BFA Focusing Skills Programme

The BFA Focusing Skills Programme consists of 5 workshops each of 2 days duration.

The workshops need to be taken in order as each level builds on the previous one.

However the timing is flexible it is not necessary to sign up to all 5 levels at once.

You can take as many or as few levels as you wish

What You will learn

As you to learn to Focus you will start to notice inner feelings and experiences without becoming overwhelmed by them.

You will learn how to listen to your inner self with compassion, acceptance and interested curiosity. You will develop the skills to guide yourself in sensing your inner body knowing and to trust this wisdom.

You will learn how to support someone else in the Focusing process and explore how to come to being Self in Presence.

The workshops will introduce you to the work of Eugene Gendlin and the approach of Inner Relationship Focusing of Ann Weiser Cornell and Barbara McGavin.

When do the Workshops Run

Workshops usually run at Weekends at approximately 2 months intervals. Generally the programme runs between September and June. The workshops are not residential, however there are hotels nearby if you do not wish to travel each day.

How You will Learn

The workshops provide the opportunity to work in a small group (usually no more than 6 people). The approach is to learn to Focus in a step by step way.

There will be short information sessions followed by the opportunity to try out and experience that step of Focusing, one to one with another group member.

The pace is gentle and there is plenty of time for discussion about what you are discovering and experiencing.

My aim is always to create a safe learning space and each participant is free to decide what feels right for them at each stage of the workshop.

For each Level you will receive a course booklet which summarises all the information covered in that level.

Where are my Workshops Run

I usually run my workshops from a Therapy Centre in Kenilworth in Warwickshire. It is an old house with a lovely garden which provides a peaceful setting to work in.
The centre is accessible by public transport

Level One

Introduction to Focusing - Listening to Yourself

In Level 1 you will start to discover the origins of Focusing, what Focusing is and how it differs from other approaches. In particular that Focusing is a gentle yet powerful way of coming into contact with our inner places.

You will begin to learn to Focus, to sense internally for what wants your attention at this moment and how to start to connect with that. You will learn to identify the stages of a Focusing session and to listen and companion someone in a Focusing way.

You will be introduced to the work of Eugene Gendlin and the concept of Inner Relationship Focusing and the work of Ann Weiser Cornell and Barbara McGavin.

There are opportunities for group discussions and one to one Focusing practice where you can experience and explore what you have been introduced to.

Level Three

Becoming a Caring Companion-
Building Trust with Our Inner Places

At Level 3 you will explore how we build trust with our inner places and what they show us and experience what those places may be willing to share with us, if we all them to be there just as they are without judgement. We will also consider what gets in the way of of us being able to accept all parts of ourselves without judgement.

There is the opportunity to explore how to nurture and bring a friendly caring presence to our inner places even when the seem harsh, angry or critical. We will consider how we find the right words to reflect our inner experiences to they experience feeling fully welcomed and understood.

We will explore how we may start to make contact with our exiled parts and start the process of helping them reconnect with our whole being.

We explore how to trust Focusing as a way of being, not just a series of techniques to be learned and followed.

Level Four

Deepening Focusing and Listening -
Guiding Statements and Suggestions

n Level 4 you will explore how to further develop and deepen your Focusing and Companioning skills.

We consider how the Focuser can increase their confidence in self guiding in a Focusing session, using the support of their Listener to help them remain in Presence with their Inner Places.

We will experience the ways in which the Listener can provide further support to the Focuser by offering invitations to use guiding statements and suggestions.

We will examine how best to phrase and offer these invitations and when it is appropriate to do so. The Listener will explore how their own Felt Sense can inform this process.

The concept of "Not Wanting" and "Wanting" will be introduced along with the need to be alert to the possibility of "Implied" parts being present. We will explore these can we worked with.

This Level will bring the opportunity to experience longer Focusing sessions and to more fully bring together the experience and learning from the previous levels.

Level Two

Next Steps in Focusing - The Power of Presence

At Level 2 you will consolidate the skills you were introduced to at Level 1 and progress to deepening your Focusing, listening and companioning skills.

You will have the opportunity to explore the concept of Self in Presence and the benefits of using of Presence language to help you come into a deeper relationship with what you encounter as you sense inside.

You will also explore the Felt Sense discovering how our inner places will communicate with us by symbolising what is present through, bodily sensations, images, words, gestures or sounds.

You will have the opportunity to try out different ways of starting a Focusing sessions and consider how you make take Focusing forward either in a Focusing Partnership or by Focusing alone.

I always feel welcomed, comfortable and safe on the weekends. I have learned a lot and these weekends always inspire me to look a little deeper
NS

I really appreciate how clearly everything is explained. The course notes are well set out and very clear. It is good to have something to take away and reflect on after the weekend. It was lovely to be in such an open and accepting group.
SF

Level Five

Developing Focusing Fluency -
The Inner Critic and Working with Edges

Details will be added shortly