Mark Forman
(United States)

Title of contribution:

The Monster’s Journey: From Trauma to Connection

Where & when:

The Monster’s Journey: From Trauma to Connection

The Monster’s Journey describes a new way to conceptualize and therapeutically approach childhood, developmental trauma. This conceptualization is grounded strongly in the Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) research literature. With this grounding, this presentation will offer a psychological alternative to Joseph Campbell’s well-known Hero’s Journey called The Monster’s Journey. Drawing inspiration from modern story forms, The Monster’s Journey describes the unique developmental challenges faced by survivors of early life trauma; a journey where their innocence is lost prematurely and thus a new, trusting connection to the normal world must be generated and maintained. The focus of this presentation will be both on this new conceptualization as well as its implications for the treatment of developmental trauma. This presentation is in support of the recently published and well-reviewed text, The Monster’s Journey: From Trauma to Connection (2020) by Mark Forman, PhD. 

About Mark Forman:

Dr. Mark Forman is a licensed clinical psychologist in the state of California with twenty years of experience working with adults, couples, and families. Dr. Forman is the author of The Monster’s Journey: From Trauma to Connection as well as A Guide to Integral Psychotherapy. Dr. Forman currently resides and practices psychotherapy in Northern California and offers coaching and consultations globally online. Further information can be found at drmarkforman.com and citintegral.com.