Course Name: Emotion Focused Skills Training (EFST) for Parents and Caregivers

Location: Marino Institute of Education, Griffith Avenue, Grace Park, Dublin D09R232

Start Date: 1-4 September 2025

Duration: 4 Days

Course Info: This 4-day workshop is open to all relevant mental health professionals working with children and their parents or caregivers (e.g., psychology, psychotherapy, social work, occupational therapy, teaching, nursing and medicine).

This training offers a comprehensive introduction to the theory, practice, and research behind Emotion-Focused Skills Training (EFST)—a humanistic, emotion-centred approach to supporting parents and caregivers of children with mental health challenges. Developed from the pioneering work of Dr. Leslie Greenberg, founder of Emotion-Focused Therapy, this training is practical and experiential, equipping participants with hands-on skills to guide and supervise parents, deliver workshops, and offer individual caregiver sessions. All necessary materials for implementing EFST-based interventions are included.

Presented by Anne Hilde Vassbø Hagen and Vanja Hjelmseth from the Norwegian Institute of Emotion-Focused Therapy.

Anne Hilde Vassbø Hagen is a counselling psychologist, author, and mother of three. She is the director of the Norwegian Institute of Emotion-Focused Therapy and has written books in Norwegian and English: “Emotion-Focused Skills Training for Parents” and ”Angry Kids, Angry Parents”. She is an experienced trainer, speaker, and therapist in EFT for parents and couples.

Vanja Hjelmseth is a psychologist, author, and mother of two teens. She is an experienced speaker and therapist in emotion-focused therapy and emotion-focused skills training for parents and is also trained in emotion-focused couples therapy. She is a co-author of “Emotion-Focused Skills Training for Parents: A Guide for Clinicians” and is an EFT and EFST trainer and supervisor.

Link to Norwegian Institute of Emotion-Focused Therapy: https://www.ipr.no/om-oss/nieft

How to apply: Email the Institute of Emotion-Focused Therapy Ireland at: ieftireland@gmail.com

Deadline for Applications: No deadline

Fees: €875 (€800 early bird fees paid in full by 30 June 2025

Attachments: EFST email banner