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Unpacking, Transforming and Healing Shame: Theory and Practice for Mental Health Practitioners

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1.  Shame is:
  1. A positive motivator for self-improvement and growth
  2. The belief that we are flawed and unworthy of acceptance and belonging
  3. A temporary emotion that arises from specific circumstances
  4. A rational response to personal mistakes or failures
2.  Guilt and shame differ because
  1. Guilt is a positive emotion, while shame is a negative emotion
  2. Guilt is typically associated with feeling bad about a specific behavior or action, while shame is more about feeling bad about oneself as a person
  3. Guilt is primarily a result of external judgment, while shame is an internal assessment
  4. Guilt is commonly experienced in childhood, while shame typically emerges in adulthood
3.  Dr. Peter Breggin states that negative legacy emotions:
  1. Seldom reflect anything we have done to others and instead typically reflect what others have done to us
  2. Are a result of shameful acts we have committed
  3. Are biologically determined experience
  4. Are only experienced in people of certain identities
4.  Feelings and beliefs of shame are rooted in childhood traumatic experiences, inherited generational/ancestral patterns, and ____________.
  1. Neonatal experiences
  2. Societal messaging
  3. Routine
  4. Friendships
5.  Tara Brach describes shame as the most painful layer of suffering that surrounds trauma because:
  1. Trauma is inherently shameful, leading to deep-seated feelings of inadequacy
  2. Shame arises from a lack of resilience and coping mechanisms in response to trauma
  3. We blame ourselves for the ways our body and nervous system found to survive
  4. Shame arises from a failure to overcome trauma through sheer willpower
6.  The process of healing shame:
  1. Requires seeking validation and approval from others
  2. Allows us to know our inherent goodness and undoes the illusion of separation
  3. Involves suppressing our emotions to avoid discomfort
  4. Can only be achieved through self-criticism and harsh judgment
7.  Feelings of shame cause people to feel:
  1. That there is something uniquely prefect about them
  2. Alone in their experience
  3. Deserving of love
  4. Creative
8.  Ingredients for healing shame include:
  1. Compassion and self-compassion
  2. Isolation from others
  3. Self-doubt
  4. Motivation
9.  Adults shamed as children frequently feel defensive when even minor negative feedback is given because:
  1. A person with internalized shame believes he is inherently flawed, inferior and defective and such a feeling is so painful that defending scripts (or strategies) are developed to cover it up.
  2. They have an innate aversion to criticism due to genetic predispositions.
  3. Their self-esteem is overly inflated, making them sensitive to any criticism.
  4. They struggle with trust issues, making them defensive in response to feedback.
10.  To work with clients around shame, practitioners must:
  1. Be clear about their own purpose
  2. Refrain from talking openly about shame in supervision, with colleagues and others
  3. Engage in healing of our own experiences and histories of shame
  4. Refrain from working with clients around shame

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