About this certificate program
Dates: July 24 and 25, 2025
Time: 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. ET
Facilitator: Ian Robertson, MSW, RSW.
CE hours: 12
This training is suitable for:
- Mental Health Professionals: psychotherapists, counsellors, psychologists, social workers.
- Medical Professionals: nurses, psychiatrists, pediatricians, family doctors.
- Direct Service Workers: drop-in workers, shelter and hostel workers, child and youth workers, youth justice workers.
Client age category: For professionals who work with children and youth (12 years to adulthood), families and adults.
Level of training: Introductory
Trigger Warning: Participating in our programming may evoke powerful feelings and can trigger participants who have experienced personal trauma.
Description: Polyvagal Theory, developed by Dr. Stephen Porges (1995, 2001), provides a neurobiological framework for understanding how the autonomic nervous system (ANS) mediates our sense of safety, connection, and threat. This theory has become foundational in the development of trauma-informed, attachment-focused, and somatically integrated therapies. While Polyvagal Theory itself is a theoretical model, its integration with empirically supported practices in psychology, psychiatry, and social work has been increasingly recognized in peer-reviewed literature and clinical applications.
This webinar will provide you with the principles of the Polyvagal Theory, the features of the social engagement system and how to apply this within your practice. You will learn effective and proven strategies and interventions that build client safety and connectedness, and how to mediate the disarming symptoms of trauma, PTSD, depression, autism, ADD, addictions and other mental health disorders.
This workshop includes knowledge exchange and interactive learning to support clinical integration into practice of this treatment approach.
Learning objectives:
- The role of polyvagal theory in the treatment of trauma, mental health and addictions.
- Mapping the nervous system.
- Learning how to up regulate the nervous system back to safety and connection.
- Developing ventral regulation.
- The connection between self-regulation and co-regulation.
- Learning to establish safety inside oneself, outside one self and with other people.
Continuing Education (CE) Information: SickKids Centre for Community Mental Health Learning Institute is approved by the Canadian Psychological Association (CPA) to offer continuing education (CE) hours. Full-day programs equal six CE hours; half-day programs equal three CE hours; for less than half-day programs, one hour of programming equals one CE hour. SickKids Centre for Community Mental Health Learning Institute maintains responsibility for the programs.
Other licensing boards and professional organizations will grant continuing education credits for attendance at their own discretion; participants will need to submit the course outline and Certificate of Participation for their consideration.
Registration closes
If registration has closed and you're still interested in joining this course, please contact Mary Anne at mvanrooyen@sickkidscmhlearning.ca
Accessibility
We strive to ensure our online learning programs are easy for everyone, everywhere. If you have any accessibility requirements (automatic transcripts, closed-captioning, ASL interpreters, advanced access to program materials), please email Mary Anne Van Rooyen at mvanrooyen@sickkidscmhlearning.ca to let us know how we can best support your learning experience.
Please note: Once the online registration is complete, any modifications to a registration must be done by contacting Mary Anne Van Rooyen via email at mvanrooyen@sickkidscmhlearning.ca
Photography is being used for illustrative purposes only and any person depicted in the content is a model, except where indicated.