Complex Traumatic Grief: Rage, Terror, Betrayal, and Ambiguous Losses

Linda Thai LMSW(she, her) is a trauma therapist who specializes in cutting-edge brain and body-based modalities for the healing of complex developmental trauma. As an educator and consultant, she is gifted with the capacity to contextualize, synthesize, and communicate complex and nuanced issues pertaining to the impact of oppressive systems upon identity, mental health and wellbeing, and the invisibilized wounds of racial trauma. Linda is passionate about breaking the cycle of historical and intergenerational trauma at the individual and community levels and deeply believes in the healing power of coming together in community to grieve.

Born in Vietnam, raised in Australia, and now living in Alaska, Linda is a former child refugee who is not only redefining what it means to be Vietnamese, to be Australian, and to be a United States-ian….she is redefining what it means to be wounded and whole and a healer.

Content Description: 

As therapists, we often encounter clients whose trauma experiences are interwoven with complex, layered emotions-especially grief, rage, and terror. These emotional states are not just mental experiences; they are deeply embodied and often manifest in ways that challenge conventional therapeutic approaches. 

The first workshop is designed to deepen your theoretical understanding of the nuanced relationship between grief and trauma, and to provide you with tools for effectively navigating the intense emotional terrain of grief, rage, and terror in your clients. This workshop will also offer a transformative framework rooted in the “Five Gates of Grief” (Frances Weller), which is a powerful model designed to help individuals move through the layers of grief, loss, and unmet needs that often accompany complex developmental trauma. 

The second workshop will explore the topic of ambiguous grief as it pertains to complex developmental trauma survivors, centering the experiences of adult children of refugees and immigrants. This larger landscape of traumatic grief, traumatic loss, traumatic homesickness, and the ambiguity of these unnameable, unmetabolized experiences has transgenerational impacts that need to be named in order to be healed.

Course Agenda

Complex Traumatic Grief: Rage, Terror, Betrayal, and Ambiguous Losses  

with Linda Thai

Live Online Zoom Session 1 – Theoretical Understanding of the Nuanced Relationship between Grief and TraumaHistorical Perspectives – Friday, February 7th – 9-10:30am PST/12pm-1:30pm EST/5-6:30pm GMT 

Session Overview: The first workshop is designed to deepen your theoretical understanding of the nuanced relationship between grief and trauma, and to provide you with somatic education tools for effectively navigating the intense emotional terrain of grief, rage, and terror in your clients. This workshop will also offer a transformative framework rooted in the “Five Gates of Grief” (Frances Weller), which is a powerful model designed to help individuals move through the layers of grief, loss, and unmet needs that often accompany complex developmental trauma.

Session Agenda:

• Guideposts for how to approach grief (15 mins)
• When grief is unresolved acute traumatic stress (10 mins)
• The conditions and preconditions required for supporting grief (10 mins)
• When anger is unresolved grief: Three interventions (15 mins)
• Apply “the Five Gates of Grief” to complex developmental trauma survivors (10 mins)
• Q&A (30 minutes)

Live Online Zoom Session 2 – Ambiguous Grief as it Pertains to Complex Developmental Trauma Survivors – Friday, February 28th – 9-10:30am PST/12pm-1:30pm EDT/5-6:30pm GMT

Session Overview: The second workshop will explore the topic of ambiguous grief as it pertains to complex developmental trauma survivors, centering on the experiences of adult children of refugees and immigrants. This larger landscape of traumatic grief, traumatic loss, traumatic homesickness, and the ambiguity of these unnameable, unmetabolized experiences have a transgenerational impact that needs to be named in order to be healed.

Session Agenda:

• Contextualizing refugees and immigrants within the historical, structural and socio-cultural-political landscape of transgenerational trauma (30 mins)
• The ambiguous losses associated with war and forced displacement (10 mins)
• The ambiguous losses associated with acculturation and acculturation pressures (10 mins)
• The ambiguous losses associated with racism (10 mins)
• Q&A (30 minutes)

Complex Traumatic Grief: Rage, Terror, Betrayal, and Ambiguous Losses

with Linda Thai

Learning Objectives

Session 1: Theoretical Understanding of the Nuanced Relationship between Grief and Trauma

1. Identify at least two preconditions within the family of origin and the conditions within society that impact an individual’s capacity to grieve.
2. Carry out three interventions for unpacking anger as an unresolved grief.
3. Apply “the Five Gates of Grief” to complex developmental trauma survivors.

Session 2: Ambiguous Grief as it Pertains to Complex Developmental Trauma Survivors

1. Distinguish three characteristics between refugees and immigrants.
2. Identify the four main stages of the refugee journey.
3. Describe intergenerational trauma to encompass the impact of forced migration combined with acculturation and enculturation pressures upon the next generation.
4. Identify two expressions of ambiguous grief, traumatic grief, and traumatic homesickness associated with generation 1.0, 1.5, and 2.0 refugees and immigrants.

For intermediate mental health professionals including Psychologists, Social Workers, LPCs, and LMFTs.

Continuing Education

This program offers limited Live CEs/Contact Hours.

Continuing education credit/Contact hours are awarded on a per-session basis, with full attendance required for the entire 90-minute duration.  There is no additional charge for the CEs.  Application forms and other required CE materials will be available to participants by the Academy of Therapy Wisdom.

NOTE:  To receive continuing education credit, applicants must complete all CE materials, comply with attendance regulations, and submit an evaluation form for the session attended.  It is the responsibility of the attendee to determine if CE credit/contact hours offered by Academy of Therapy Wisdom meet the regulations of their state licensing/certification board.  

Psychology:  This course does NOT provide CEs for Psychologists.

Counseling:

Academy of Therapy Wisdom has been approved by NBCC as an Approved Continuing Education Provider, ACEP No. 7370. Programs that do not qualify for NBCC credit are clearly identified. Academy of Therapy Wisdom is solely responsible for all aspects of the programs.  This program is approved for 1.5 CE Credit Hours for each live session for a possible total of 3 CE Credit Hours.

NY State Social Workers: Academy of Therapy Wisdom is recognized by the New York State Education Department’s State Board for Social Workers as an approved provider of continuing education for licensed social workers. #SW-0814.

NY State Mental Health Counselors: Academy of Therapy Wisdom is recognized by the New York State Education Department’s State Board for Mental Health Practitioners as an approved provider of continuing education for licensed mental health counselors. #MHC-0285.

Marriage/Family Therapy: See below for CAMFT information.

This course is $97 per month or $997/year. You can purchase it here.