July 2025 – Australia Resource Therapy Institute

July 24, 2025

💔 When a Kiss-Cam Turns Into a Trauma Trigger: What Therapists Can Learn from the Coldplay Scandal

Promotional image for “Healing Trauma, Restoring Connection” – a CPD training for therapists working with trauma in couples, hosted by ARTI.

🟡 Featured Article – Australian Resource Therapy Institute
🎓 CPD Workshop Opportunity Below

At a recent Coldplay concert, what should have been a light-hearted kiss-cam moment turned into a viral scandal. A well-known CEO and a senior colleague, reportedly involved in a workplace affair, were caught in an embrace. Their startled reaction—pulling away, awkward body language, visible discomfort—was beamed onto screens, recorded by attendees, and broadcast across social media. Within days, it triggered a public relations crisis, an investigation, and eventual resignations.

While the internet debated motives and morality, those of us trained in trauma saw something else:
a freeze response, public shame, internal parts in conflict, and a nervous system under threat.

This moment offers a powerful teaching tool for trauma-informed therapists—especially those working with couples.

👀 What Was Really Happening?

Many viewers saw “guilt” or “caught in the act.” But clinically, what we witnessed looked more like:

A protective part startled into shutdown
A shamed part recoiling in real-time
A nervous system overwhelmed by unexpected exposure

This is the language of trauma. And our clients bring versions of this into the room every week.

💔 Public Scandal, Private Injury

Whether or not an affair occurred is secondary. The deeper lesson is that many couples live with:

Secrets they cannot name
Shame they cannot bear
Injuries they cannot repair

And when those injuries surface—sometimes through betrayal, sometimes through conflict or emotional neglect—therapists must know how to regulate, attune, and navigate the emotional terrain.

🧩 This Is Where Many Therapists Get Stuck

Even experienced clinicians report:

“I don’t know how to help when one partner freezes or rages.”
“I feel caught in the middle when betrayal enters the room.”
“They talk, but nothing shifts emotionally or somatically.”

The problem is not your skill. It is the absence of trauma-integrated training in couples therapy.

🎓 That’s Exactly Why This Workshop Exists

If you’ve ever felt unequipped, overwhelmed, or uncertain when trauma showed up in the couple dynamic, we invite you to join:

🧠 Healing Trauma, Restoring Connection
A two-day in-person CPD training with trauma therapist and educator Maureen McEvoy
📍 Crows Nest Community Centre, Sydney
🗓️ 8–9 November 2025
🎓 Sponsored by the Australian Resource Therapy Institute

You’ll learn:

How to identify protective and wounded parts in real time
How to safely work with trauma ruptures in the couple system
How to repair shame and restore connection – without re-traumatising
Tools that blend parts work, Imago work, somatic therapy, narrative therapy, and attachment

This is not a theoretical training – it is clinical, practical, and empowering.

✅ Learn to Hold What the World Judges

When public shame erupts, most people run or attack.
As trauma therapists, we learn to sit with it.
To name the pain, anchor the system, and begin repair.

🛳️ Join us. Be the therapist who knows what to do when trauma walks into the room.
🔗 Register now 🧠 Healing Trauma, Restoring Connection in person, Sydney Workshop

PS personal note from Philipa

I’ve worked with many couples facing moments like this—whether it’s betrayal, confusion, or emotional disconnection. These are some of the most painful moments in a relationship… but they can also be the doorway to deeper understanding and growth.

If this post resonated with you, please know help is available. You do not have to figure this out alone.

With warmth and care,
Philipa Thornton
Registered Psychologist & Couples Therapist
www.marriageworks.com.au

July 17, 2025July 16, 2025

Online Training That Works: A Psychologist’s Experience With Resource Therapy

Psychologist Leigh shares her online clinical training in Resource Therapy experience

As more therapists turn to Telehealth and online professional development, a common question arises:

Can experiential, trauma-informed training really work online – especially when it involves parts work and deep emotional processing?

Leigh, a psychologist with a special interest in trauma and dissociation, had the same question before enrolling in the Resource Therapy training program offered online by the Australian Resource Therapy Institute (ARTI). Leigh holds senior qualifications as a Clinical Hypnotherapist, Couples therapist, and Psychosomatic Therapist.

After completing the full training, she is now officially a Clinical Resource Therapist. She shares her answer with warmth, clarity, and conviction

What Surprised Her Most

Leigh admits she was initially unsure if such an experiential modality could truly be taught online.

“I didn’t know if I’d feel connected, or if I’d get the practical experience I needed. But I was pleasantly surprised – it felt real, engaging, and very connected. The demos were brilliant, and the small group practice made it easy to try things out safely.“

The structured format, real-time demonstrations, and rich interaction offered by the live Zoom sessions helped her feel immersed in the material, just as she would in an in-person setting.

Confidence With Complex Cases

As a trauma-informed psychologist, Leigh was drawn to Resource Therapy’s clear protocols and strong ethical foundation. What she gained was a renewed sense of confidence in working with complex clients.

“I use parts language in my work already, but RT gave me practical tools I can use right away. It’s strengths-based, respectful, and incredibly powerful – especially with clients who feel stuck, overwhelmed or fragmented.”

With the ability to work safely with Vaded States, negotiate Retro patterns, and access Conflicted States with precision, she now has a more structured approach to help clients move forward.

Why She Recommends It

For clinicians unsure about online training, Leigh’s message is simple:

“Give it a go. I wasn’t sure either, but I’m so glad I did. You’ll feel supported, you’ll practise a lot, and you’ll walk away with tools you can use immediately – online or in the room.”

What Is Resource Therapy?

Resource Therapy is a trauma-informed, strengths-based psychotherapy developed by Professor Gordon Emmerson. It helps clinicians access and work directly with the personality parts (called Resource States) that carry unresolved emotions or unhelpful patterns. The training includes 15 treatment actions, clear protocols, and targeted interventions for a wide range of presentations – from PTSD and anxiety to depression, addiction, and relationship distress.

The training is suitable for psychologists, counsellors, psychotherapists, social workers, EMDR clinicians, and anyone working with trauma or parts.

🎥 Watch Leigh’s Testimonial

Want To Learn Resource Therapy Online?

We offer live, interactive online training throughout the year. Whether you’re new to parts work or looking to deepen your trauma toolkit, Resource Therapy provides a powerful and respectful way to help clients heal.

✅ Live Zoom sessions with experiential practice
✅ Learn to map, access, and resolve Resource States
✅ Suitable for online and in-person clinical work
✅ Endorsed by psychologists, EMDR and DBR therapists across Australia

👉 View upcoming training dates and program info

July 16, 2025July 15, 2025

🎯 Resource Therapy vs Other Parts Therapies: The Model Built for Action

A strength based approach with Conditions of Resource States at Sea

“Insight without action is like diagnosis without treatment.”
– A sentiment many seasoned therapists know all too well.

As trauma therapy continues to evolve, clinicians are embracing parts-based approaches that honour the complexity of the human psyche. But not all parts models are created equal.

You’ve probably heard of Internal Family Systems (IFS), Ego State Therapy, or even the parts-based elements that emerge within EMDR sessions. But if you’ve ever felt something missing – structure, clarity, or real-time transformation – it may be time to explore what makes Resource Therapy (RT) so uniquely effective.

Let’s compare four popular modalities using what matters in clinical practice:

Approach	Access to Parts	Protocols	Pathology Diagnosis	Real-Time Action
IFS	⚠️ Sometimes	❌ None	⚠️ Conceptual only	✅ Yes
Ego State	✅ Direct	⚠️ Variable	❌ None	⚠️ Sometimes
EMDR	⚠️ Indirect	✅ Yes	❌ None	✅ Yes
RT	✅ Direct	✅ Yes	✅ Formal system	✅ Always

1. Access to Parts – Who’s in the Captain’s Chair?

All four models work with parts – or internal voices and states – acknowledging that our psyche is not a single voice, but a crew.

Where IFS and Ego State offer reflective access, and EMDR may surface parts indirectly through trauma targets, Resource Therapy takes you straight to the part that needs help – fast.

Using Vivify Specific (Action 2), RT locates the exact Resource State holding distress, unmet needs, or outdated beliefs, and brings it forward to speak for itself.

“RT does not just observe the part. It gives it a voice, a seat at the table, and a path to healing.”
– Gordon Emmerson, PhD

2. Protocols – Structure or Stumble?

Therapists know that when trauma, resistance, or emotional overwhelm enters the room, structure matters.

IFS is exploratory and open-ended.
Ego State Therapy can vary significantly among practitioners.
EMDR brings excellent structure, but not state-specific treatment.
RT offers a clear, flexible system with 15 targeted Treatment Actions.

Whether you need to express, clear introjects, relieve emotional pain, or build internal strength, RT gives you the tools to act with purpose.

3. Pathology Diagnosis – Can We Map What Needs Treating?

Here’s where Resource Therapy steps into its own.

Many models avoid pathologising parts – a welcome shift. But what if we could offer non-judgmental diagnosis that guides treatment?

IFS affirms that all parts are good, but lacks a diagnostic map.
Ego State Therapy and EMDR avoid classification usually.
RT introduces a structured, compassionate diagnostic system:
- Vaded States – carrying unmet emotional needs
- Retro States – stuck in old roles or protections
- Conflicted States – caught between opposing drives
- Dissonant States – wrong part in the captains seat
- Normal Condition of States – right part out with appropriate skills to suit the occasion

This means you can identify what is stuck and know exactly how to treat it.

Think of RT as the Google Maps of parts therapy – locating the issue and showing you the route out.

4. Real-Time Action – Can We Change the State in the Session?

Many therapists feel stuck in insight. The client knows what’s wrong… but nothing changes.

IFS fosters beautiful awareness, but often delays transformation.
Ego State Therapy may stop at catharsis.
EMDR creates desensitisation, but not always internal change.
RT enables the client to change from within, in the moment.

When a client speaks from their Vaded State and gets relief, or when a Retro State steps aside and a stronger self emerges – that is RT in action.

“RT is like a laser pointer for the psyche – precise, effective, and immediately transformational.”
– Clinical RT Graduate

A Quick Story

Anna had done IFS and EMDR. She could name her parts. She had insight. But every time she was triggered by her partner, she collapsed into silence and shame.

Her therapist used RT. Within minutes, they accessed the exact state holding the freeze. Anna spoke from the part, not about it. They cleared the internalised introject, processed the hurt, and anchored her back to strength.

“I’ve spent years understanding my trauma. But this is the first time I actually felt it shift.”

That is the power of action. That is Resource Therapy.

Why Therapists Are Switching to RT

RT is not a blend of parts models. It is a clinical evolution.

✅ A full internal diagnostic system
✅ Immediate access to the presenting state
✅ Action-based treatment, not talk-based delay
✅ Designed for both brief and complex trauma work
✅ Integrates seamlessly with EMDR, Imago, DBR, and more

“RT is the structured answer to the parts therapy movement.”

You Belong With Us

If you are a therapist who wants more than insight…
If you want a parts therapy that does more than label…
If you want change, not someday, but now, Resource Therapy is waiting for you.

Join a movement of clinicians who believe in healing with heart and action.

🌟 Clinical RT Training 2025 – Enrol Now

Online Program starts 31 August / 1 September 2025
Bali Intensive Program returns in 2026
Led by Philipa Thornton & Chris Paulin – Psychologists & Master Trainers
Fully accredited. Experiential. Clinically practical.

“Every therapist should be trained in this. RT changed how I work – and how I heal.”
– Recent Graduate

🔗 Learn more and enrol at resource therapy training dates and fees