Ambiguous Loss

Working with Ambiguous Loss

Grief and Closure

NOW CLOSED

Friday 7 October 2022

A Live Webinar with Professor Pauline Boss

CPD Credits: 4 hours

  • Includes a subtitled recording of the event and a transcript, with access for a year (14 days post the event)
  • Bookings close at 9.00am BST Tuesday 4 October 2022

In this workshop Dr Pauline Boss will share how to work effectively with ambiguous loss, a ubiquitous yet understated phenomena that differs in its effects and expression from unclear loss. An ambiguous loss might arise, for example, from the disappearance of a loved one, declining health or ecoanxiety. It lacks the clarity of a loss through death, divorce or critical illness and its impact on mental health is far less obvious to others.

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SPEAKERS

Professor Pauline Boss,

FULL PROGRAMME

14.00 BST
Introductions

14.05
Ambiguous loss and its effects
Pauline will outline the characteristics of ambiguous loss is and its two types: psychological and physical. She will explain how ambiguous loss differs from loss from death and how its effects are evident in individuals, families, and communities. Through this presentation it will become clear why knowing about ambiguous losses matters today for mental health professionals. She will offer a framework for therapy and intervention that is primarily stress and resilience-based as opposed to a medical model.

14.45
Q&A

15.00
Break

15.15
Building resilience and accepting paradox to live with ambiguous loss
The focus of this session will be on ambiguity as the stressor and how symptoms are a result of the context, not personal or familial weakness. There will be discussion on new ways of thinking about ambiguous losses, for example, ‘both-and thinking’ as the way to live with the ambiguity surrounding the loss. The disadvantages of binary thinking, either/or thinking versus absolute thinking will be discussed. An example of the ambiguity in an unresolvable loss might be “he is probably dead and maybe not” or when caring for someone with dementia “she is both here and gone“. The myth of closure as an end of grief will be discussed as it pertains to both ambiguous losses and the clear loss of death. We will consider continuing bonds as a way to work through losses, rather than detachment and closure.

16.00
Q&A

16.15
Break

16.30
Guidelines for therapy and interventions for individuals and families
Pauline will present six recursive guidelines for building the strength and resilience to live with ambiguous loss. These guidelines are focused on finding meaning, adjusting mastery, reconstructing identity, normalizing ambivalence, revising attachment, and discovering new hope. She emphasizes the flexibility of the guidelines, and how to apply them as a road map for therapists to help individuals, families, and communities live with the ongoing grief and loss when there is no certainty about a loved one’s whereabouts or status as dead or alive. Sadly, in most cases of enforced disappearance and missing, families never obtain certainty, so we must help them to live with the ambiguity of unanswered questions. This is not easy in mastery- oriented cultures. To end, we will consider how professionals can increase their own tolerance for ambiguity for we cannot bring patients and clients farther than we can go ourselves.

17.15
Discussion with Chair

17.30
Q&A

18.00
End

FEES

Bookings close at 9:00am BST Tuesday 4 October

Live Webinar:

£80 (Member £64)
(Click here to become a member)

Includes a recording of the event

CPD

Certificates of attendance for 4 hours will be provided.

To receive the full CPD credits, you are required to attend 100% of the live event. No partial credit will be given.

Please note that if you are unable to attend all of the live event, you will need to undertake our event specific test in order to receive the CPD certification. This will be made available soon after the live event has taken place.

VENUE

Live webinarZoom

Zoom is free to download and use.

For more information about Zoom click here.

To download Zoom free of charge click here.

SCHEDULE

Friday
14.00 BST Introductions
14.05 Ambiguous loss and its effects
14.45 Q&A
15.00 Break
15.15 Building resilience and accepting paradox to live with ambiguous loss
16.00 Q&A
16.15 Break
16.30 Guidelines for therapy and interventions for individuals and families
17.15 Discussion with Chair
17.30 Q&A
18.00 End

BOOKING CONDITIONS

Regrettably, refunds cannot be given in any circumstances except as follows:

  • You cancel in writing to info@confer.uk.com 60 days before the first date of the event you have booked, in which case you will be entitled to a 100% refund.
  • You cancel in writing to info@confer.uk.com 30 days before the first date of the event you have booked, in which case you will be entitled to a 50% refund.

This does not apply to parts of an event such as a seminar within a series but only to a whole event or complete series. You may give your place to another person if you let us know that person's name at least 24 hours before the event begins.

We reserve the right to change a speaker at one of our conferences without offering a refund. However, if a solo presenter cancels we will offer a full refund OR transfer of your fee to another Confer event. If the entire event is cancelled we will offer you a full refund.

We reserve the right to change our prices at any time. Regrettably, discounts offered after you made your booking cannot be claimed or applied retrospectively.