Transactional Analysis Cumbrian Conference 2025

Here you will find an archive of workshops from our 21st annual conference

Relationships in post truth era – artificial intimacy? Or virtual intelligence?

Ronen Stilman – Keynote Address

We were delighted to invite Ronen Stillman to give our keynote address at the 20205 TA Cumbria Conference. On his chosen theme of relationships in the post truth era-artificial intimacy? Or virtual intelligence?

Online work brings both new possibilities and limitations. Berne’s concept of the secret garden deals with the deepest elements of intrapsychic structure. In this workshop, participants will learn how this concept can be applied to the therapeutic relationship, including online work, and how online work can affect the therapeutic process and the therapeutic alliance. Participants will have the opportunity to discuss their understanding of the “secret garden.” Drawing on the concepts of integrative AT and relational attunement, they will explore methods of navigating the client’s secret garden while maintaining awareness of their own within the therapeutic boundaries.

Alex Piotrowska – Connecting Body and Heart – embodiment of emotions in the virtual network

We are a body, not just a mind. That’s why working with the body is one of the quickest and most effective ways to facilitate change and access emotions. The body gives insight, gets clients unstuck, but WHERE to start? It can be confusing to know HOW exactly to work with the body online
Perhaps you know the power of embodiment techniques, but would like a simple, effective system that gets concrete results with all kinds of clients. There will be space for your own embodied exploration and specific tools for common problems, like low confidence, poor self-care or poor boundaries

Anna Zuykova – Touching the forgotten – integration of traditional healing practices into TA psythotherapy

Contemporary world gives us and our clients new challenges and requests, which invite us to look for new responses and new tools, from artificial intelligence to ancient healing practices.

The workshop is meant to open a space for discussion of how we response and which tools and models developing? Which new or forgotten practices can we implement to therapeutic process? How can we create safe space and clear boundaries while doing it? How does it influence therapeutic relationship? Which benefits and vulnerabilities does it bring?

Nea Clark – Procrastination – Motivation – Dopamine: How to support our Neurodivergent clients

Procrastination is a common experience, but its meaning varies for different people. This seminar will explore the different types of procrastination and its effect on individuals. We will also discuss strategies for addressing procrastination and its connection to technology-driven lifestyles, as well as the increased tendency for neurodivergent individuals to procrastinate. Additionally, we will examine the link between procrastination and motivation, and provide practitioners with tools to support clients struggling with procrastination and self-motivation. 

Sunila Nambiar – Tools of the Mind: Navigating the Cognitive Landscape in the Digital Age

Using the chapter “Tools of the Mind” from The Shallows as a foundation, the workshop will engage participants in discussions and activities designed to highlight the cognitive shifts that occur with the use of modern digital tools. It will also explore the concept of neuroplasticity, the dangers of multitasking, and the importance of deep, contemplative thinking in an age of constant distraction.

Piotr Jusik – Solidifying the Liquid Self: Technology, Culture, and the Digital Nomad

This workshop investigates the relationship between technology, culture, and place in the context of digital nomadism. Drawing on Bauman’s concept of liquid modernity, we will examine the advantages and challenges of this lifestyle, including issues of exclusion, belonging, and the evolving meanings of time and space. Through a series of experiential exercises, we will explore how the online and offline words create new identities of digital nomadism in today’s world. 

Katherine Uher – Relational Impacts of Institutional Discrimination in the Post-Truth Era in the Neurodivergent Community.

This workshop will examine the specific challenges posed when authorized discourses in healthcare, education, and employment are not in line with the neurodivergent person’s sense of self. Using Klein’s Object Relations theory, we will look at how such invalidation impacts on one’s developing sense of self, as well as sense of safety with others. We will explore common survival strategies -often seen as simply part of the ‘disorder’- and also look at healing strategies which promote de-Othering, a reconnection with the self and others.

Join us for our plenary session and votes of thanks to those involved in making the Conference happen