Reclaiming Freedom: Empowering Clients to Choose Forgiveness
Course Overview
The urge to hit back when we have been hurt is deeply rooted in our evolutionary history. Due to our long ancestry in small nomadic groups we learnt to avoid being exploited by others because that put us at extreme risk. Our instinctive response was to hit back hard and remove the threat.
Now living in the developed world, things are more complicated, but the basic principle remains the same—if we’re hurt, we can feel that we owe it to ourselves to make the other person pay. We do this by withholding forgiveness and allowing ourselves the illusion of control.
Perhaps we feel that we’ll look weak if we forgive someone too easily, or that we’re ‘letting them off the hook’. We’re worried people will forget our pain, and we wish to show that our suffering matters. Perhaps there’s an even deeper reason at play. We hold on to the hope that if we withhold forgiveness, we’ll finally get the comfort and care we feel was not available at the time in the way we wanted.
It’s certainly the case that learning to forgive is a challenging and profound process. It’s not easy but if we choose the path of forgiveness then we take ourselves out of the role of victimhood and put ourselves back in the driver’s seat. While we refuse forgiveness to make the other person pay, then we imprison ourselves in a cycle of pain. If we can take responsibility and choose forgiveness, then we have the chance of reclaiming our lives and finding freedom.
This course will be closed course for a small group of 25 people who are interested to explore this topic thoroughly. People will be requested to have their cameras and microphones on and participate in break-out rooms, so that we can all learn from each other and provide sharing and support among the group.
The approach will be interactive with time for questions and sharing. The course will consist of explanations,video extracts, exercises, contemplations and practices. There will be a workbook for the course, with a new section coming for each session. The course sessions will be recorded and participants will be able to access these after the course.
What You Will Learn:
How to apply the four-step forgiveness model in therapeutic contexts.
Techniques for working with emotions that can impede forgiveness, such as resentment and anger.
Strategies to support clients in integrating forgiveness into their daily lives.
Insights into the personal and professional impact of embracing forgiveness.
Who Should Attend:
Counsellors, psychotherapists, and mental health professionals interested in deepening their understanding of forgiveness in therapeutic practice.
Practitioners seeking to enhance their ability to support clients dealing with unresolved hurt and resentment.
Individuals committed to personal growth and the exploration of forgiveness as a pathway to wellbeing.
Course Format:
This course will be conducted live on Zoom once a week for 4 weeks. Participants are limited to 25 so as to encourage active engagement and mutual support. Attendees are requested to have their cameras and microphones on and to participate in breakout rooms for group exercises and discussions.