First Posted on December 18, 2011 by alisonball
On December 12th, some of the former students of the Australian College of Contemporary Somatic Psychotherapy (ACCSP) organized a tribute evening for the Founder and Director of the College, Jeff Barlow. Although the College will continue Jeff has recently decided to discontinue the basic three year course once current students have completed.
Jeff has been fundamental to the training and education of Somatic Psychotherapists in Australia since 1983. He was enormously influential for me in my journey toward working and developing as a psychotherapist. And some of us who were invited, including myself, actually knew and were trained by Jeff long before the establishment of his College.
With only a few exceptions, Jeff has been the main educator of most Melbourne members of the former Australian Association of Somatic Psychotherapists (AASP) – (now amalgamated with the Australian Somatic Integration Association to become ASPA- The Australian Somatic Psychotherapists Association). Jeff also taught a great many of the Sydney members of the former AASP as well and for many years his college was the main source of new members.
It was thought by many that it was well time to express our gratitude to Jeff. Gena Fawns and myself were asked to speak formally on behalf of the many people present.
I spoke of the early years from when I began with the first training in 1984, soon after Jeff arrived back in Australia from his study in England and Europe. I spoke about the fact that over the years what has stood out for me is Jeff’s passion for his work and for providing the very best in the teaching of psychotherapists. Jeff’s scholarship and his generosity in sharing his knowledge and experience has been outstanding, while his persistence in maintaining high standards when many others would have opted for financial gain by lowering their standards, has been exemplary.
And primarily, Jeff’s integrity has meant that his influence on a large number of people has been invaluable and enabled many to reach beyond what they imagined for themselves. I further spoke of Jeff having been instrumental in the founding of our professional Association and also of the former Somatic Therapy Centre- a Co-operative through which many of us worked together for about 13 years.
Gena spoke of the more recent years since Jeff formed his College about 15 years ago and her experience of having been a teacher in the course for seven years. Here is a little of what she had to say:
“…hundreds of students ….. embarked on the three-year journey of experiential, practical and theoretical learning which most of us agree has profoundly changed our lives and our sense of self, and often led to a whole new career-path.… The transformation I have witnessed in students has been a joy and a privilege to be part of. …… Jeff was a great role model in being a teacher who is authentically present, walks his talk with students and does not hide his vulnerability.
The principles of emotional safety, intellectual rigour, and respecting each student’s individual journey are what made the course so valuable, at both a personal and professional level…
Many graduates of the college have said that at seminars by overseas experts they realise how deep their understanding of contemporary theory and research is, thanks to what they learned in the course. And likewise, at skill-based courses, graduates say they realise the robustness of their self-awareness, thanks to their personal therapy and the deep personal learning they were able to integrate during the course……
……. Graduates also say how valuable it was to observe Jeff working therapeutically with individuals and the group as a whole; they feel privileged to have “learned from a master”. Not only did they learn the theories of embodiment and intersubjectivity, but they got to witness and experience these qualities in the way Jeff works and teaches.
Another frequent comment from graduates is how resilient they now feel in their work with clients and in their personal relationships. The experiential process and interpersonal skills they learned, with Jeff and the other teachers, have prepared them well for the challenge of being a psychotherapist.”
Jeff’s input into the basic training of psychotherapists will be sadly missed and the fact that the costs to set up and maintain quality training courses in psychotherapy in Australia are, now-a- days, formidable, is a great indictment on our society.