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ForwardDeep Brain Reorienting Level 1: Healing of the Shock at the Heart of Traumatic Experiences
ISSTD is excited to offer this training as part of the pre-conference days of the 2025 Annual Conference. All participants who register for this training will be offered a 20% discount on registration for the main days of the conference.
Abstract
Level 1 Deep Brain Reorienting (DBR) training offers participants an opportunity to understand the key role of midbrain systems in traumatic experiences which have clinical consequences. There is an emphasis on attachment shock, which may be historic or recent, and on early life adversity. A distinction between brain circuits for shock and circuits for affective and defensive responding underlies the clinical approach of Deep Brain Reorienting.
DBR is a trauma memory processing modality that has developed from an understanding of stimulus-response sequences in the upper brainstem and uses these in a way that diminishes the risk of overwhelm or dissociation. Tracking the sequences, informed by the knowledge of how they occur physiologically, activates a healing process which, optimally, promotes a complete resolution of the clinical consequences of the traumatic experiences.
DBR can also be useful when attachment urges are conflicted because of adverse experiences. For example, when the capacity to orient toward connection simultaneously triggers the impulse to move away, often with negative affects emerging, the urge to connect with significant others is conflicted at a level not readily accessible in talk therapy.
All therapists will actively participate in practicum work to get direct experience of working in a ‘deep brain’ way.
Target Audience
Learning Level: Beginning/Introductory
DBR Level 1 training is for mental health professionals: psychiatrists, psychologists, psychotherapists, and other health practitioners who have a minimum of two years’ post qualification clinical experience, and experience of working with early adversity and trauma.
Learning Objectives
At the conclusion of this training, participants will be able to:
- Describe the neuroanatomy and neurophysiology of midbrain systems for orienting to threat and adversity
- Describe the critical role of orienting tension in the clinical application of DBR
- Explain how shock can be pre-affective
- Describe the mechanism of shock-induced vigilance
- Describe the differences between vigilant rigidity and tonic immobility
- Identify how to track deep sequences that have occurred so quickly that only their late effects have been recognized
- Explain how to wait with deeply stored sequences until full processing of them has occurred
- Explain what is meant by Panksepp's primary seven affects – and why there is an additional focus on shame
- Explain the role of immobility as a defense - and what neuronal structures are involved
- Identify the defense responses associated with endogenous, stress-induced analgesics
Preliminary Schedule (Subject to Change)
DAY 1
March 13, 2025
| TIME | SESSION |
| 8:30 AM - 9:00 AM | Breakfast & Registration |
| 9:00 AM – 10:30 AM | Theory Underlying DBR: Orienting, Orienting Tension, Shock and Horror and Where-Self Group Exercise |
| 10:30 AM – 10:45 AM | Question & Answer |
| 10:45 AM - 11:00 AM | Break |
| 11:00 AM - 11:45 AM | Demonstration and Discussion |
| 11:45 AM - 12:00 PM | Practicum Directions |
| 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM | Lunch (On Own) |
| 1:00 PM –1:15 PM | Organize Breakout Rooms |
| 1:15 PM - 2:55 PM | Practicum - Groups of Three Rotating Roles |
| 2:55 PM – 3:10 PM | Break |
| 3:10 PM - 4:00 PM | Practicum - Groups of Three Rotating Roles (continued) |
| 4:00 PM – 4:30 PM | Feedback, Question & Answer and Closing |
DAY 2
March 14, 2025
| TIME | SESSION |
| 8:30 AM - 9:00 AM | Breakfast |
| 9:00 AM – 10:00 AM | Theory underlying DBR: Affects and Defensive Responses |
| 10:00 AM – 10:30 AM | Question & Answer |
| 10:30 AM - 10:45 AM | Break |
| 10:45 AM - 11:45 AM | Demonstration and Discussion |
| 11:45 AM - 12:00 PM | Practicum Directions |
| 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM | Lunch (On Own) |
| 1:00 PM –1:15 PM | Organize Breakout Rooms |
| 1:15 PM - 2:55 PM | Practicum - Groups of Three Rotating Roles |
| 2:55 PM – 3:10 PM | Break |
| 3:10 PM - 4:00 PM | Practicum - Groups of Three Rotating Roles (continued) |
| 4:00 PM – 4:30 PM | Feedback, Question & Answer and Closing |
All therapists will actively participate in practicum work to get direct experience of working in a ‘deep brain’ way. During practicum on each day, each participant will participate as the therapist, client and observer spending 45 minutes in each role on each day.
ISSTD has secured a special rate for conference attendees of $249. This rate is available March 10-18, 2025. Rooms must be booked by February 17, 2024 to receive this rate. We anticipate our room block filling up before the booking deadline. We encourage you to make your reservation early to ensure you are able to get a room at the conference hotel.
Hotel Amenities
Fedex Business Center
Send and pick up your package in the full-service FedEx Business Center on the Mezzanine floor.
Monday – Friday | 7:30 AM – 6:00 PM
Saturday | 8:00 AM – 12:00 PM
Sunday | Closed
Lynx Fitness Club
Stay on top of your fitness routine. Visit our 20,000 square foot health club featuring personal trainers, group fitness classes, and the Full Swing golf simulator.
Restaurants and Bars
Off the Common
Our lobby bar and restaurant is an all-day dining destination.Get the taste of New England for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. For breakfast, explore a full, premium buffet. For lunch and dinner, try lobster rolls, crab cakes, and clam chowder, or choose seasonal salads, soups, sandwiches, burgers, and more!
Hours
Breakfast: 7:00 AM-11:00 AM
Lunch: 12:00PM – 1:30 PM
Dinner: 5:00PM – 10:00 PM
Bar Service
Sunday – Thursday | 5:00 PM to 12:00 AM
Friday & Saturday | 4:00 PM to 1:00 AM
Strega
Strega Italiano Back Bay offers exceptional Italian cuisine from land and sea, as well as homemade pastas and decadent desserts. Explore the vast wine list or choose a creative cocktail. Meet for special occasions, business meetings, and nights out with friends.
Hours
Sunday – Thursday | 4:00 PM – 9:00 PM
Friday – Saturday | 4:00 PM – 10:00 PM
MJ O’Connors
Watch the game or meet with friends at this quintessential Irish pub. Visit for comfort food, a full bar, and pint of Guinness or a local craft beer
Hours
Monday – Thursday | 11:30 AM – 1:00 AM
Friday | 11:30 AM – 2:00 AM
Saturday | 10:00 AM – 2:00 AM
Sunday | 10:00 AM – 1:00 AM
Starbucks
Enjoy your favorite beverage or snack at our full coffeehouse, complete with complimentary WiFi.
Monday – Friday | 5:00 AM to 7:00 PM
Saturday & Sunday | 6:00 AM to 6:00 PM
Hotel Parking Information
The Hilton Park Plaza offers overnight valet parking for guests for $68 per day.
Travel
Boston/Logon International Airport (BOS)
Address: 2400 Aviation Drive DFW Airport, TX 75261
Phone: 502.367.4636
Visit Website
Travel distance to Hilton Park Plaza Hotel: 22 miles
Transportation Options
Ride Share App: Lyft & Uber – Approximately $35-40 USD
Public Transportation from BOS
Amtrak
Amtrak is a passenger train service that connects various cities nationwide including Boston, New York, Washington DC, Philadelphia and Portland, Maine. Boston has three stations where Amtrak trains depart from.
South Station (Red Line) – 700 Atlantic Ave, Boston, MA 02110
0.7 miles from the Hilton Park Plaza Hotel
Back BayStation (Orange Line) – 145 Dartmouth St, Boston, MA 02116
0.5 miles from the Hilton Park Plaza Hotel
North Station (Green and/or Orange Line) – 135 Causeway St, Boston, MA 02114
1.5 miles from the Hilton Park Plaza Hotel
Phone: 800-872-7245
Toll-free: 800-USA-RAIL
amtrak.com
Amtrak Plan Your Trip Map
Getting Around Boston: Public Transportation Options
The T is Boston’s Public Transportation System and offers subway, bus, trolley car, and boat service to get around the Boston area.
Trainer
Frank Corrigan, MBChB, MD, FRCPsych
Frank Corrigan qualified in Medicine in 1976 (MBChB, Glasgow) and began his career in psychiatry in 1977. Throughout a career spanning over 30 years as an NHS Consultant Psychiatrist in Scotland, Frank combined his extensive clinical experience with research on the neurobiology of trauma and its underpinnings in major psychiatric disorders.
Frank Corrigan was a Consultant Psychiatrist in Scotland, UK, from 1985 until 2018. He trained in EMDR in 1999 and was an accredited consultant with the EMDR Association (UK & Ireland) from 2006 until 2022. He completed Sensorimotor Psychotherapy Institute (SPI) Trauma Training in September 2010. He has been a trainer in the Comprehensive Resource Model (CRM) (Schwarz et al 2016) for the treatment of complex trauma disorders. Since
then, he has developed Deep Brain Reorienting (DBR) as a therapeutic modality for the clinical sequelae of early attachment disruptions and for other post-traumatic presentations. He now uses DBR extensively in his clinical practice and provides training and supervision in its use.
Lead Assistants
Tina Shrigley, CPsych
Dr. Tina Shrigley, C. Psych. has worked with clients with trauma-related issues, complex trauma, and dissociation for the past 15 years. She had previous training in EMDR therapy and the structural theory of dissociation before learning DBR in 2020. She remains an EMDRIA-approved consultant and also provides DBR consultation. She primarily uses DBR in her clinical practice. Tina has a background in kinesiology, giving her a unique understanding of the brain-body connection. Tina works in private practice and is the Clinical Director of the Centre for Trauma and Stress in Sarnia, Ontario, Canada.
Cindy Shrigley, MSW, RSW
Cindy Shrigley, MSW, RSW has specialized in the treatment of complex trauma and dissociation for over 35 years. She has provided consultation and presented on treating complex trauma and dissociation with EMDR therapy nationally and internationally. She is an EMDRIA-approved consultant and trained in EMDR therapy in 1999. Cindy has used DBR since 2020. She is also a DBR consultant, offering a deep knowledge in the clinical application of DBR with dissociative disorders. She works with adult clients and has found DBR to be profoundly healing and well-tolerated. She founded the Centre for Trauma and Stress in 2022, where she works in private practice in Sarnia, Ontario, Canada.
Available Credit
- 6.00 APAThe International Society for the Study of Trauma and Dissociation is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education for psychologists. The International Society for the Study of Trauma and Dissociation maintains responsibility for this program and its content.
- 6.00 ASWB ACEThe International Society for the Study of Trauma and Dissociation (ISSTD), #1744, is approved as an ACE provider to offer social work continuing education by the Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB) Approved Continuing Education (ACE) program. Regulatory boards are the final authority on courses accepted for continuing education credit. ACE provider approval period: 08/20/2024 – 08/20/2027. Social workers completing this course receive 6.00 continuing education credits.
Price
Important Registration Information
- "Your Price" above reflects your final price based on your membership status and registration period.
- Early bird registration for this training will end December 15, 2024 at 11:59 PM US Eastern Time. Prices will increase $50 after the early bird registration deadline.
- CE credits are available for an additional fee of $59.
- Registration does not include transportation, parking, or hotel.
- No payment plans are available for this training
- All fees are listed in USD
ISSTD Cancellation Policy
Cancellations prior to the training are subject to a $75 cancellation fee. No refunds are provided. The deadline for cancelations with a refund is February 12, 2025 at 5:00pm ET. After this deadline no refunds will be provided.
Grievance Policy
ISSTD is fully committed to conducting all activities in strict conformation with the APA and ASWB grievance procedures.
During a course, instructors will address any concerns that arise. Every effort will be made to address the concerns during the course when possible. If the course instructor(s) are unable to address the participant’s concerns, the complaints and grievances shall be presented in writing to ISSTD Headquarters at [email protected]. These will be forwarded on for review by the ISSTD Executive Committee.
Social Workers: Should social workers have a specific grievance, these grievances will be addressed by D. Michael Coy, LICSW. In situations where the social worker would have a conflict of interest, then, Christine Forner, MSW will review the grievance.
ISSTD strives to resolve grievances in a manner that is in the best interest of the participant. All complaints and grievances are reviewed within five working days. Formal grievances are required to be written and emailed as directed above and will be responded to within 15 business days.