Transforming Practices Conference 2025: Full Schedule

arrow_back View All Dates

9:00am PDT

Keynote Session: Reclaiming Your Groove: Shifting Out of the 3+Fs

Thursday May 29, 2025 9:00am - 10:15am PDT

For those on the front lines of care, understanding our clients and our responses to emotional distress—whether from overwhelm, burnout, or stress—is crucial. In these moments, we may rely on various "F" responses: fighting, fleeing, or freezing. While these instinctive survival mechanisms serve a purpose, they can also trap us in limiting patterns of psychological states, often fueled by the belief that no alternatives exist or that these responses provide a false sense of safety. Join us to explore how these psychological safety responses manifest in our daily interactions, impacting our feelings, thoughts, and actions. Dawn will share practical strategies, including expressive arts interventions, to help us recognize when we "pop" out of our "groove" state and into a 3+F response. This session will focus on enhancing worker well-being while providing practical tools to share with clients of all ages.

Speakers

Dawn McBride

Reg. Psychologist, Associate Professor (Tenured) & National Counselling Ethics Expert.

Dr. Dawn McBride is a celebrated educator who has received numerous teaching awards, co-edited a book on multicultural practices, and is currently writing "The Big Cs in Canadian Ethics: Care, Consent, and Charting." She is a tenured associate professor and registered psychologist... Read More →

Thursday May 29, 2025 9:00am - 10:15am PDT
Gary W. Harris - Gym 120 College Cir, Red Deer, AB T4N 0T7

Keynote Session

3:00pm PDT

Keynote Session: Before Operational Stress for Social Services: Protecting those who Protect Vulnerable Children.

Thursday May 29, 2025 3:00pm - 4:00pm PDT

Gary W. Harris - Gym

Those in trauma-exposed occupations, including social services, are at empirically validated increased risk of psychological injury due to the chronic and often severe exposure to potentially psychologically traumatic events they face within their operational roles. This session will begin with an exploration of current data, which will demonstrate the significantly higher psychological risks these workers face in relation to their operational roles, and how exposure has been determined to correlate with the onset of different mental health conditions. Following a review of current data regarding psychological wellness in frontline workers, the sessions will cover the first three BOS modules exploring the mental health of trauma exposed professionals, focusing on operational stress, its physiological impacts, and strategies for self-awareness and regulation. Participants will learn about key mental health terms, the effects of chronic stress on the brain and nervous system, and how to use tools like the Window of Tolerance for self-monitoring and managing stress.

Speakers

Dr. Megan McElheran

Clinical Psychologist and CEO

Dr. Megan McElheran is a Clinical Psychologist and the Chief Executive Officer of Wayfound, a national organization that provides mental health services across Canada. Dr. McElheran’s research over the last 20 years has been focused on the assessment, diagnosis, and treatment of... Read More →

Thursday May 29, 2025 3:00pm - 4:00pm PDT
Gary W. Harris - Gym 120 College Cir, Red Deer, AB T4N 0T7

Keynote Session

Transforming Practices Conference 2025

From CA$133.46