Identifying and Treating Childhood Emotional Neglect in Adults

“Childhood abuse and neglect” is a phrase therapists use, read, and hear often. In the last decade, the many forms of child abuse have received greater awareness and understanding among the professional community. Clinicians know how physical and emotional abuse can impact a person throughout their life, but the long-term effects of neglect are not as well known. Like abuse, the effects of neglect can manifest in many ways. When a person has experienced childhood emotional neglect (CEN), the impact can be devastating in adolescence and adulthood.

In this two-hour continuing education web conference, Dr. Jonice Webb will discuss the distinct pattern of symptoms characterizing an individual who grew up in an environment where they experienced emotional neglect. Dr. Webb will describe a system for identifying CEN in someone who struggles to remember or describe what they experienced as a child. Attendees will learn strategies for recognizing and targeting CEN in therapy so they can provide the most appropriate help to individuals working to change damaging patterns and develop healthy relationships.

Dr. Webb will describe how childhood emotional neglect is an act of omission because it is a parent’s failure to notice, attend to, or respond appropriately to a child’s feelings. A child who receives the message that their feelings do not matter may internalize the message that they do not matter. In turn, this can lead to higher instances of shame, counter-dependency, emptiness, self-blame, and self-directed anger. This can create challenges for clinicians when individuals who experienced emotional neglect seek help in adulthood and struggle to explain their experiences or identify explanations for their symptoms.

This introductory instructional level web conference is designed to help clinicians:

1. List the distinct emotional and mental health patterns that can accompany CEN. 
2. Discuss how targeting CEN directly can treat the source of a client’s presenting complaints, not just the symptoms themselves.
3. Apply specific strategies to regulate emotion and improve interpersonal relationships.
4. Develop a shared vocabulary for talking about attachment failure and emotional neglect with individuals in therapy.
5. Demonstrate an understanding of CEN to develop a therapeutic relationship that works with resistance, aides in retention, and contributes to positive outcomes.

For additional information about this event or our CE grievance procedures, please contact us here.

Event Reviews from Members

I really enjoyed it and had been looking forward to it for weeks. Dr. Webb's work is so relevant to the issues I am seeing within my practice. Her model is the best I have found in addressing and treating adult attachment issues. Her work has quickly become a huge resource for my clients and the foundation treatment model I use with most of my adult clients. - Angie Case, LPC

Continuing Education (CE) Information

Two CE contact hours will be provided by GoodTherapy.org for attending this web conference in its entirety. 

GoodTherapy.org is an Approved Education Provider by NAADAC, The Association for Addiction Professionals (provider #135463). Of the eight counselor skill groups ascribed to by NAADAC, this course is classified within Counseling Services. 

GoodTherapy.org is an NBCC-Approved Continuing Education Provider (ACEPTM) and may offer NBCC-approved clock hours for events that meet NBCC requirements.

GoodTherapy.org is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education for psychologists. GoodTherapy.org maintains responsibility for this program and its content.

GoodTherapy.org, SW CPE is recognized by the New York State Education Department's State Board for Social Work as an approved provider of continuing education for licensed social workers #0395.

GoodTherapy.org, LLC 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 marriage and family therapists #MFT-0022 and for licensed mental health counselors #MHC-0031.

To receive CE credit hours for an archived event, you will need to complete a survey as well as a 12 or 15-question exam, verifying that you listened to or watched the event in its entirety. Archived CE events generally are considered "homestudy" by licensing boards.

Registration Information

Premium and Pro Membership with GoodTherapy includes access to this web conference at no additional cost, as well as other member benefits such as a profile listing in GoodTherapy's Therapist Directory. Not yet a member? Sign up for a Premium or Pro Membership, here.

Just want CE credits? Sign up for a monthly or annual CE Subscription with GoodTherapy to get unlimited access to our CE Program, including this event, other live CE web conferences, and hundreds of hours of homestudy courses.

Mental health professionals who are not members can attend this live web conference for $30.95 or access the homestudy recording for $15.50. Sign up here to purchase this CE course and earn a CE certificate.

If the event is canceled by GoodTherapy, registrants who purchased the event will be notified and the charge for the event will be refunded

If you have any questions or would like information regarding disability accommodations, please contact us.

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