furthering your understanding and practice of Focusing.

This Level 1-4 course for Proficiency in Focusing Partnership Award PFPA is designed to assist you in your personal growth and overall well-being. It serves as a self-help tool that allows you to learn and apply a remarkable process that can significantly enhance various aspects of your life. Through this course, you will acquire the necessary skills and knowledge to effectively utilize focusing partnership techniques, enabling you to further develop your personal growth journey. By understanding and implementing this process, you will be empowered to explore and address your emotions, thoughts, and experiences, ultimately leading to a more fulfilling and balanced life.

If you have aspirations of becoming a Focusing Professional, this course is the essential starting point for pursuing further certification. The Focusing Training program is specifically designed to equip individuals with the necessary skills and knowledge required to excel in the field of Focusing. By enrolling in this course, you will gain a solid foundation in the principles and techniques of Focusing, enabling you to develop your expertise and progress towards becoming a certified Focusing Professional.

To Register

Contact Marie by email on

info@embodiedrelationalhealth.com

or fill out the enrollment form below

About the Teacher

Marie is a Registered Craniosacral Therapist, Massage Therapist and a Focusing Professional & Trainer with over 15 years experience in the field of bodywork. She is a certified member of The International Focusing Institute and the British Focusing Association. Marie is Irish and based in Melbourne Australia. She is passionate about sharing the gifts of Focusing with others.

Unsure if this Course is right for you

You can schedule a 15-minute call where Marie can answer any questions you might have. Feel free to email Marie directly, info@embodiedrelationalhealth.com