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Enjoy these fascinating slides from Shila Rashid who came to facilitate some fascinating conversations

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Working Therapeutically with Muslim Clients SR 22nd January 2025 (002)

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Bethan Ramsey and Mark Haydon-Laurelut consider how we ask and respond to our own questions in their context of working with people with a learning disability. This is very relevant in all areas of practice and a great practical reminder!

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People with a Learning Disability help us to aks good questions Context198-Bethan Ramsey and Mark Haydon-Laurelut (002)

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Systemic practice in a learning disabilities context

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Systemic practice in a learning disabilities context

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'Who and what supports systemic working

in a learning disabilities context?'

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Wonderful slides from Shila Rashid (22/01/25)

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Queer perspectives on systemic couples therapy - Amanda Middleton

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Queer perspectives on systemic couples therapy - Amanda Middleton

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Queer Couples east Sussex april 2025 HANDOUT

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Chapter on working therapeutically with Muslims care of Shila Rashid

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Chapter on working therapeutically with Muslims care of Shila Rashid

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Psychosis and Emotions (Tanya Smart 4th December 2024)

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Psychosis and Emotions (Tanya Smart 4th December 2024)

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Please find Tanya's slides from this wonderful bitesize session!

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Readying ourselves for meeting with families (Glenda Fredman)

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Readying ourselves for meeting with families (Glenda Fredman)

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Here are Glenda's slides for your perusal!

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Reflecting processes in a Family Clinic! (Leah Drane and the Hastings  Clinic Team)

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Reflecting processes in a Family Clinic! (Leah Drane and the Hastings  Clinic Team)

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A conversation considering both the value, and challenge of reflecting, and an experiential exercise deconstructing differing aspects to observing and reflecting.

Join the Hasting ATS family clinic team, as they talk about their thoughts around reflecting. Workshop members are invited to take up certain reflecting positions, which pay more particular attention to embodiment and feelings. As a collective, we then can consider the themes and process

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experiences and experiencing  reflecting  workshop

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Externalising Language - Bearing witness to people's acts of resistance, no matter how small

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Externalising Language - Bearing witness to people's acts of resistance, no matter how small

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An inspiring workshop from Tayo Aderemi, Systemic Psychotherapist, on the use of Externalising Language - a concept from Narrative Therapy that we can use in our work with families

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Externalising Language Workshop - Tayo Aderemi

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Conversations of the possible: Working systemically to create neuro-harmonious therapy spaces 

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Conversations of the possible: Working systemically to create neuro-harmonious therapy spaces 

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Sue Swan came to offer a fantastic set of ideas to help us work better with autistic clients on 6th March 2024

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Online Bitesize CPD events 2024 (all 10 - 11:30am):

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Online Bitesize CPD events 2024 (all 10 - 11:30am):

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Wednesday 21 Feb - Kirsten Iles - 'Working together: Family work and Peer Support'

Wednesday 6 March - Sue Swan - 'Working with families where someone is autistic'

Hope to see many of you there! We will be sending out zoom links in due course.

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Using questionnaires as conversational tools (full article by Rober and Van Tricht)

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Using questionnaires as conversational tools (full article by Rober and Van Tricht)

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A helpful set of ideas that can help us to make our services more accessible to autistic clients

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The most common interventions are:

Medication can be helpful for some people who have psychosis. Medication can be given orally in tablet or liquid form, or with injections (sometimes called a depot injection, if it is designed to last for a week or more). There is good evidence that antipsychotic medications can reduce symptoms of psychosis. Other medications may be prescribed alongside these, to help treat symptoms associated with psychosis and/or to treat possible side effects of the medication.

Conversations about medication should be conducted in a sensitive way. This should involve:

- Taking time to explain the rationale for medication, using language the person understands.
- Finding out what thoughts and worries people have about taking medication.
- Discussing the pros and cons of taking medication, and the pros and cons of different types of medication. Some autistic people can find it difficult to imagine hypothetical or abstract situations. It can help if health professionals offer anonymised examples of other people's experiences.
- Making it clear that if a medication does not work or leads to problematic side effects, the prescriber will want to know and to work with the autistic person to find a better option for them
- It can also sometimes be helpful for the person to discuss medication with someone who has had experience of taking medication for psychosis, such as a peer support worker.

There is a possibility of side effects from any medication. The person should be advised about possible side effects and what to do if they experience any. Some autistic people find it difficult to recognise changes in their body (such as, if their temperature changes, or their heart is beating faster than usual or with an irregular rhythm). They might need some support with learning to identify physical sensations, and changes to these, to help them describe how they feel to others.

Autistic people may also be more sensitive to the effects of medication compared with non-autistic people. This means the dose of a medication, whenever possible, should be increased gradually.

Monitoring the effects of medication is very important. The person, and their family/supporters if appropriate, should be involved in identifying the symptoms the medication is intended to treat. This means they will be better able to monitor if medication is working. Some people might complete a standardised questionnaire about their symptoms.

Other people may find a purpose-made symptom rating scale helpful. Rating scales can have pictures as well as words. It might be relevant to measure behavioural changes as well as physical or emotional changes, such as identifying activities the person is more able to do as the psychotic symptoms reduce.

Psychoeducation - providing information about a health condition, with the purpose of improving a person's knowledge, understanding and capacity to cope with their health - is a fundamental component of treatment for psychosis. Research evidence indicates psychoeducation can lead to better treatment outcomes.

Psychoeducation can involve sharing information about what psychosis is and isn't, and myth busting (such as about causes of psychosis).

It can also include developing a personalised relapse prevention plan. This involves identifying:

- What sorts of things can help the person stay well.
- What might trigger a relapse in their mental health.
- How they would recognise if they were starting to become unwell again ('early warning signs').
- What they or other people should do if they notice early warning signs.
- What things are like when they are really unwell and what helps in those circumstances.

The most effective relapse prevention plans include information from the person themselves, family/supporters and professionals. The completed relapse prevention plan can then act as a prompt or guide for the person and those around them, to help the person manage and monitor their mental health. Relapse prevention plans can be particularly helpful for autistic people, because of some of the difficulties in assessing whether someone is developing psychosis described earlier.

Sometimes health professionals provide psychoeducational sessions and sometimes people are given psychoeducational resources to read or workbooks to complete by themselves. Some autistic people will prefer the latter option, but most benefit from having the opportunity to discuss the information with a professional.

Many people who have psychosis can benefit from psychological therapies. Cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) is the most widely researched therapy, with good evidence this can be effective for treating paranoia and distress associated with psychosis. CBT can also effectively target symptoms that co-occur with psychosis, including disturbed sleep, nightmares, anxiety, low mood and social worries.

Some research shows that other types of therapy, in particular, Mindfulness, and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), may also be beneficial for people who have psychosis.

Ideally, therapists should have some experience of working with autistic people and of working with people who have psychosis, as occasionally some therapeutic approaches can be unhelpful. If therapists do not have much experience of working with autistic people with psychosis, it is important for them to seek specialist clinical supervision from health professionals with appropriate expertise.

Some people who experience psychosis also find arts psychotherapy helpful. Arts psychotherapy uses art, drama or music to help the person express themselves and understand their experiences. Arts psychotherapy tends to be more exploratory and less structured than interventions such as CBT and can be particularly helpful if the person finds it difficult to engage in more structured approaches.

Families can be a vital source of support for people with psychosis, but psychosis can have a significant impact on family members, as well as the person who is unwell. Families may feel worried and upset about seeing someone they care about experiencing psychosis. They may want to make things better and easier for the person but feel powerless to know how to do this. Family interventions are often recommended.

Family interventions is an umbrella term for lots of different therapeutic approaches, including general advice and support, psychoeducation, specialist therapy to help families to work together to problem solve and manage relationships, and sessions focusing on the family member's own needs. Sessions might be held jointly with the person and their family, or sessions might just be for family members to think about their own needs.

Lots of people feel anxious about the idea of having therapy. They can worry about what questions the therapist will ask them, how to respond or what to do if the therapist suggests changes to their usual routines. This means there should be lots of opportunities to discuss any worries with the therapist at the outset and throughout the therapy, so these can be addressed.

Clinicians can adapt their approach for autistic people who have psychosis in a number of ways. These include:

- Offering regular and consistent appointments, such as at the same time on the same day, and around the person's usual activities.
- Being clear about their role and responsibilities if other health or social care professionals are also involved.
- Ensuring the initial appointment letter provides information about who the person will see, what is likely to happen when they meet (such as what topics will be talked about) and the possible outcomes of the appointment.
- Offering to send a photo of the building where the appointment will take place and directions for how to get there.
- Ensuring the environment is not too sensorily overwhelming - checking if the person is bothered by light, sounds or smells and making sure that sensory information is minimised.
- Setting an agenda for appointments - clarifying if the person would find it useful to have the agenda in advance of meeting.
- Incorporating time to talk about preferred topics or interests at the beginning or end of sessions to help the person manage their anxiety or to support engagement.
- Spending the first few appointments finding out about the person's strengths, preferences and needs.
- Explaining terminology, such as 'hallucinations', 'anxiety' and 'distress' and making sure the person knows it is okay to check if they are unsure of what something means.
- Writing key information down using accessible language.
- Exploring how the person identifies and scales emotions.
- Spending time developing a shared understanding of what might have made the person vulnerable to becoming unwell, what is helping or not helping them at the current time and their strengths or 'protective factors'. This is called a formulation. The formulation should incorporate autism-relevant factors.
- Helping the person to identify goals they would like to work towards. The person might find it helpful to have conversations about the pros and cons of making changes. They may also benefit from support to develop anxiety management strategies to cope with managing changes and the short-term uncertainty associated with this.
- Offering skills-based strategies and practising these with the person. The person may need additional support to plan for or to practise using their skills in different situations.
- Being aware that some autistic people may require shorter, more frequent sessions, while others may require longer sessions, depending on their ability to concentrate and communication style.
- Being aware that the pace of therapy might be a bit slower than when working with non-autistic people and allowing additional time for this.

Psychosis can have a significant impact on people's daily functioning. People can find it difficult to study and work. They can withdraw from social situations and become more isolated. They may feel anxious about going out and being with others, including their family. This can have a significant impact on their quality of life and can exacerbate psychotic symptoms.

This means support to engage in activities is a key intervention. This could include support with activities of daily living such as shopping or cooking or leisure activities, or with accessing education or employment. Tailoring support for an autistic person could include:

- If possible, asking the same few support workers to work with the person across different activities, rather than allocating a new support worker for each activity.
- Asking about the person's social functioning and preferences before they became unwell. The aim is to support them to work towards goals that are realistic, valued and meaningful for them.
- Finding out about the person's hobbies and interests, and seeing if there are ways to help increase their engagement in these.
- Talking with the person about the pros and cons of doing more activity, and the pros and cons of keeping activity levels as they are.
- Making a plan for how to build up meaningful activities. This may involve introducing activities gradually and helping the person build their confidence.
- Checking out what the person thinks about doing group activities. Some autistic people feel comfortable in groups, but many don't. Options to do activities on a one-to-one basis, at least at the start, may be preferred.
- Clarifying if the person has any sensory sensitivities that can be activated in social situations and finding ways to accommodate these (such as taking earphones or ear defenders with when going to a noisy place).

Peer support is where people with shared experiences (such as experience of psychosis) support each other. Peer support can be provided through support groups that focus on discussing and sharing experiences, groups where the focus is more on the social aspect of being together and engaging in enjoyable activities, or through one-to-one support. Peer support can help people feel accepted and understood, and less isolated.

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The most common interventions are: Medication can be helpful for some people who have psychosis. Medication can be given orally in tablet or liquid form, or with injections (sometimes called a depot injection, if it is designed to last for a week or more). There is good evidence that antipsychotic medications can reduce symptoms of psychosis.

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Family Interventions in Psychosis in Sussex Partnership2

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Isabelle Ekdawi - How to Begin (session recorded 1st Feb 2023)

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Isabelle Ekdawi - How to Begin (session recorded 1st Feb 2023)

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Topic: Isabelle Ekdawi - Bitesize FI
Date: Feb 1, 2023 9:38 AM London
| Watch the Recording
| Passcode: 8Ujm0km?

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Isabelle Ekdawi Feb 2023 - slides. Engaging with families

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Isabelle Ekdawi Feb 2023 - slides. Engaging with families

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Culturally Adapted FI with Katherine Berry  (link and passcode)

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Culturally Adapted FI with Katherine Berry  (link and passcode)

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https://spft-nhs-uk.zoom.us/rec/share/EvNP0JeY6AbNO5OPEBtanZUiOAYAGG3_1iG99vj5f-6EBwY9Qk-iRRr88pfU8Qt7.NMBh4dDAuF32Q9Gd

Passcode: @k9kZ?q.

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CAFI - Culturally adapted Family Intervention (Katherine Berry)

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CAFI - Culturally adapted Family Intervention (Katherine Berry)

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Attachment -negotiating distance in relationships - Jo Allen

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Attachment -negotiating distance in relationships - Jo Allen

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Find the fab slides on attachment work with families here!

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New Poster! - let Tara know if you would like some for your office!

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New Poster! - let Tara know if you would like some for your office!

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tara.becker2@spft.nhs.uk

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The Systemic Way (buzzsprout.com) a great resource for the systemic of us!

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This podcast gives the listener an opportunity to hear conversations with people from the field of systemic psychotherapy. Host Sezer and Julie, two systemic psychotherapists, discuss a wide range of topics, theories, practices and experiences with their guests, giving the listener an insight into this disciplines contribution to social change.Artwork by Arai Drake Creative: http://www.araidrake.com/portfolio/thesystemicway/Music by Rena Paid

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This podcast gives the listener an opportunity to hear conversations with people from the field of systemic psychotherapy. Host Sezer and Julie, two systemic psychotherapists, discuss a wide range of topics, theories, practices and experiences with their guests, giving the listener an insight int...

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New version of Bipolar Family work leaflet

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New version of Bipolar Family work leaflet

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New version of Family work leaflet (psychosis)

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New version of Family work leaflet (psychosis)

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Thanks to the Creative team at SPFT we have a new leaflet - please do feedback with any comments and feel free to use!

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Becky Whitfield's wonderful slides on Intersectionality in Family work!

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Check out these fabulous slides from Justin Allman on the 'Use of Self' in family work

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If you missed this session with Ase Holmberg, catch it here!

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Congratulations to Andy and Julie on writing such an important article!

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Finding words for the unspoken - family intervention in forensic settings

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Find out all about the Open Dialogue approach from a practical the theoretical basis from Jo Allen's slides!

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Read Tanya Smart's fabulous materials about working online with families

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Talking about parental mental health with children (a resource sheet from Jess Stock)

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Talking about parental mental health with children (a resource sheet from Jess Stock)

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This is a resource that you can share with parents and talk through when thinking about involving their children -or just keeping them in mind.

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Talking about parental mental health (003)

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Spiritual Literacy in Family Therapy Practice from Ase Holmberg (19/01/22)

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Spiritual Literacy in Family Therapy Practice from Ase Holmberg (19/01/22)

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Wonderful slides from Ase's fascinating talk today!

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Spiritual literacy in family therapy practice UK 19.01.2022

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Systemic therapy and Autism - Context article

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Systemic therapy and Autism - Context article

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Fanastic Article from our own Mark Haydon-Laurelut

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Culturally Adapted FI Slides from Dawn Edge (17/11/21)

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Culturally Adapted FI Slides from Dawn Edge (17/11/21)

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Genogram Slides to go with Gillian's recorded presentation

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Genogram Slides to go with Gillian's recorded presentation

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Recording from Genogram session by Gillian Irving-Quinn (20/10/21)

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Recording from Genogram session by Gillian Irving-Quinn (20/10/21)

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Being with Older People: A systemic approach. (2010) Edited By Eleanor Anderson, Glenda Fredman, Joshua Stott. Routledge.

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Being with Older People: A systemic approach. (2010) Edited By Eleanor Anderson, Glenda Fredman, Joshua Stott. Routledge.

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BPS guidelines for Family Intervention in psychosis 

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BPS guidelines for Family Intervention in psychosis 

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Long awaited document is here!!!
It also has a lot to say about implementing family work across the service-user groups! Well done to the Sussex contributors!

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Creative family therapy techniques, play and art based activities

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AFT Children's Worksheets - Wonderful Day Plan

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AFT Children's Worksheets - What's your family good at_ trophy

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AFT Children's worksheets - Feel Better Menu

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AFT Children's worksheet - Worried and scared feelings

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AFT Children's worksheet - Happy Feelings

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AFT Children's Feelings leaflet - happy first

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fredman and Fuggle - parents with mental health problems invovling the children

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Behavioural Family Therapy slides from Edwin Ashong-Boateng (from presentation on 5th May 2021)

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Behavioural Family Therapy slides from Edwin Ashong-Boateng (from presentation on 5th May 2021)

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Please see the much-anticipated slides from Edwin's excellent training!

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Working with families with children (where the client is an adult) - some slides to read before the training day

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Working with families with children (where the client is an adult) - some slides to read before the training day

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Involving children in FIp - handout version June 2021 (002)

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Andy Cook and Julie Payne have had an article published in Context magazine on their family work in Forensic Services - have a read! Congratulations!

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 Online course: Caring for people with psychosis and schizophrenia - starts May 2021- sign up now!

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 Online course: Caring for people with psychosis and schizophrenia - starts May 2021- sign up now!

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Something to pass onto clients and their friends / families.
https://www.futurelearn.com/courses/caring-psychosis-schizophrenia/7?utm_campaign=course_wishlist_new_run&utm_medium=email&utm_source=FL

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A brief reminder of some key theories.

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A concise guide!

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Psychosis treatment options - Exercise - YouTube

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Sibling Link is a peer support group for anyone over 18 with a brother or sister who has struggled with mental illness.
https://www.siblinglink.co.uk/

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A Delphi survey to explore best practice for practitioners offering family intervention for psychosis to families with children

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/1467-6427.12264

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https://staff.sussexpartnership.nhs.uk/triangle-of-care

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Culturally Adapted Family Intervention Research

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Culturally Adapted Family Intervention Research

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https://sites.manchester.ac.uk/cafi/
Check out the attached video for more information on this exciting research!

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https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/cg178/chapter/recommendations#how-to-deliver-psychological-interventions  (PSYCHOSIS)

https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/cg185/chapter/1-Recommendations#managing-bipolar-disorder-in-adults-in-the-longer-term-in-secondary-care-2
(BIPOLAR)

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Wednesday 19th January - Spirituality and working with families by Ase Holmberg

Wednesday 23rd February - Working Online with Families with Tanya Smart

Thursday 5th May - Open Dialogue with Jo Allen

Wednesday 15th June 10-11:30am  - CPD session on the Use of Self in working with families by Justin Allman

Thursday 7th July 10-11:30am - What is Intersectionality? Becky Whitfield

Thursday 21st July 11:30-1pm -  A special event to celebrate the lasting contribution that Bob Birtwell

Wednesday 28th September 10-11:30am - Autism and working with families by Mark Hayden-Laurelut

Thursday 10th November 10-11:30am -  Culturally Adapted FI (CAFI)- a practice guide with Dr Katherine Berry.

Tuesday 15th November - SPFT Systemic Practice Network will be holding the Systemic Conference online  - more details closer to the time.

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Wednesday 5th May 10-11:30  Behavioural Family Therapy

Wednesday 9th June 10-11:30   Working with families who have children (where an adult is the identified client)

Wednesday 7th July 10-11:30  Being with older people and their families

Wednesday 15th September 10-11:30 Reflecting conversations and working in pairs

Wednesday 20th October 10-11:30 Genograms

Wednesday 17th November 10-11:30  Culturally Adapted Family Intervention

Wednesday 8th December 10-11:30 Working Online with Families

Wednesday 19th January   10-11:30 Spirituality and working with families

June Risk in family work

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AFT Children's Worksheets - Three wishes