First Sessions Matter
The Initial Alliance
The first session is about making a relationship with the person. Begin by understanding what brought them here now and how they hope you can help.
Starting to Understand the Patient
Listen for how the patient understands their suffering, describes important people, and experiences self and others. These early descriptions begin to show personality style, level of functioning, and capacity for nuance.
Preparing the Frame
By the end of the first session, offer an initial way of thinking about the problem and prepare the patient for a fuller history next. The aim is to create enough clarity and trust for the work to continue in context.
Who This Course Is For
This training is designed for professionals seeking to deepen their clinical intuition and theoretical grounding.
Therapists
Develop a robust internal framework that guides your interventions during difficult clinical moments.
Teachers
Learn to synthesize complex client history into a coherent and actionable clinical narrative.
Students
Transcend the medical model to see the suffering person behind the diagnostic code.
Begin Your Mastery in Case Formulation
Join Nancy McWilliams for a comprehensive journey into the heart of clinical diagnosis and the vital first sessions of treatment.
Stay Updated on New Courses
Join the mailing list to see new courses when published