A day with Michael Jacobs! – Being a therapist

Part one (morning session): The therapist’s use of self

Some years ago Michael wrote a book with John Rowan in the series 'Core Concepts in Therapy'. Michael comes from a psychoanalytic tradition which he has interpreted in his writing on psychodynamic counselling and therapy and John is from a transpersonal integrative tradition. During this thought-provoking and interactive seminar, which would appeal to psychological therapists from all modalities, Michael will explain how, in the exchange of their ideas, the two of them developed a three-part model of how therapists might develop a style of practising therapy and how they use themselves. The morning session will assist delegates to explore how they might develop a style of being and of working with clients which reflects their own individual personality and authenticity, whether this incorporates one theoretical modality or several. We will be discussing how this might create dilemmas around therapeutic rules, ethics, traditions and techniques. Michael also shows how in his work he has challenged what are often stereotypes and caricatures of what psychoanalysis and psychodynamic therapy are. During the morning there will be time given to experiential learning, didactic teaching and questions and discussion.

Part two (afternoon session): Fifty years of counselling; my presenting past

With the publication of his professional autobiography this year, Michael has described how he entered the profession and what counselling was like in its early years. During the afternoon, he will speak about the path he took to become a psychotherapist and counsellor, and how in his books he drew upon his practice and teaching to help make psychodynamic practice more accessible. Michael reflects on the way counselling and therapy has changed over the years, especially in relation to the organisations in which he has played different roles, from the early days of what was then BAC until very recently. He will invite participants to reflect on their own path and their own interests and concerns in the development of counselling and therapy, both as an intellectual discipline and as an approach to the issues which face people today. There will be plenty of time for questions and discussion.

Biography

Michael Jacobs, formerly director of the counselling and psychotherapy programme at Leicester University, is Visiting Professor at Bournemouth. He is a psychodynamic and integrative psychotherapist, who now concentrates on supervision. His books on psychodynamic counselling and therapy are key texts on many training courses – notably The Presenting Past (2012, 4th edition, Open University Press) and Psychodynamic Counselling in Action (2017, 5th edition, Sage). He has written or co-written or edited over 60 books including one with John Rowan, The Therapist’s Use of Self. Other publications include Illusion, Shakespeare on the Couch, and Our Desire of Unrest. This year he has published his professional autobiography Fifty Years of Counselling: My Presenting Past.