This conference will be of interest to therapists from all schools who wish to deepen their knowledge of the functioning of their own body in the therapist-patient/client interaction.

How are the practitioner's and patient's bodies relationally responsive to each other?
We will be examining mirror neurons, the empathic nervous system, right-brain-to-right-brain interaction, the impact of relationship on the respiratory, nervous, cardiovascular and digestive systems, and the concept of interactive physiology.

What is the role of the therapist's body as an instrument in the therapeutic process?
We will be considering the mechanisms of interactive somatic regulation in the context of transference and countertransference, the extent to which empathy involves bodily attunement, how the therapist's anchoring in his or her own body and health allows the client/patient freedom to somatically communicate affective states.

How can practitioners protect their own health?
Implicit in the therapist's somatic engagement with their patients, is the potential jeopardy to health. We will explore how this risk can be conceptualised and ameliorated, offer information on how the different systems of the body become engaged in therapeutic work and consider what practices can give therapists self-protection.