One-Day Workshop with Pyhllis Klaus, MFT, LCSW, Berkeley, USA


Thursday, September 24, 2009 (9.30 a.m. - 5 p.m.)



Theme: The Use of Hypnosis and Brief Psychotherapy to Alleviate Medical and Psychological Complications of Pregnancy


Location: Hotel "Molkenkur", Klingenteichstraße 31, 69117 Heidelberg

Workshop Leader: Phyllis Klaus, MFT, LCSW, is a licensed psychotherapist and social worker. Formerly on the faculty of the Department of Family Practice, Michigan State University, she currently teaches and practices at the Milton H. Erickson Institute in Santa Rosa, California, and also practices in Berkeley, California, providing psychotherapy, hypnotherapy and counseling to individuals, couples, families and groups. She has been working with the concerns of families in the perinatal period for the past 30 years.

She has extensive experience in treating trauma-related disorders, such as PTSD, dissociative disorders, and adult survivors of abuse. She also incorporates Hypnosis, EMDR, Ego-State Therapy along with other psychotherapies in the treatment of somatic and medical disorders, family of origin and attachment disorders, and complicated grief. She consults, does research, presents workshops nationally and internationally and is co author of several articles as well as The Doula Book; Bonding; Your Amazing Newborn; a video, The Amazing Talents of the Newborn; andWhen Survivors Give Birth: Understanding and Healing the Effects of Early Sexual Abuse on Childbearing Women.


Description: One-day workshop

Many medical and psychological conditions of pregnancy (i.e. hyperemesis gravidarum, premature contractions, etc.) are surprisingly responsive to short term interventions. With hypnosis and brief psychotherapy, symptoms can stop fairly rapidly and women gain a deeper understanding of the underlying meaning, develop more trust in their body and baby, and feel more empowered.


  1. Learning Objectives:

At the end of the session, the participant will be able to:

  1. Describe how hypnosis and psychotherapy can be used to treat some complications of pregnancy.

  2. Discuss how the fetus or the pregnancy may be symbolic representations of the mother’s current or early life experiences.

  3. Begin to develop an awareness of how the mind affects the body.

  4. Recognize the power of the “child-mind” (the inner child of the past of the parent-to-be) to be heard.

  5. Assess how unresolved or stressful incidents in the woman’s life can inhibit or alter early attachment.

  6. Identify techniques to uncover these concerns and resolve them.