Facing up to Shame

Ever been caught in the act of reading entries in someone else's diary? Or burped or farted loudly at a quiet and polite gathering?

Then you will know the turmoil of shame. Please read on . . .

Feeling small, inferior, stupid or fearful of making a mistake? All feelings, needs and passions can be infiltrated by shame. Your self image and sense of self worth is at stake. Yet even toxic varieties of shame can be worked through and need not last forever ('eternal shame'). Isn't shame a rather old-fashioned notion? Should we do away with it or should we bring it back? Or is it an essential aspect of being human? How do you live with the hung head or the red face? Shame manifests bodily and outside of a workshop like this no-one enjoys bringing their own or other's shame to awareness. Freud reputedly sat behind and out of sight of his analysands because he felt ashamed of being looked at as he interested himself in deeply personal matters.

This workshop will help you:

Make a number of crucial distinctions relevant to handling shame

1. Between shame and guilt
2. Between your actual self and your ideal self
3. Between conscious temporary shame and unconscious chronic shame
4. Between seeing yourself through your own eyes and seeing yourself through other's eyes (who maybe shamed you)
5. Between shame as your protector and shame as your torturer
6. Between thoughts that trigger shame and the emotion itself
7. Between four varieties of shame: existential, class, situational and narcissistic
8. Between the four typical dysfunctional defences against shame and more constructive ways to work it through and out
   . . . and as a bonus
9. Between subverting shame by playing creatively with it and being subverted by shame through taking it too seriously

Shame Exorcised in Moments of Expressive Role Play

During this workshop you will research this elusive emotion and its impact on your body, identity and choices, and a range of findings about shame will be presented. Its legitimate functions will be affirmed whereas shame as a residue of humiliation, persecution or abuse will be confronted.

The almost unknown and shameless technique of expressive roleplay (see above and below) will help you break shame's grip, giving you a practical antidote to shame's tendency to paralyse, as you celebrate taking risks in front of others.

Photos: Philippe Dutartre

Guy Gladstone

is a body psychotherapist who has been working for twenty years with ongoing and weekend groups at The Open Centre, the long established (1977) independent personal growth centre. He is accredited as a group psychotherapist and bodywork practitioner by the Association of Humanistic Psychology Practitioners and is a graduate of three trainings: The Institute for the Development of Human Potential (2 years), The Institute of Psychotherapy and Social Studies (3 Years) and The British Association of Analytical Body Psychotherapy (5 years).

Before his training in psychodrama and psychotherapy, through living in a commune where it was daily praxis, he learnt a special method of self-presentation through roleplay, an approach to be used within this workshop. His interest in the interface of therapy and theatre, includes how to explore heavier topics with both gravity and levity. Regarding the New Age as a millennial fiction he invites you to shamelessly reinvent the sins of the Medieval world in an unforgettable experiment. Wicked.

Avoiding the pitfalls of moralism while remaining receptive to irony this workshop will begin by exploring what has happened to your New Year's resolutions, traverse the Seven Deadly Sins and end in an appropriately riotous mode on the eve of April Fools Day. Serious interludes assured.

Note: A requirement for attending this event is that you be prepared at times to not take your feelings too seriously.

Booking Procedure

You may ring at any time to ascertain current availability of places on Sensations series workshops. You may book directly using the registration form. If you want to discuss booking or have any queries you may ring beforehand on 020 7272 6672 or email.

Sensations Series

Facing up to Shame can be attended on its own or in a series of six theme based workshops. Details of any of the other Sensations series workshops are available on this website. The others are Sexualities and Suppressions; Body Image, Discovery and Change; Shock and Stress; Anger, All Angles; and The Rainbow of Desire. The unifying element of these workshops will be an exploration of the phenomena of your personal bodily experience. Participants will be helped to recall and communicate the exact sensations associated with their experience. The charge of the themes will be grounded and contained through carefully structured exercises.

Attending a Sensations series workshop may serve as an introduction to work in one of several ongoing analytical body psychotherapy groups. Further details of weekly ongoing groups and weekend groups are available on this website. Current or former members of these groups may also attend the theme workshops in order to focus on specific concerns surfaced/surfacing in that setting.

To discuss booking or if you have any queries please ring Guy Gladstone on 020 7272 6672 or or email.

TO FIND DATES OF UPCOMING EVENTS PLEASE GO TO THE REGISTRATION FORM

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