Upcoming ADAVIC Events

Don't forget to keep checking our website for information about upcoming lectures and workshops.

In July alone we have:



Lecture: Beyond Benzodiazepines
Presented by Gwenda Cannard, CEO and co-founder of Reconnexion Inc.(formerly TRANX and PADA)
On Thursday July 7,2011 from 7.30pm-9.00pm
For more information and to book Click Here



Working IT Out: A weekend workshop for sufferers of anxiety
Presented by Counsellor and Author Bev Aisbett
On Saturday July 9, 2011 and Sunday July 10, 2011 from 10.00am-4.30pm
For more information and to book Click Here



Lecture: Stomp out the ANTs (Automatic Negative Thoughts)!
Presented by Sally-Anne McCormack, Clinical Psychologist & Author
On Thursday July 21, 2011 from 7.30pm-9.00pm
For more information and to book Click Here



Professional Development Program (PDP): Smart Therapy: Treating of Anxiety Disorders
Presented by Dr Sallee McLaren, Clinical Psychologist & Author
On Friday July 29, 2011 from 9.00am - 5.00pm
***Please note this is an Australian Psychological Society Endorsed Activity: 7 CPD Hours and is only available to health professionals***
For more information and to book Click Here

A few important points on Doctors and Medications

Recognise that not all GPs are directly familiar with or have personal knowledge of anxiety except on an academic level.

Medicine is still essentially conservative - there may be other natural options.

Regard your doctor as a person with some specialised training in one particular modality, but not a specialist in ALL areas. Therefore they may have SOME knowledge that is helpful to you, but it is not necessarily the ONLY knowledge you can gain.

Doctors, as people, also have different preferences in the way they practice medicine as well as different approaches. Some may not be interested in emotional problems, preferring a more technical approach. Ask to be referred to another more "listening" doctor if you find this is the case.

Don't be afraid to ask “WHY?”

Recognise that you are paying the doctor to provide a service, which should be delivered to YOUR satisfaction - including providing you with all of the information you require.
There are several doctors now available who have also studied natural therapies. If you would like a more holistic approach, these may be the answer.

SUGGESTED QUESTIONS:
What precisely can I expect the medication to do?
What are the side effects?
How long till the medication takes effect?
How long should I expect to be on medication?
What happens if I choose to come off it?
Are there any precautions I should take? (e.g. avoiding certain foods, operating machinery etc.)

Information provided by Bev Aisbett, Counsellor and Author of several self-help books such as LIVING WITH IT, LIVING IT UP, LETTING IT GO and more....

WORKING IT OUT One-Day Workshop in Geelong

The Anxiety Disorders Association of Victoria Presents
Working IT Out: One day workshop for sufferers of anxiety

Presented by Bev Aisbett, Counsellor & Author

Overview:

This weekend seminar provides sufferers of anxiety with invaluable tools for effective management of anxiety based on the proven techniques which have assisted sufferers through Bev’s powerful programs, books and presentations over the past decade.

In this workshop you will learn:
- Why you came to be anxious and how to break this pattern
- How to view your anxiety from a healthier perspective
- How to manage and overcome your anxiety

Participants will receive a free copy of Bev’s compilation of books - ‘FIXING IT’ - which brings together, for the very first time in one volume, a complete guide to surviving anxiety and its many forms and how to move on to achieve change and growth in our lives - LIVING WITH IT - A Survivor’s Guide to Panic Attacks; LIVING IT UP - the Advanced Survivor’s Guide to Anxiety-free-Living and LETTING IT GO- Attaining Awareness out of Adversity


Bev Aisbett is a counsellor, acclaimed author and cartoonist. Having suffered from severe anxiety in the past, Bev’s subsequent recovery led to her to dedicate the past decade to helping others overcome anxiety, depression and OCD. Bev herself was diagnosed with an anxiety disorder and possible manic depression at the peak of her career, as she had just established herself as a freelance cartoonist and illustrator. Alongside panic attacks, the daily sense of terror and dread and a persistently racing heart, Bev dealt with insomnia, trembling, and severe bouts of depression. Bev found help in personifying her fears and anxiety into a character- “IT”. Through giving her anxiety form, and through characterizing her affirmations, Bev created a therapeutic technique, which she saw had the potential to help others.

Workshop Details


Topics Covered

Some topics and activities to be discussed during the workshop:

• The Client/Helper Relationship
• Crisis
• Contributory Factors
• Pyramid of Healing
• Anxiety Flowchart
• Follow-Up-Exercises
• Coping Techniques
• Reframing the Anxiety Monster
• Embracing Otherness
• Creating a New Identity
• Improving relationships
• Exploring the rules for the Game of Life


Lunch

• Bring your own lunch (morning and afternoon tea provided)


Handouts

• Participants will receive a free copy of Bev’s compilation of books - ‘FIXING IT’ - which brings together, for the very first time in one volume, a complete guide to surviving anxiety and its many forms and how to move on to achieve change and growth in our lives - LIVING WITH IT - A Survivor’s Guide to Panic Attacks; LIVING IT UP - the Advanced Survivor’s Guide to Anxiety-free-Living and LETTING IT GO- Attaining Awareness out of Adversity

• You will also receive a ‘WORKING OUT’ Manual.


Other books by Bev Aisbett

• ‘Living with IT’
• ‘Living IT Up’
• ‘Letting IT Go’
• ‘Taming the Black Dog’
• ‘The Book of IT’
• ‘Get Real’
• ‘I Love Me’
• ‘Get Over It’



Saturday 7th May 2011
10.00am – 4.30pm
Lifeline Geelong Training Facility & Admin Offices
1 McKillop Street, Geelong VIC, Melway Ref 451 / K5

Cost:
$175.00 ADAVIC members
$175.00 Early bird price if paid by Friday 8th April
$200.00 Non-Members
Bookings:
Phone: ADAVIC (03) 9853 8089
Email: http://adavic@adavic.org.au
Website: www.adavic.org.au


Proceeds from this event help to maintain ADAVIC services
BOOKINGS ESSENTIAL!
Note: a $2 surcharge fee will apply to invoices

Anxiety/Depression: Taking the fear out of IT by Bev Aisbett in Geelong

Overview

In releasing her latest two titles 'I Love Me' and 'Get Over IT' in 2010 and having commenced her forthcoming autobiography 'All of IT' (due for release in 2012) Bev Aisbett has added to her already impressive portfolio of six other self help titles and achievements in fostering recovery from anxiety-related conditions. In 2011, Bev will again offer her empowering presentations to anxiety sufferers, in partnership with the Anxiety Disorders Association of Victoria (ADAVIC).

Having experienced severe anxiety and depression first-hand, Bev has used her personal experience of anxiety and subsequent recovery as a means of reaching thousands of people suffering from anxiety and depression.

Bev's work is highly valued in the mental health community, with many general practitioners, psychologists and psychiatrists regularly recommending her books to patients in their care. The Commonwealth Rehabilitation Service has regularly referred clients to Bev's workshops to assist them with anxiety or depression.

Bev’s aim has always been to foster self empowerment, therefore reducing over-reliance on outside assistance. By promoting self-awareness and providing a wide range of strategies that assist sufferers to identify and self-correct stressful responses in various situations, this approach has led graduates of Bev’s program to consistently report at least a 70% reduction in their anxiety levels, as well as a far more relaxed attitude to life in general. Many have found the experience to be truly life-changing.

Bev Aisbett is a counsellor, acclaimed author and cartoonist. Having suffered from severe anxiety in the past, Bev’s subsequent recovery led to her to dedicate the past decade to helping others overcome anxiety, depression and OCD. Bev herself was diagnosed with an anxiety disorder and possible manic depression at the peak of her career, as she had just established herself as a freelance cartoonist and illustrator. Alongside panic attacks, the daily sense of terror and dread and a persistently racing heart, Bev dealt with insomnia, trembling, and severe bouts of depression. Bev found help in personifying her fears and anxiety into a character- “IT”. Through giving her anxiety form, and through characterizing her affirmations, Bev created a therapeutic technique, which she saw had the potential to help others.

Thursday 14th April 2011

7.30pm-9.00pm

Geelong West Town Hall (Supper Room)

153 Pakington Street, Geelong West VIC, Melways Ref 451 / J2

Cost:

$10.00 ADAVIC members

$20.00 Non-Members

Bookings:

Phone: ADAVIC (03) 9853 8089

Email: adavic@adavic.org.au

Website: www.adavic.org.au

Proceeds from this event help to maintain ADAVIC services

BOOKINGS ESSENTIAL! Monies non refundable

Note: a $2 surcharge fee will apply to invoices

The Haste To Medicate by Bev Aisbett

The death of a young person, especially when gifted, attractive and bright, is particularly tragic. When that young person is also famous, it seems doubly so.

However, even such a tragedy can be a turning point if what follows is that something is learned from the tragedy and ultimately changed for the better as a result.

Heath Ledger’s untimely death highlighted several issues, not least of which is why he needed and how he gained access to enough prescription drugs to create the lethal cocktail which led to his death.

Ledger’s inadvertent legacy to the world may be that we at last begin to question the haste to medicate which is so often the first response of medicos in treating those who present with emotional crisis.

What are the criteria for assessing the need for prescription drugs in these instances?

How often are other options, such as counselling or lifestyle issues, explored first?

How frequently are patients referred for psychological assessment prior to drugs being prescribed?

A television current affairs program from several years ago featured the story of a teenager bullied because of her large breasts. Subsequently depressed, she was prescribed medication.

Antidepressant medication is designed to rectify and balance the changes in brain chemistry associated with depression and anxiety.

Was errant brain chemistry really the culprit in this example or was the brain chemistry altered by her reaction to the situation?

Self talk, beliefs and attitude are equally potent in changing brain chemistry and altering mood. The type of person most likely to respond to stress in an anxious or depressed way will also have a tendency to think in a rigid, all-or-nothing, catastrophic and self critical way.

Were other options explored first, such as addressing the girl’s self esteem issues?

This also raises the question as to whether it is beneficial to numb the actual experience, no matter how painful.
A pivotal experience can present an opportunity to implement necessary change in a person’s approach to life, shore up resilience and reinforce self worth.

Situations such as this can perpetuate the illusion that drugs are a ‘cure’ for such conditions. Drugs address physical symptoms; they do not change beliefs, thoughts or personality. Exploring the attitude of the sufferer is of equal or greater importance in the recovery process.

It is well known that all medications carry risks, such as side effects, dependency and dangerous interactions with other drugs. The greatest danger, as was the case for Ledger, is overdose.

Those with an anxious or depressed disposition are also those most likely to self medicate with alcohol or street drugs, in particular young men. Men still struggle with acknowledging their vulnerability Men still find it difficult to disclose or discuss emotional issues and are more likely to stifle their discomfort with other substances, rather than express it.

Is it wise to place another drug in their path?

Bureau of Statistics reports indicate that approximately 684,000 people had recently used psychoepileptic medications, which include anti-psychotics and hypnotics as well as antidepressants. Of the former drug group, 47% were reported as sleeping medication. Almost all who used both types of medication did so on the advice of a health professional.

“Doctor-shopping” (visiting several different doctors for prescriptions) may only be spotted by a pharmacist if several prescriptions of the same medication are presented by the same person within a short period of time.

Chats and blogs of young people reacting to Ledger’s death reveal responses ranging from criticism of his stupidity in mixing medications: “What human being with half a brain would ingest all of these at one time?” to compassion for his ignorance of the dangers: “Hey, he wasn’t a chemist!” to condemnation of the doctors who supplied the drugs : “Those drugs, except for one sleep aid, were prescribed. When a doctor gives you meds do you question him? No, because you think it has to be safe since the doctor gave it to you. The problem is that his doctors didn't consider that he’d mix medications. Doctors need to start evaluating patients more thoroughly when prescribing meds.”

So, whose responsibility is it?

There are pressures on both sides of the doctor’s desk in this matter.

The doctor may have an academic knowledge and variable interest or personal experience in these disorders and limited time to spend with someone whose problems need ongoing attention. It would seem reasonable to supply medicinal relief to someone who is undergoing considerable distress.

The patient wants immediate relief and at this stage, will most likely baulk at the idea of putting in the self-monitoring, skill-building hard yards required for recovery.

There is a place for medication, of course. In situations where the sufferer is completely overwhelmed and unable to adequately function, medication can reduce the symptoms to a level where necessary rest is restored and a certain distancing from the problem is established.

However, even in this instance, the emotional issues which have created or exacerbated the problem will need to be addressed to ensure recovery.

Those who are prepared to diligently apply themselves to addressing their predominantly negative and self destructive “inner critic” through education and counselling will often emerge, not only with greatly reduced symptoms but a far healthier approach to life than they held prior to the crisis.

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) is one example of a therapy with a proven track record in being of assistance to those suffering with anxiety disorders. The sufferer is encouraged to observe and address negative thought patterns, as well as the behaviours which go hand in hand with these.

Subscribing to the idea that medication is the only path and that we are the victims of our genes and chemicals, rather than our beliefs and attitudes, is to create a sense of helplessness and a “victim” mentality.

In the end, it may be more a matter of encouraging each individual to take greater responsibility for his or her own emotional wellbeing, thus playing a more proactive role in working towards recovery.

Perhaps the most important question that Ledger’s death has raised is whether medication should be the last resort, rather than the first.

By Bev Aisbett—June 2008

Anxiety and Depression: Taking the fear out of IT lecture

Anxiety and Depression: Taking the fear out of IT
A presentation by Bev Aisbett, Author and Counsellor

In releasing her latest two titles 'I Love Me' and 'Get Over IT' in 2010 and having commenced her forthcoming autobiography 'All of IT' (due for release in 2012) Bev Aisbett has added to her already impressive portfolio of six other self help titles and achievements in fostering recovery from anxiety-related conditions. In 2011, Bev will again offer her empowering presentations to anxiety sufferers, in partnership with the Anxiety Disorders Association of Victoria (ADAVIC).

Having experienced severe anxiety and depression first-hand, Bev has used her personal experience of anxiety and subsequent recovery as a means of reaching thousands of people suffering from anxiety and depression.

Bev's work is highly valued in the mental health community, with many general practitioners, psychologists and psychiatrists regularly recommending her books to patients in their care. The Commonwealth Rehabilitation Service has regularly referred clients to Bev's workshops to assist them with anxiety or depression.

Bev’s aim has always been to foster self empowerment, therefore reducing over-reliance on outside assistance. By promoting self-awareness and providing a wide range of strategies that assist sufferers to identify and self-correct stressful responses in various situations, this approach has led graduates of Bev’s program to consistently report at least a 70% reduction in their anxiety levels, as well as a far more relaxed attitude to life in general. Many have found the experience to be truly life-changing.

Bev Aisbett is a counsellor, acclaimed author and cartoonist. Having suffered from severe anxiety in the past, Bev’s subsequent recovery led to her to dedicate the past decade to helping others overcome anxiety, depression and OCD. Bev herself was diagnosed with an anxiety disorder and possible manic depression at the peak of her career, as she had just established herself as a freelance cartoonist and illustrator. Alongside panic attacks, the daily sense of terror and dread and a persistently racing heart, Bev dealt with insomnia, trembling, and severe bouts of depression. Bev found help in personifying her fears and anxiety into a character- “IT”. Through giving her anxiety form, and through characterizing her affirmations, Bev created a therapeutic technique, which she saw had the potential to help others.

Thursday 14th April 2011
7.30pm-9.00pm
Geelong West Town Hall (Supper Room)
153 Pakington Street, Geelong West VIC, Melways Ref 451 / J2

Cost:
$10.00 ADAVIC members
$20.00 Non-Members
Bookings:
Phone: ADAVIC (03) 9853 8089
Email: adavic@adavic.org.au
Website: http://www.adavic.org.au/

Proceeds from this event help to maintain ADAVIC services
BOOKINGS ESSENTIAL! Monies non refundable
Note: a $2 surcharge fee will apply to invoices

WORKING WITH IT - Getting Onto The Path of Freedom by Helen O'Connor

When Anna asked me to write an article about my participation in Bev's course, I jumped at the opportunity because, even though I am scared and worried about what people may think of my writing, I love to challenge myself in overcoming my anxiety. That's how it has been for me, probably I suspect because my Dad taught me to swim by dropping me in the ocean near him and saying "Swim!" Feel the fear and do it anyway! "Shock, horror", I hear you say, but don't worry, he did the best he could with what he knew as most parents do and all is forgiven on that front.

So why did I do the course? I enrolled in Bev's "Working With IT" course as another series of panic attacks had me by the neck. I have suffered these horrid episodes for perhaps the last fifteen or more years. No need to tell you about it because you all know what it is like.

I walked into the small church hall on the first night, feeling nervous but knowing I was going to learn something. I have participated in many self-development seminars and groups and love to experience those breakthroughs inherent in these sessions. I teach workshops myself and believe that we all have something to contribute.

The best thing that came out of the first evening for me was "Why WOULDN'T I have anxiety?" What a relief! I was the classic "good girl", I'd had "stuff" from my childhood to deal with, I was a control freak and needed to have things just right and I was a walking, talking "I'm right" machine! I came home that night eager to do the homework and to get into it. I began the monitoring of my anxiety every two hours for the first week and within a couple of days realised that I had a time issue. If I ever need to have the children somewhere on time, I stress out and tell myself that there won't be enough time to get everything done. Bingo! I noticed this to be a pattern in my life, getting myself all worked up when people were coming or things needed to be done. Once I realised this and surrendered to the moment I was able to achieve so much more than before. As soon as we can get a handle on the idea that our thoughts create our reality, we can catch ourselves when we are in our doom and gloom self-talk. Wonderful!

The next great insight was the idea that Emotions can be interpreted as Energy - in - Motion. Being an energy worker myself, this one was easy to understand. When you begin to panic, do you notice that you tell yourself stuff like, "oh, no, here it comes again", "here we go again" or something like "it's back...aagghh!" or other such resisting notions? If we can see that this fear is natural and not resist it, we can allow it to just move through us. I've tried this every time since the course. The first time was in the supermarket when I felt that unreal feeling which usually heralds some panic. I held on to the trolley, remembered that the feeling was "energy in motion" and just allowed it to pass through me. I reckon it lasted less than half a minute and then it was gone. I was triumphant! Nearly told the person next to me at the margarine fridge.

What else impacted on me? Oh yes, Bev helped us to get in touch with our "IT" (the fear/panic/anxiety) and treat it like a naughty child. She took us into a process to ask our IT what it needed. I had the realisation that my "little girl" (inner child) had never learnt HOW to love. We all crave to love and be loved. How could I do that if I was never taught? So I thought, "I need to have a love affair with myself". That week, I bought beautiful tulips, not just a cheap bunch of flowers for myself, but the best. I bought a beautiful card and spent lots of money on some gorgeous lingerie! I deserve the best and who can give that to me? MYSELF!!

These are the great things that happened for me by participating in Bev's course. Others will have their stories of what was important to them. I'd recommend the course. The people were just like you and me, the music and meditations were lovely, the environment was made safe and nurturing and I am more able to manage my anxiety and help others who come to me for help.

Thank you Bev, and to Anna and ADAVIC for all your committed hard work. P.S. As I write this, I'm sitting in a booth on my own in a warm, local pub sipping a glass of red and not worrying about being alone here or people looking at me. Good, eh?......) by Helen O'Connor

Helen has been a teacher in Special Education, and for the past twelve years, a practitioner and teacher of Reiki, a natural healing method. Helen runs her home-based business, The Reiki Cottage in Preston while mothering two primary school aged children. She can be contacted on 9484 7276

By Helen O’Connor