HVN Training Application - Minnesota

December 20th, 2017

Dear Applicant:

We are writing you about the next opportunity to attend a “Hearing Voices Group Facilitator” Training. We’ve had great responses to our previous facilitator’s trainings and several groups have started as a result. The training is presented by the Western Massachusetts Recovery Learning Community (RLC) with the primary purpose of training people to start their own Hearing Voices Groups in their own area.

Hearing Voices Groups originated in Europe and now there are over 160 chartered groups in England alone. Hearing Voices Groups do not pathologize hearing voices, seeing visions or other unusual experiences. Instead, group members explore these phenomena in an environment of mutual support and curiosity. They offer people who hear voices, see visions or have other unusual experiences the opportunity to share their experience and explore new ways of coping, understanding their experiences and getting support.

Currently there are a growing number of Hearing Voices Groups in the United States, and our vision includes both supporting and bolstering existing groups and expanding the overall numbers and accessibility. We hope that you will join us in bringing this vision to reality!

Sincerely,

The Western Mass RLC

See Below for Further Training Details:

TRAINERS TO INCLUDE: Caroline Carlton, experienced HVN USA trainer and group facilitator, Marty Hadge, experienced HVN trainer and group facilitator, with special guests to be determined.

TRAINING DATES, TIMES AND LOCATION: Dates for the training are scheduled for Monday, February 19th, 2018 through Thursday, February 22nd, 2018. Each day will run from 9:30am to 4:300 pm. Reading homework may be assigned ahead of time and/or during the class. The training will be located at the Wilder Center in St Paul, Minnesota. Attendance at all 4 sessions is required to complete the training.

TRAINING PREREQUISITES: This training is intended for persons who hear voices, or have other unusual or extreme experiences, and for clinical staff, family, and friends, interested in supporting persons who have such experiences. The Facilitator Training will provide one with the tools to start a hearing voices group (a group where voice hearers, and/or their allies can support each other.) Some awareness of and investment in the Hearing Voices Movement and approach is required, so please be sure you’ve checked out www.hearingvoicesusa.org and/or other sources to be sure you are familiar with the basics and still interested in applying!

COST: There is no cost to attend this training, though you are responsible for your own travel expenses as applicable.

OTHER IMPORTANT INFO: This training is open to people who identify as voice hearers, allies, friends and family, clinicians, peer workers and more. If you attend, you should expect that the group will include a mixture of people in varied roles. This training is designed to challenge and encourage creative thought about different belief systems, and so openness and genuine

Question Title

* 1. Name

Question Title

* 2. Address

Question Title

* 3. Telephone

Question Title

* 4. Email

Question Title

* 5. Agency or organization for whom you work (if applicable)

Question Title

* 6. Please indicate which of the following most applies to you:

I have personal experience with hearing voices, seeing visions, and/or navigating non-consensus reality and would like to co-facilitate a group

I am an ally in a peer role who would like to co-facilitate a group

I am an ally in a clinical role who would like to start a group in a mental health setting

Other (please specify)

Question Title

* 7. If you plan to start a group in a clinical organization, please address the following questions:

Will the organization support you to NOT have to take notes on what happens in the group? Why or why not?

Will the organization support you to NOT have to have any organizational employees in the room during groups who have not actively been trained as facilitators? Why or why not?

Will the organization support you to NOT have to keep attendance records? Why or why not?

Is the organization willing to give the group space to talk about difficult topics without reporting those conversations back to anyone outside of the group?

Is the organization willing to work with you to identify clear limits to group privacy and confidentiality and put those in writing so that group members can also have a clear understanding of those limits?

Question Title

* 8. I am able to attend all four training sessions to held on Monday THROUGH Thursday from 9:30 to 4:30pm on the following dates: February 19th, 20th, 21st, and 22nd.

Yes

Question Title

* 9. Please check the box to indicate that you have read and understand each statement:

I understand that I need to complete all four days of this training to receive a certifcate.

I understand that this training does not guarantee me a job as a facilitator, and that it will be up to me and/or my own organization or group to find financial and other support needed to actually start a group.

I understand that this training is not intended to provide basic facilitation skills, but rather focuses on facilitation skills and perspectives directly pertaining to the Hearing Voices Network approach.

I understand that the training group will likely include a mixture of people who hear voices, allies, people working in peer roles and people in clinical roles.

I understand that if my answers are only a couple of words or a sentence long, my application will probably be discarded. (Nor do we need essays, but we need at least a few sentences in order to get a sense of where you're coming from!)

Question Title

* 10. In a short statement, please describe why you are interested in doing this training:

Question Title

* 11. In your own words, explain what you think makes Hearing Voices groups different from clinical groups?

Question Title

* 12. Describe any training or experience you have facilitating groups. If you have no facilitation experience, how will you approach building your facilitation skills beyond this training?

Question Title

* 13. Please tell us a bit about the group you intend to start (or the existing group you are hoping to support).

Question Title

* 14. Briefly describe the supports and barriers that will be present for you in starting/supporting this group.

Question Title

* 15. Tell us a bit about yourself. What are some of your accomplishments, interests, dreams? What are the qualities you most appreciate about yourself?