Speaker Expertise: Art & Science of Love

*Accepting New Certification Candidates*

Debra is a clinical psychologist with expertise in Jungian psychotherapy, polyvagal theory, and positive psychology. These are the theoretical lenses through which she applies the Sound Relationship House and Gottman interventions. C.G. Jung’s depth work informs “why we want to love and be loved.” Polyvagal theory explains the physiological mechanisms through which our bodies signal when “love is good or bad.” Positive psychology research validates the Gottman 5:1 positivity ratio as necessary for “bringing love back from the brink of hopelessness.” All three theories highlight how the relationship is a “container” devised to incubate mature, transcendent human beings. The Gottman Method shows how to harness this transcendence intentionally.

You can contact Debra directly to learn about her consultation pricing and more through her Gottman Referral Network profile here.

Bertha Alicia has been a teacher for many years and loves it. She enjoys presenting workshops and webinars. After becoming a Certified Gottman Therapist, she started training other clinicians and now offers all levels of Gottman Method Couples Therapy in Spanish.

She is also a presenter of The Art and Science of Love workshops to married and premarital couples.
Oriented towards prevention, she also speaks for groups of parents, teachers, and clinicians about how to build healthy relationships.

He sido maestra durante muchos años y es algo que disfruto mucho.
Me gusta dar cursos, conferencias, diplomados.

Después de obtener la certificación, seguí el proceso para poder entrenar a otros terapeutas en el Método Gottman de terapia de pareja.

Actualmente enseño los tres niveles, en español, así como el taller del Arte y la Ciencia de Amar para parejas y para novios.

También, con la orientación hacia la prevención, ofrezco conferencias para parejas, padres y maestros sobre cómo establecer relaciones saludables.

*Accepting New Certification Candidates*
*Actualmente Aceptando Consultados*

Bertha Alicia provides consultation for therapists who are entering the Certification Track program.

She has worked with people from the first day of Level 1 Training and has witnessed how clinicians fall in love with the Gottman Method, the next step is helping them to become Certified.

The Certification Track is difficult and demanding, and is a big step for a couples therapist: it lets you know you have reached the highest quality standards in the use of the Gottman Method and that your work has been reviewed by the most experienced therapists of The Gottman Institute.

In her own words: “As your Consultant in this process, I review your cases and videos looking for your strengths and your areas of opportunity so I can help you develop your skills, improve your use of the Gottman tools and integrate them with the skills and tools you have been using in your practice. This way, besides becoming a Certified Gottman Therapist, you will feel surer of yourself. My goal is to walk with you with empathy, making the journey a collaborative process”.

You can contact Bertha directly to learn about her consultation pricing and more through her Gottman Referral Network profile here.

Cuando has acompañado gente desde el nivel 1 y has visto cómo se enamoran del Método Gottman de terapia de parejas, tanto por su coherencia teórica como por la efectividad de sus herramientas, el paso siguiente es ayudar a que logren su certificación.

El proceso de certificación, si bien difícil y demandante, es un paso muy grande para un terapeuta de pareja: brinda la seguridad de que has alcanzado los estándares de calidad en las técnicas terapéuticas, de que tu trabajo, revisado por los terapeutas más experimentados del Instituto Gottman tiene el nivel requerido para la seguridad de sus pacientes.

Como tu consultora en este proceso reviso tus casos y videos con el fin de conocer tus fortalezas y tus áreas de oportunidad y ayudarte a desarrollar las habilidades necesarias para perfeccionar las herramientas del Método Gottman e integrarlas con las que utilizas en tu práctica cotidiana, de tal manera que te sea más fácil lograr no solo la certificación, sino la seguridad como terapeuta de pareja Gottman.

Mi meta es brindar este acompañamiento de manera empática haciendo del camino un proceso colaborativo.

Puede comunicarse con Bertha directamente para conocer los precios de sus consultas y más a través de su perfil de Gottman Referral Network aquí.

As a Certified Gottman Therapist for The Gottman Institute, Dr. Young serves as a Consultant for therapists pursuing certification and leads the Art & Science of Love Couple’s Workshops. In her private practice, she has seen thousands of couples in all stages of relationship (dating, pre-marital, married/cohabitating, transitioning to parenthood, post-affair, divorced) in couples counseling, marathon therapy, and workshop formats.

Dr. Nancy owns and runs Pathways to Wellness, a multi-specialty private practice that includes six therapists and three therapy dogs, all of whom have some training in Gottman Method couples therapy, in Costa Mesa, California. She is passionate about diversity as she believes that every relationship is a cross-cultural and transpersonal experience.

“Current research studies have now shown us that good relationships have the capacity to heal and elevate every aspect of our lives, to reduce fear and physical pain, to lessen depression, to increase productivity and creativity, to lower blood pressure, to extend our lives, and make them happier and much more fun. In a time when so many of us are longing for community, I find it surprising that we don’t teach more about how to actually do great relationships starting at least by early high school, especially now that we have great research from the Gottmans and others to give us such clear, easy-to-apply tools!”

*Accepting New Certification Candidates*

You might be thinking, “I feel pretty awkward about this videotaping thing and I really hate to be watched, especially when I’m learning something new!” If so, you’re not alone. One of the things Nancy loves most about the Gottman model is that it’s so collaborative and respectful. The model honors the experience and intellect of all clinicians interested in the Gottman work. From the beginning, John and Julie have incorporated the best of other models in the work and encouraged CGTs to contribute to a growing understanding about how to best help couples. They have urged us all to bring our individual artistry, informed by science, to their work. Nancy is collaborative, by nature, so that appeals to her.

Starting in the late 1970’s, Nancy’s work has been about couples and romantic love: how people do love… not just how they “should” love. She videotaped all her clients doing everything all through the 1980s and she took copious notes on dating behaviors. She studied most of the models around, and then Nancy stumbled on the Gottman work in the late 1990s, she was in love with it immediately! It wasn’t armchair philosophy… It was/is, at its core, an empirically-based study of how people actually do love… how they do it gracefully and how they do it awkwardly.

Nancy has been a full-time clinician for over thirty years, twenty of which she also taught at Chapman University part-time, and she is a CAMFT Certified Supervisor for MFT Interns. She loves teaching, mentoring, and collaborating on case consultations. Nancy has taught Gottman Levels 1, 2, and 3 trainings in the past and puts on the Art & Science of Love Couple’s Workshop several times a year, all in Southern California.

Nancy is available for individual consultation and open to group consultation inquiries. You can contact Nancy directly through her Gottman Referral Network profile here.

Currently, Basta primarily sees couples in my practice using Gottman Method; however, Basta also utilizes elements of Emotionally Focused Couples Therapy, Narrative Therapy, Structural Family Therapy, and Dan Wile’s Collaborative Couples Therapy. Basta believes that one of the strengths of the Gottman Method is its adaptability to complementary methods. In addition to his work as a Gottman Method Couples Therapist, Basta has been providing the Art and Science of Love Workshop (with his colleague Marcia Gomez) three times per year since 2008.

Basta finds it invaluable to be part of the community of Gottman clinicians, as collaboration with his colleagues challenges him to continue to learn and grow as a clinician. Basta is honored to be part of this talented and dedicated group of professionals.

Basta believes that consultation is the central process for therapists to integrate Gottman Method into their work. It troubles him that many clinicians seem to think of Gottman Method as being restricted to psycho-education. Basta believes that it is important for those learning Gottman Method to develop an understanding of the potential depth and breadth of the approach in addition to mastering the specific techniques. Further, Basta believes that the consultant-consultee relationship needs to be one of trust and honesty. He believes that it takes some courage for clinicians — who are often used to working in privacy — to expose their work to others through case discussion and video tape review. It is important to develop a relationship of safety and collaboration for the consultation process to be effective.

*Accepting New Certification Candidates*

Michael is a clinical social worker with 30 years experience helping emotionally distressed couples and families to improve their relationships and to develop more effective interpersonal skills. He began his training as a Gottman Method Couples Therapist in 2002 and this method has become the central focus of his practice. Michael is appreciative for the clear road map that it has given him for his work with couples.

Currently, Michael primarily sees couples in his practice using Gottman Method; however, he also utilizes elements of Emotionally Focused Couples Therapy, Narrative Therapy, Structural Family Therapy, and Dan Wile’s Collaborative Couples Therapy. He believes that one of the strengths of the Gottman Method is its adaptability to complementary methods. In addition to Michael’s work as a Gottman Method Couples Therapist, he has been providing the Art and Science of Love Workshop (with his colleague Marcia Gomez) three times per year since 2008. He has also presented Level, Level 2, and Level 3 trainings in the past.

He finds it invaluable to be part of the community of Gottman clinicians, as collaboration with his colleagues challenges him to continue to learn and grow as a clinician. He is also honored to be part of this talented and dedicated group of professionals.

Michael believes that consultation is the central process for therapists to integrate Gottman Method into their work. It troubles him that many clinicians seem to think of Gottman Method as being restricted to psycho-education. He believes that it is important for those learning Gottman Method to develop an understanding of the potential depth and breadth of the approach in addition to mastering the specific techniques. Further, Michael believes that it the consultant-consultee relationship needs to be one of trust and honesty. It takes some courage for clinicians – who are often used to working in privacy – to expose their work to others through case discussion and video tape review. It is important to develop a relationship of safety and collaboration for the consultation process to be effective.

You can contact Michael directly to learn about his pricing and more through his Gottman Referral Network profile here.