With the revolutionary understanding that anxiety (fear) is at the root of all suffering, you will gain insight into the five core fears–“universal themes of loss”–we all share, including:

We develop our primary defenses, usually early in childhood or at times of trauma, as our best attempt to protect ourselves from these fears, but always at too great a cost. This leaves us constantly holding vigil, on the lookout for the resurfacing of the fear. We build our entire personality upon this fear-defense dynamic. When it spins out of control, an anxiety disorder develops.

The theory and techniques offered in this workshop, such as “The Alchemist”, “The Witness” and “The Warrior’s Stance”, will teach you how to uncover the core fear and chief defense quickly and reliably. These will be understood as the architects of personality and the creators of our perceptual world. Armed with this knowledge, new strategies for “doing the opposite” of the chief defense and its secondary defenses have proven extremely successful in even the most anxious clients. Incorporating psychodynamics, mindfulness, Gestalt, CBT and transpersonal psychology, participants will undergo the actual techniques being presented, making for a rich and highly experiential presentation.

At the deepest level, we will pinpoint the precise moment where resistance is created and how to release it. This leads to the ultimate goal of letting go “the resistance to resistance”, a key to transforming our entire view of Self and redefining the limits of the human experience. The way is then paved for the final section on “Vision Questing”, wherein the five core fears are fully resolved, and one may live their lives with a solid sense of identity, meaning, purpose, love and even a true freedom from the fear of death.

Come prepared for an exciting adventure into the deepest regions of the unconscious, where the hidden fears at the source of our difficulties live, to bring them out into consciousness, available for rapid and lasting transformation.

During the “Deconstructing Anxiety Intensive” sessions, Dr. Pressman will review in detail:

1. Anxiety is the source of all suffering
2. Every problem deconstructs down to a single core fear
3. The core fear is maintained and aggravated by the chief defense
4. Healing anxiety is a matter of “doing the opposite” of the chief defense
5. There is a core defense underneath all chief defenses—the strategy of control
6. The final defense to work through is the “resistance to resistance”
7. When all five core fears are resolved, the “Vision Quest” opens a path to fulfillment

At the conclusion of this entire training, participants will be able to:

1. Describe the core fear/chief defense model of how personalities are developed.
2. Explain why anxiety is at the source of all human suffering.
3. Apply the principle of “Doing the opposite” of the chief defense in practice.
4. Define the techniques of “The Alchemist”, “The Witness” and “The Warrior’s Stance.”
5. Determine when to apply the techniques of “The Alchemist”, “The Witness” and “The Warrior’s Stance.”
6. Utilize the techniques of “The Alchemist”, “The Witness” and “The Warrior’s Stance” in practice.
7. Define the techniques of “resisting resistance” at the root of all defenses.
8. Utilize the techniques of “resisting resistance” at the root of all defenses.
9. Complete a “Vision Quest” for moving through anxiety with a “mighty purpose”