Training Course syllabus

Online Certification Training Programs in the Peterson Method

Core Training in Childbirth Hypnosis & Counseling in the Peterson Method

Certification requires all assignments to be completed satisfactorily. The complete course may be taken without certification (without assignments). It may also be taken for ceu’s (without certification and without assignments) by post test and evaluation. Ceu’s with certification (with assignments completed) do not require post tests.

An e-mail will be sent to each student which will contain links to all files for the videos in this module, the PDF workbook and E-manual referred to in the syllabus for Module One. Please maintain all confidentiality, and be aware that the lectures and Body-Centered Hypnosis for Childbirth video will remain unchanged, for your continued reference. However, the links to the lending library videos will change periodically. If they are changed during your training, you will be sent updated links to these videos, while you are enrolled in the program. Copying or forwarding this link is prohibited.

The Birth Counselor Interview and Overview of the Peterson Method for a Preventive Model of Perinatal Care

During the first seminar we will identify vertical and horizontal stressors, which impact birth stress in the family life cycle. This is your foundation for creating a body-centered hypnosis for your client. You will learn to understand the experience of giving birth for the individual woman. No two women are the same! Gathering information in the three areas of assessment is necessary in order to address the woman's individual fears and anxieties through this transition to motherhood. Through visual presentation (VIDEO FILE lecture and cases) and hands-on practice, the following will be addressed:

VIDEO FILE: Lecture 1 of Module One
Overview of the Prenatal Counseling Model and The Birth Counselor Interview - 31 minutes

VIDEO FILE: cases of: (in this order is best)
Deirdre: Birth Counselor Interview with commentary – 70 minutes
Liz : Birth Counselor Interview – 58 minutes

Deridre: Birth Counselor Interview without commentary – 51 minutes
Barbara D.: Birth Counselor Interview – 53 minutes

An Easier Childbirth: chapters 1-4, appendix 1
Making Healthy Families: Chapters 3-4, 11

in Workbook PDF:
# 1 Interview for The Union Newspaper, # 2 One Size Does Not Fit All and #3 The Meta Model

Review: All Pink Sheets in Workbook, including Empathy guidelines, assessment sheet and worksheets.

Practice:
1. Do the exercises in the meta-model reading with another person to familiarize yourself with these techniques for probing.

2. Do another exercise in which you spend ten minutes or more talking with a friend about a problem or situation, using the reflective listening technique to gather more information. Do this exercise a couple of times, reviewing the empathy guidelines beforehand.

3. Familiarize yourself with the Birth Counselor Questionnaire, but realize that you should be flexible, not necessarily asking all of the questions as they are stated in the questionnaire, but rather, being sure to gather enough information to address the three area of assessment.

4. While viewing one of the birth counseling VIDEO FILEs listed above, identify of at least 4 counseling used. You may email your summary to me at gp@askdrgayle.com if you would like feedback on this exercise.

Assignment #1: Interview a pregnant woman, using the questions listed, or any others you feel are pertinent to obtain information about the assessment areas. Use the meta model! Record the interview, if possible. Write an assessment from the birth counselor interview, which describes the woman's birth and childbirth history, expectations for motherhood, including her own childhood experience of being mothered, and her present life experience. In other words: Use the assessment sheet. Identify any vertical stressors that might impact this birth. Relate these assessment areas to her present fears, concerns and expectations for her upcoming childbirth. Identify specific issues you want to address in the birth visualization for this particular woman. In other words: Create a birth inventory list of specific concerns for this woman related to the upcoming childbirth.

You may also ask the woman to fill out the birth inventory in An Easier Childbirth for additional information. You may also refer to the worksheets in the reader to organize your thoughts. Pay attention to the place in the life cycle that she is currently experiencing (horizontal stressors) and any vertical stressors that might pertain to this period in her life. It is advised that you find a pregnant woman to work with during the training. If this is not possible, interviewing someone who has been pregnant and is willing to role-play her past experience may be acceptable.

e-mail your 1st assignment to: gp@askdrgayle.com . You may also attach a recording of the Birth Counselor Interview, if possible.

Note: When sending homework, do not use the full name of the person you have interviewed. Use the first name only or a pseudoname.

Basic Core Techniques in Visualization and Body-Centered Hypnosis for Childbirth

During this seminar you will learn the basic core techniques and outline for birth visualization. VIDEO cases, practice and discussion of body-centered hypnosis for childbirth will be the focus. The following topics will be addressed:

VIDEO FILE: Lecture 2 of Module One
Basic Techniques of Body-Centered Hypnosis for Childbirth – 42 minutes

VIDEO FILE:cases of:
Deirdre: Birth Visualization with commentary – 76 minutes
Liz : Birth Visualization – 51 minutes
Video: Body-Centered Hypnosis in the technique of Dr. Gayle Peterson - 54 minutes

Additional viewing is recommended, and extremely useful:
Deirdre: Birth Visualization without commentary (recommended viewing) – 59 minutes
Barbara D.: Birth Visualization – 61 minutes

Birthing Normally: Chapter 4
Body-Centered Hypnosis for Childbirth: Chapter 1 in PDF manual

#5 Paging Dr. Fear, #6 Healing Traumatic Birth and #4 Pregnancy as Healing: Visualization and Indirect Hypnosis

Review: All Pink Sheets in Workbook PDF, including uses of body-centered hypnosis, techniques of body-centered hypnosis and worksheets.

Practice:
1. Do the exercise of telling a story to a friend (about 10-15 minutes) describing something pleasant, exciting or wonderful. It could be about somewhere you visited or an experience that was positive that happened to you. Be aware of using all three submodalities (visual words, auditory words and kinesthetic words) as much as possible. Then afterwards ask the person what sensations they remember or enjoyed from your story.

2. Record the session above, or do another session so that you can record it. Listen to the recording and identify how many times you used the visual, auditory, and kinesthetic sensory channels and what words elicited these senses. If you cannot record it, then ask a witness to listen to you telling the story to your friend and ask them to write down the different visual, auditory and kinesthetic words you used. Be sure to use all 3 sensory channels at some point in your description! You may e-mail at gp@askdrgayle.com if you want feedback on this exercise.

3. Pick a VIDEO, (other than Deirdre) on body-centered hypnosis from the ones above. Write a summary of the techniques, and what specific issues you could hear being addressed in the session. What issues were raised in her birth counselor interview? How did you hear them addressed in the birth hypnosis? You may e-mail at gp@askdrgayle.com if you want feedback on this exercise.

4. While viewing one of the birth visualizations VIDEO FILEs above, identify hypnotic techniques used. You may e-mail at gp@askdrgayle.com if you want feedback on this exercise.

Assignment # 2: Interview a second woman, or you may use same person as assignment #1. (You may also use a friend or family member, as a first trial, if you wish) Identify and establish agreement on points that need healing in a body-centered hypnosis session. Record the hypnosis session, which should be approximately 40-60 minutes. Listen to yourself afterwards, and take notes on the suggestions you utilized during the session. Write a summary of the points identified in the initial interview and how you addressed them in the body-centered hypnosis session. Include techniques of hypnosis used in the session.

e-mail your assignment to gp@askdrgayle.com and attach a recording of the Birth Visualization to e-mail, if possible. Note: When sending homework, do not use the full name of the person you have interviewed. Use the first name only or a pseudoname.

Advanced Techniques in Childbirth Hypnosis and Postpartum Counseling in the Peterson Method

Required texts: An Easier Childbirth, Birthing Normally, and Making Healthy Families (available through Amazon.com)

An e-mail will be sent to each student which will contain links to all files for the videos in this module, the PDF workbook and E-manual referred to in the syllabus for Modules Two and Three. Please maintain all confidentiality, and be aware that the lectures will remain unchanged, for your continued reference. However, the links to the lending library videos will change periodically. If they are changed during your training, you will be sent updated links to these videos, while you are enrolled in the program. Copying or forwarding this link is prohibited.

This seminar will focus on body-centered techniques for helping woman cope with labor. Realistic preparation for the woman and her partner will be addressed. The following topics will be included:

VIDEO FILE: Lecture 1 of Module Two
Addressing Pain and Issues of Control – 19 minutes

Sharon: Simulated Contraction Session with commentary – 25 minutes
Sharon: Pain tape with commentary – 41 minutes
Liz and Jerome: Birth Counselor Interview Segment with husband addressing pain and labor
with commentary – 11 minutes

Highly Recommended:
Deirdre: Simulated Contraction Session – 64 minutes
Liz : Simulated Contraction Session – 41 minutes

Assignment: #3
Do the simulated contraction exercise with a pregnant woman, or friend if necessary first, as seen in the VIDEO cases and described on p. 106 of An Easier Childbirth.

Write a brief summary of your observations about her coping styles and what seemed to help her most. E-mail to the assignment to: gp@askdrgayle.com

Keep in mind that addressing early labor projects, labor as a healthy pain and that labor is normally a healthy stress, but not distress for the baby is a critical part of the 3rd counseling session on coping with pain. (Refer to VIDEO cases with commentary and chapters 5 and 6 in An Easier Childbirth)

This session moves into special concerns and the use of body-centered hypnosis to release fear and tension. The following advanced topics will be addressed:

VIDEO FILE: Lecture 2 of Module Two
Advanced Topics of Body-Centered Hypnosis – 24 minutes

VIDEO FILE: cases of: (in this order is best)
Nancy: Working through her own birth with commentary – 54 minutes
Laura: Visualization for maintaining to term with commentary – 39 minutes
Reena: Birth Visualization for breech with commentary – 65 minutes

Highly Recommended:
Sharon: Visualization for clearing past cesareans (VBAC) – 38 minutes
Carol: Body-Centered Hypnosis for Premature labor - 36 minutes

Required Reading:
In PDF Workbook:
#8 Prenatal Bonding, Prenatal Communication, and the Prevention of Prematurity and
#9 Hypnosis and the conversion of breech position to vertex
Review: All Pink Sheets in PDF Workbook

Required Viewing:
VIDEO FILE: Lecture 1 of Module Three
Addressing Loss – 24 minutes

VIDEO FILE: cases of:
Nora: visualization for healing past stillbirth with commentary – 53 minutes
Barbara: visualization of third childbirth, following previous stillbirth and cesarean – 50 minutes

In PDF Workbook: # 10 Chains of Grief: The Impact of Perinatal Loss on Subsequent Pregnancy
An Easier Childbirth: appendix 2: Transforming Fear
Review: All Pink Sheets including points for prematurity, breech, post-traumatic stress and loss

Assignment # 4: Choose a client, or friend if you wish for the first time that has a past traumatic childbirth, neonatal loss, premature labor or birth that needs reframing. Record the hypnosis, listen to it, and write a summary of how you addressed the past birth or childbirth.
e-mail it to: gp@askdrgayle.com

Review the VIDEO of Laura for prematurity and identify hypnotic techniques not included in the commentary. Pay specific attention to all metaphors and identify the embedded commands, truisms, linkages and any other techniques contained or implied within the metaphor itself. Give a brief description of how you believe the techniques worked towards the goal of maintaining the pregnancy. e-mail it to: gp@askdrgayle.com

This seminar will address the family system as it changes following the birth of a baby. Common pitfalls and assessing postpartum depression will be discussed, as well as understanding the characteristics of healthy family structure and communication. The woman's experience of her childbirth however will be the main focus of the postpartum interview. The following topics will be addressed:

Barbara: Postpartum Interview with commentary – 68 minutes
Deirdre: Postpartum Interview – 55 minutes
Liz and Jerome: Postpartum Interview – 37 minutes

An Easier Childbirth: Chapters 9 and 10
Making Healthy Families: Chapters 1, 2 , 5 and 7
Pay special attention to: pp.109-112: Identifying your discussion busters

#11 When Baby Makes 3, Fit Pregnancy Magazine (Dr. Gayle Peterson’s Pregnancy Roundtable)

Do a postpartum interview with a pregnant woman. Record it, if possible. Write an assessment of the points addressed in the postpartum with attention to assisting in integrating the experience of giving birth. Also assess her adjustment to motherhood and whether she needs referral for possible postpartum depression.