April 11th, 2025 9am-4:00pm (6CE credits)

In-person in Calgary (Holiday Inn & Suites Calgary South)

Prices (Lunch is included)

Early Bird (before March 11th): $320 + GST (lunch included)

Regular Price: (after March 11th): $340 +GST (lunch included)

About The Workshop

Discover how neuroscience and relational-developmental insights can help us understand the complex human alarm system underlying anxiety and a diverse array of seemingly unrelated syndromes and symptoms. This alarm spectrum covers a vast amount of troubling territory, affecting the majority of our children and youth as well as adults. The good news is that once we understand how these syndromes come to be, we are also more informed as to how they can be reversed. Understanding these root causes enables natural, intuitive interventions that can be implemented at any age and in any setting. This approach offers an alternative to the medical disorder approach as well as the rational-emotive and cognitive approaches, with promising implications for treatment and recovery.

This workshop, led by Dr. MacNamara, will provide you with vital insights on:

• The alarm system and how it works​
• The three classic syndromes of the alarm spectrum across the lifespan​
• The three root causes of escalating alarm in today’s society
• The most promising interventions for alarm-based problems

Join us for this groundbreaking exploration of anxiety through a relational-developmental lens.

About the Speaker:

Dr. Deborah MacNamara is the author of the best-selling book Rest, Play, Grow: Making Sense of Preschoolers (or anyone who acts like one), as well as the children’s picture book, The Sorry Plane. Rest, Play, Grow has been translated into 14 languages. The Sorry Plane was awarded the Neufeld Institute Recommended seal for being congruent with developmental science and the relational-developmental approach of Dr. Gordon Neufeld. Her new book, Nourished: Connection, Food, and Caring for our Kids (and everyone else we love), has received the Gold Award from Nautilus Books

Deborah is on Faculty at the Neufeld Institute, and is the Director of Kid’s Best Bet, a Counselling and Family Resource Center. She is a dynamic teacher and experienced counsellor who makes developmental science come to life in the everyday context of home and classroom. Deborah also provides counselling services to parents and professionals to make sense of learning, behavioural, and developmental issues in kids – from babies to teens.

Deborah travels nationally and internationally, speaking to child and adolescent development issues to groups including the United Nations and the Dalai Lama Center for Peace and Education. With over 60 presentations a year to groups including parents, educators, child-care professionals, social workers, foster and adopt community, and health care professionals, Deborah shares her insight and passion for making sense of kids. She is a developmentalist at heart who is continually fascinated by the mysteries and beauty inherent in human maturation.