This is an event of potential interest to SMN members, but not organised by the SMN. Interested persons should refer to the event organiser (Taunton Association for Psychotherapy) for terms and conditions.
Meaning and Purpose are central to both Spirituality and Psychotherapy. They keep people mentally and emotionally healthy. Health is not just the absence of symptoms, indeed the word health is related to ‘whole’ and ‘holy’ and in Old English becomes ‘hale’.
Forty years ago Spirituality and Psychotherapy were poles apart, yet today the Royal College of Psychiatrists says, “Spirituality and psychiatry … do not seem to have much in common. But we are becoming increasingly aware of ways in which some aspects of spirituality can offer real benefits for mental health.” Indeed currently 70% of US medical schools now feature courses on the spirituality of health. There are significant new perspectives here, and while some views are controversial, it suggests we may be in a paradigm shift.
TAP accordingly decided that in having a conference on this subject, delegates would have an opportunity to appreciate these new developments and positively integrate them into their practice.
Once again we have secured two top speakers:
Melody Cranborne-Rosser
Spiritual competence and psychotherapeutic practice: necessity or nonsense?
Melody Cranbourne-Rosser, a Registered Counselling Psychologist and Transpersonal Therapist, is past chair and current executive committee member of BACP Spirituality, founder of Soul Psychology (Transpersonal and Esoteric Psychology Network), and network lead for the BPS Division of Counselling Psychology Spirituality Special Interest Group. Recent projects include a chapter on ‘The place of spirituality in health and social care practice’, in Clouston, T.J., Westcott, L., and Whitcombe, S. (Eds) (2017), Transitions to Practice. UK: M&K Publishing.
Larry Culliford
The Psychology of Spirituality
Larry Culliford is a retired, psychotherapy-trained psychiatrist, the author of ‘Love, Healing & Happiness’, ‘The Psychology of Spirituality’, ‘Much Ado about Something’, and other titles, including “Happiness, the thirty day guide that will last a lifetime” written under the pen name Patrick Whiteside, and endorsed by the Dalai Lama. He is an experienced speaker and workshop presenter. His monthly blog on ‘Spiritual wisdom for secular times’ can be found at: https://www.
