This training will provide an introduction to ISTDP and offer video demonstrations using this therapy with mothers struggling from postpartum depression. The lecture and video demonstrations of psychotherapy will be in Spanish and include cases of mothers with varying degrees of fragility and resistance. The presenter will also incorporate findings from her research into the relationship between insecure attachment styles, self-critical personality traits, and postpartum depression.

While this workshop is presented primarily for mental health clinicians in Costa Rica, it is open to anyone who would like to learn ISTDP in Spanish. If you are interested in this workshop or future ISTDP training seminars in Spanish, please contact the presenter at elkeschlager@gmail.com. For people traveling from outside of Costa Rica, Elke is happy to make recommendations for hotel accommodations near the hospital.

About the Presenter:

For the past 20 years Elke has been working in experiential dynamic therapy with both English and Spanish speaking patients. She joined the Harvard Psychotherapy Research Program at Beth Israel Hospital in 1999, where she worked closely with Leigh McCullough in the research and development of the Affect Phobia Therapy model and the validation of the ATOS scale. She has integrated experiential dynamic psychotherapy into her work in inpatient hospital settings, including the adolescent unit at University of Massachusetts Medical Center, as well as in several multicultural inner-city clinics. Elke was also a faculty adjunct at Herbert Benson’s Mind/Body Medical Institute at Harvard Medical School, where she taught mindfulness meditation and mind/body approaches.

Elke is certified as a teacher and supervisor by the International Experiential Dynamic Therapy Association (IEDTA). She is currently conducting research on the effectiveness of ISTDP for the treatment of maternal depression. Elke lives in the Northern Virginia area and has a private practice in Reston.