Virginia Association for Marriage and Family Therapy

11/18/2025

📣 Registration is now OPEN for the next VAMFT Quarterly Palaver Discussion!

⛄Topic: Navigating the Holidays: Perspectives for Our Clients and Their Therapists
📆Friday, December 12, 2025| 12:00–1:30 PM
💻Live Online Event

We’re into the winter holiday season, a time that many religions/cultures hold celebrations that call for family gatherings to mark a shared occasion.
What issues are clients facing, relationally and individually?
- Stress – arguing?
- Trauma?
- Substance use disorder?
- Changing family constellations: post-partner/parent loss through death/divorce
- Special needs of family members: neurodevelopmental challenges; allergies; health; aging; dementia

We will review relevant literature, and discuss:
• Approaches and interventions you find most helpful (Boundary-setting, mindfulness, parts work, anger management)
• Self-management as we meet clients’ needs: Scheduling during the holidays; setting aside time for yourself and your needs (too many hours? urgent appointments? boundaries?)
Goals of this workshop:
• Review and discuss the research on the meaning of “holidays” and the literature addressing family process during the holidays;
• Consider the impact of family members’ various challenges on family gatherings and celebrations and how to help clients with anticipated stress;
• Therapist self-management: how do we attend to our own holiday plans/stressors as we help our clients? Empathy and processing versus countertransference? Meeting scheduling demands versus self-care?

✅ Free 1.5 CEUs for VAMFT Members!

Register online - You must be logged in to your account to register, as this event is Members Only!
🔗 https://vamft.wildapricot.org/events

Not a member yet? Join us today and start receiving member benefits:
🔗https://vamft.wildapricot.org/join

❓Questions? Reach out to information@vamft.net

See you there!

11/13/2025

Free event! For those of you who work with military and veteran families, the Military Family Research Institute (MFRI) at Purdue University will be hosting The Thompson Forum in Arlington VA (and virtually!) on December 9th. Registration is required. More information about the Thompson Forum is available here: https://www.mfri.purdue.edu/2025-thompson-award-finalists/

We're thrilled to announce the five finalists for this year's Thompson Award! 🌟

Each finalist has been selected for their significant contributions to military and veteran family research. One of these five finalists will receive the Thompson Award, which recognizes the most important and innovative research studies on military and veteran families published in the prior year. 💡

💻Learn more about this year's finalists: https://ow.ly/pemr50XpHMx

11/06/2025

See you all tomorrow!

📣 Registration is now OPEN for the next VAMFT workshop!
📍 Topic: Working with Elderly Clients
📅 Friday, November 7, 2025| 1:00–3:00 PM
💻 Live Online Event – Recording will be available for those who can’t make it!

In this workshop, we will explore the common and unique experiences of an aging population in the therapeutic setting. As we discover myths, explore stage of life concerns, and work through particular challenges, we will deepen our understanding of how to care for clients who are navigating this phase of life.Workshop participants will:
1. Challenge common myths around aging.
2. Consider biopsychosocial aspects that impact therapy in an aging population.
3. Explore self-of-the-therapist attitudes as they pertain to aging in clients and self.

Two CEs are available with discounted rates for VAMFT members. Visit https://vamft.wildapricot.org/events to register. See you there!

11/06/2025

Today is National Stress Awareness Day, part of the International Stress Management Association (ISMA) Stress Awareness Week! This year ISMA's theme is "Optimising Employee Wellbeing through Strategic Stress Management"!

Many of us work with clients who are experiencing severe stress to the point of “burn-out.” The World Health Organization defines burn-out as a syndrome resulting from chronic workplace stress that has not been successfully managed – Read more here: https://www.who.int/news/item/28-05-2019-burn-out-an-occupational-phenomenon-international-classification-of-diseases

It's a vicious cycle of unsupportive systems placing unfair demands on employees, leaving employees with limited time and energy to refill their physical and emotional tanks, leading to decreased effectiveness at work…The cycle continues. What do you do to support clients through burnout as a systemic therapist?

Too many of us are already aware: Therapists are at risk for burn-out, too! This meta-analysis (https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2212657022000253) explores the “severe professional and personal impact that burnout can have on therapists”. The authors of this article (https://psycnet.apa.org/doiLanding?doi=10.1037%2Fpst0000261) explore how therapist burn-out can become an ethical concern, with research findings around the effectiveness of combination of individual and systemic strategies – and they even propose a model to prevent burn-out!

If you’re in a leadership position with therapists as employees (or interns, or residents, or independent contractors) how do you support effective stress-management for your team? How do you address common systemic workplace issues in your business structure? Does your workplace allow therapists to achieve the work-life balance they’re encouraging in clients? Let us know in the comments!

11/04/2025

For anyone interested in learning about Narrative Therapy, there's an intro workshop happening next week!

More info at: narrativetherapychicago.com

11/04/2025

Each month, we will be highlighting one of our incredible VAMFT members – Reach out if you’d like to be featured, or to nominate someone else!

This month, meet Laura Padilla, LMFT. Laura is a licensed marriage and family therapist who provides individual and couples therapy, via telehealth and in person from her office in Newport News. She is certified in the Gottman method for couples, DBT, and EMDR. She works with adolescents, adults, couples, and families with a particular focus on those from the military community. Laura is a military spouse, who brings her own military family life experience to her work, and feels passionately about providing mental health resources to the greater community.

Laura and her family lived in Colorado prior to Virginia, where her husband was stationed in Colorado Springs. Laura is also licensed in CO and works via telehealth with individuals and couples. While in Colorado, she gained expertise in the field of domestic violence and IPV (intimate partner violence) by conducting evaluations for the court system and facilitating psychoeducational groups. She continues to maintain her license as a Domestic Violence Full-Operating Treatment Provider for CO. Laura is passionate about educating the community and her clients concerning healthy relational dynamics.

Laura has a thriving private practice, Spring Horizon Health and Wellness, LLC, specializing in providing trauma informed therapy with individuals and couples. She is currently accepting new clients and welcomes any referrals.

Website: www.springhorizonhw.com

10/21/2025

📣 Registration is now OPEN for the next VAMFT workshop!
📍 Topic: Working with Elderly Clients
📅 Friday, November 7, 2025| 1:00–3:00 PM
💻 Live Online Event – Recording will be available for those who can’t make it!

In this workshop, we will explore the common and unique experiences of an aging population in the therapeutic setting. As we discover myths, explore stage of life concerns, and work through particular challenges, we will deepen our understanding of how to care for clients who are navigating this phase of life.Workshop participants will:
1. Challenge common myths around aging.
2. Consider biopsychosocial aspects that impact therapy in an aging population.
3. Explore self-of-the-therapist attitudes as they pertain to aging in clients and self.

Two CEs are available with discounted rates for VAMFT members. Visit https://vamft.wildapricot.org/events to register. See you there!

10/20/2025

Join us this Friday for our next workshop! Discounts available for VAMFT members, and a recording will be available if you can't attend live. Register here: https://vamft.wildapricot.org/events

📣 Registration is now OPEN for the next VAMFT workshop!

📍 Topic: Online Therapy: Adaptation of Clinical Skills for Effective Telehealth Sessions
📅 Friday, October 24, 2025| 1:00–3:00 PM
💻 Live Online Event – Recording will be available for those who can’t make it!

Many of us trained pre-COVID, and would not have considered holding (non-emergency) sessions that were not face-to-face, in the same room. Then the world changed, and we had to model the flexibility we endorsed for our clients! And now we have shifted toward a professional world that expects both ability and facility in conducting effective online therapy. We’re inches away from a screen, miles away from our clients – with the same need for observation, a felt sense of our clients, and empathically supporting them as they change.

Paul Springer, PhD, will discuss the challenges and solutions for effective ways to adjust our clinical skills to the on-screen environment. Dr. Springer is professor and department head at Virginia Tech University’s Department of Human Development and Family Science.

Workshop participants will:

Learn about the multiple therapeutic environments inherent in online therapy and how to effectively address them.
Learn the essential skill for effective online therapy, necessary to overcome the auditory and visual limitations inherent in this modality.
Learn how to adapt experiential interventions for online therapy.
Two CEs are available with discounted rates for VAMFT members. Visit https://vamft.wildapricot.org/events to register. See you there!

10/18/2025

For those who work with clients experiencing Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder: Do you involve family members in therapy? Families are often involved when children are treated for OCD, but family-integrated treatment for adults can be effective as well!

We know that when one family member or partner suffers, the whole system is affected. Even with the best of intentions, the behavior of family members can trigger, maintain, or even worsen OCD symptoms – And of course, those who care for someone experiencing OCD likely find themselves in distress, too. Check out this meta-analysis on couple and family-integrated treatment for adults with OCD to learn more: https://psychiatryonline.org/doi/full/10.1176/appi.focus.19404

Drop a comment if you work systemically with clients on OCD, especially if you’re open to referrals!

10/13/2025

Join COAST for their next workshop: "From Barriers to Assets: Culturally Responsive Therapy with Black Families"
More information is available here:

From Barriers to Assets: Culturally Responsive Therapy with Black Families Description: This workshop is designed to enhance understanding of culturally responsive practices with Black families. Participants will explore historical context, societal factors, and changing family dynamics influencing....

10/05/2025

📣 Registration is now OPEN for the next VAMFT workshop!

📍 Topic: Online Therapy: Adaptation of Clinical Skills for Effective Telehealth Sessions
📅 Friday, October 24, 2025| 1:00–3:00 PM
💻 Live Online Event – Recording will be available for those who can’t make it!

Many of us trained pre-COVID, and would not have considered holding (non-emergency) sessions that were not face-to-face, in the same room. Then the world changed, and we had to model the flexibility we endorsed for our clients! And now we have shifted toward a professional world that expects both ability and facility in conducting effective online therapy. We’re inches away from a screen, miles away from our clients – with the same need for observation, a felt sense of our clients, and empathically supporting them as they change.

Paul Springer, PhD, will discuss the challenges and solutions for effective ways to adjust our clinical skills to the on-screen environment. Dr. Springer is professor and department head at Virginia Tech University’s Department of Human Development and Family Science.

Workshop participants will:

Learn about the multiple therapeutic environments inherent in online therapy and how to effectively address them.
Learn the essential skill for effective online therapy, necessary to overcome the auditory and visual limitations inherent in this modality.
Learn how to adapt experiential interventions for online therapy.
Two CEs are available with discounted rates for VAMFT members. Visit https://vamft.wildapricot.org/events to register. See you there!

10/02/2025

Each month, we will be highlighting one of our incredible VAMFT members – Reach out if you’d like to be featured, or to nominate someone else!
This month, meet Angela Huebner, PhD., LMFT. Angela is a certified IFS and EMDR therapist, as well as an intuitive and transformational life coach. She works with adults and couples both in person and virtually. She also offers an intensive format (3-6 hours) for clients seeking a more concentrated therapeutic experience.
Angela works with licensed therapists for case consultation, self-of-the-therapist issues, personal therapy and self-care. She provides IFS consultation for therapists seeking IFS Certification.
Angela provides both in person and virtual workshops to agencies/clinical practice groups seeking to learn more about IFS.
Angela is also an author! Her book “Jailbreak: The Making and Breaking of Our Invisible Prisons (An IFS-informed escape!)” is available on Amazon in print, Kindle and Audible formats.
Finally, Angela and her colleague Martha Arnett, MSW co-host “The Intuitive Voice Podcast: The Art and Science of Knowing. They note: “The podcast focuses on helping listeners uncover the magic of intuition in their everyday lives…what intuition is…how we experience it, how we block it, and the science behind it. (We)…interview guests about ways in which they experience and use intuition in their everyday lives—both personally and professionally. Their goal is to make intuition—our 6th sense!—as normalized as our other five for helping us live a more aligned life.”
Website: angelahuebner.com