Presentations, Research, and Publications by Darlene...
Darlene is not currently scheduling presentations.
April 2021: Annual Neufeld Conference (online)
Please click this LINK for information
Focus: Softening the Heart of the Adolescent
An adolescent is neither child nor adult and therein lies much of the difficulty as we seek to anchor them through transition, turbulence, confusion, and frustration. We are their best bet, yet their instincts are to resist us. As parents, how do we face such resistance in a way that seeks to support them and keep their heart soft?
February 2019: 11th Annual Neufeld Conference in Vancouver
Please Click this LINK for information
February 2019: Neufeld Intensive III: Becoming Attached (Online)
Intensive III: Becoming Attached unfolds and expands the six roots of attachment and puts the focus more on adults than in the first two levels. The course is also a journey through Dr. Neufeld's earlier theoretical development which created the puzzle pieces that ultimately came together in the six roots of attachment. The Intensive III is designed not only to provide deeper theoretical understanding but also to give the opportunity for more personal integration of the material. The prerequisites for this course are Neufeld Intensive I and II.
Please click this LINK for information
November 2018: Conference on Resilience in Winnipeg along with keynotes by Dr. Gordon Neufeld and Dr. Martin Brokenleg:
Please click this LINK for information
October 13, 2018: Primary Care Nurses of Ontario Conference
Engaging the Young Patient in their own Health Care
Sometimes youth really can seem ‘wasted on the young’, especially when they don’t accept good advice!
There are many factors of psychological and emotional development to consider when working with the younger patient. This presentation will seek to explore some of the psychological growth dynamics involved in maturation starting in preadolescence towards adolescence, and in particular we will consider resistance. We will consider why resistance emerges in the young, what purpose it serves, and how to best dance with such dynamics in the context of an office visit in a way that contributes to greater engagement and cooperation in their own health care.
April 2018: 10th Annual Vancouver Neufeld Institute Conference: Darlene will be providing two presentations during the conference. For more information, please open the link for the conference details.
January 12, 2018: The Counterwill Storm: Making sense of teen resistance (webinar with The Neufeld Institute)
April 2017: Common Challenges - Part III of the Power to Parent series, offered online through the Neufeld Institute and facilitated by Darlene. The focus of this course is on the typical challenges of parenting. Every child gets stuck from time to time on the road to maturation. Dr. Neufeld helps equip parents to read the signs of a child in trouble, live with a sensitive child, cultivate resilience in a child, lead an alpha child, soften a defended child, discipline a stuck child, and more. Dr. Neufeld offers effective and safe practices that honour and preserve the relationship, even when the problems seem daunting. Click HERE for more information about this course
October 17, 2016: Brockville General Hospital (Infant and Child Development) NOTE: This is a closed event
Exploring Attachment Development and Dynamics in Context of Infancy, Toddlerhood, and the Preschool Years
The science of attachment currently exists in fragmented bits and pieces all over the empirical map: biology, sociology, embryology, ethology, epigenetics, neuroscience, psychology, medicine, baby bonding, early childhood theories, and so on. The irony is that we have never known more about the attachment context absolutely foundational to anchoring all aspects of healthy childhood development including physical, emotional, psychological, and cognitive growth, and yet this knowledge can seem elusive and difficult to ground in more practical terms for those of us who work with families. Nowhere is this information more vital than for those who support families parenting inside the infancy, toddlerhood, and preschool years. This presentation will seek to provide a coherent model of attachment development according to Canadian developmental psychologist and leading expert Dr. Gordon Neufeld, that will explore the development of attachment within the first six years and from there, as anchoring the lifespan. We will focus on attachment dynamics that need to be considered and supported in our work with families of little ones. We will also identify the more troublesome attachment dynamics that can impact and affect aspects of growth including emotional and cognitive development, as well as longer-term psychological health.
Winter 2015: Pediatrics Department - Professional Development Session. Darlene has been invited to present in the area of attachment along with Dr. Dhiraj Aggarwal (Psychiatry, CHEO).
Fall 2014: 39th Pediatric Refresher Conference - Ottawa University. Darlene has been invited to present on the area of 'discipline' and to be part of a Q&A panel of experts.
April 2021: Annual Neufeld Conference (online)
Please click this LINK for information
Focus: Softening the Heart of the Adolescent
An adolescent is neither child nor adult and therein lies much of the difficulty as we seek to anchor them through transition, turbulence, confusion, and frustration. We are their best bet, yet their instincts are to resist us. As parents, how do we face such resistance in a way that seeks to support them and keep their heart soft?
February 2019: 11th Annual Neufeld Conference in Vancouver
Please Click this LINK for information
February 2019: Neufeld Intensive III: Becoming Attached (Online)
Intensive III: Becoming Attached unfolds and expands the six roots of attachment and puts the focus more on adults than in the first two levels. The course is also a journey through Dr. Neufeld's earlier theoretical development which created the puzzle pieces that ultimately came together in the six roots of attachment. The Intensive III is designed not only to provide deeper theoretical understanding but also to give the opportunity for more personal integration of the material. The prerequisites for this course are Neufeld Intensive I and II.
Please click this LINK for information
November 2018: Conference on Resilience in Winnipeg along with keynotes by Dr. Gordon Neufeld and Dr. Martin Brokenleg:
Please click this LINK for information
October 13, 2018: Primary Care Nurses of Ontario Conference
Engaging the Young Patient in their own Health Care
Sometimes youth really can seem ‘wasted on the young’, especially when they don’t accept good advice!
There are many factors of psychological and emotional development to consider when working with the younger patient. This presentation will seek to explore some of the psychological growth dynamics involved in maturation starting in preadolescence towards adolescence, and in particular we will consider resistance. We will consider why resistance emerges in the young, what purpose it serves, and how to best dance with such dynamics in the context of an office visit in a way that contributes to greater engagement and cooperation in their own health care.
April 2018: 10th Annual Vancouver Neufeld Institute Conference: Darlene will be providing two presentations during the conference. For more information, please open the link for the conference details.
January 12, 2018: The Counterwill Storm: Making sense of teen resistance (webinar with The Neufeld Institute)
April 2017: Common Challenges - Part III of the Power to Parent series, offered online through the Neufeld Institute and facilitated by Darlene. The focus of this course is on the typical challenges of parenting. Every child gets stuck from time to time on the road to maturation. Dr. Neufeld helps equip parents to read the signs of a child in trouble, live with a sensitive child, cultivate resilience in a child, lead an alpha child, soften a defended child, discipline a stuck child, and more. Dr. Neufeld offers effective and safe practices that honour and preserve the relationship, even when the problems seem daunting. Click HERE for more information about this course
October 17, 2016: Brockville General Hospital (Infant and Child Development) NOTE: This is a closed event
Exploring Attachment Development and Dynamics in Context of Infancy, Toddlerhood, and the Preschool Years
The science of attachment currently exists in fragmented bits and pieces all over the empirical map: biology, sociology, embryology, ethology, epigenetics, neuroscience, psychology, medicine, baby bonding, early childhood theories, and so on. The irony is that we have never known more about the attachment context absolutely foundational to anchoring all aspects of healthy childhood development including physical, emotional, psychological, and cognitive growth, and yet this knowledge can seem elusive and difficult to ground in more practical terms for those of us who work with families. Nowhere is this information more vital than for those who support families parenting inside the infancy, toddlerhood, and preschool years. This presentation will seek to provide a coherent model of attachment development according to Canadian developmental psychologist and leading expert Dr. Gordon Neufeld, that will explore the development of attachment within the first six years and from there, as anchoring the lifespan. We will focus on attachment dynamics that need to be considered and supported in our work with families of little ones. We will also identify the more troublesome attachment dynamics that can impact and affect aspects of growth including emotional and cognitive development, as well as longer-term psychological health.
Winter 2015: Pediatrics Department - Professional Development Session. Darlene has been invited to present in the area of attachment along with Dr. Dhiraj Aggarwal (Psychiatry, CHEO).
Fall 2014: 39th Pediatric Refresher Conference - Ottawa University. Darlene has been invited to present on the area of 'discipline' and to be part of a Q&A panel of experts.
Research...
Current Research Focus: Darlene's specific doctoral research involves the exploration of a Wise Practices construct, which expresses ethical concepts rooted in Indigenous philosophies, worldviews, and cultural teachings. As part of the research process, Darlene developed a conceptualization of a Relational Wise Practices framework in counselling / helping / healing work from an Indigenous lens.
This area of interest is rooted in her bi-cultural perspective (Algonquin Anishinaabe [maternal] and French Canadian [paternal]), within a deeper understanding of Indigenous wholistic theory, philosophy, and ethics. In exploring the concept via a process of Western methodology as conducted largely by Indigenous scholars (systematic review), and through Indigenous research methodologies (story, image, metaphor, spirit, and the personal journey), the intention was to honour the teachings of Etuaptmumk // Two-Eyed Seeing as described by Elders Albert and Murdena Marshall of the Mi’kmaw Nation.
2014 Publication: Stoking the Embers of Ancient Fire: Counselling First Nations adolescents within a narrative approach. The International Journal of Narrative Therapy and Community, Dulwich Centre - Please click this link for a copy of this article
2012 to 2013: I have been involved in research to assess the meaningfulness and impact of professional development geared to understanding the emotional and attachment needs of children in the school context. This research was conducted with a research team along with the assistance of the Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario.
2009 Evaluation Report: Dr. Gordon Neufeld in Ottawa (with Susan Dafoe-Abbey and Dr. David Abbey)
2008 Ontario Lighthouse Funded Research: Attachment-based strategies to re-engage disengaged youth (Renfrew County District School Board)
2006 CYC Chronicle of Ontario: A school-wide approach to support pro-social student behaviors
Odyssey 2005 - The Ontario Provincial Principals Conference: A school-wide approach to support pro-social student behaviors (Renfrew County District School Board)
2002-2003 Renfrew County Board of Education: Pilot research into approaches to support pro-social student behavior in three elementary schools (attachment based)
1994 Thesis Focus: Aboriginal People of Mixed-Ancestry: Strategies of Self-Identification and Aboriginality. Carleton University.
Editorial Publications...
The Roots...
Spring is Here and... Love is in the Air
Beware the Overlies...
Sibling Tensions: Staying outside of details and inside relationships...
Moments of Connection with our Children
Children, Teens, and Technology
The Season of Giving
Bedtime Struggles
Absence of 'Parent' in the Life of the Adolescent
Current Research Focus: Darlene's specific doctoral research involves the exploration of a Wise Practices construct, which expresses ethical concepts rooted in Indigenous philosophies, worldviews, and cultural teachings. As part of the research process, Darlene developed a conceptualization of a Relational Wise Practices framework in counselling / helping / healing work from an Indigenous lens.
This area of interest is rooted in her bi-cultural perspective (Algonquin Anishinaabe [maternal] and French Canadian [paternal]), within a deeper understanding of Indigenous wholistic theory, philosophy, and ethics. In exploring the concept via a process of Western methodology as conducted largely by Indigenous scholars (systematic review), and through Indigenous research methodologies (story, image, metaphor, spirit, and the personal journey), the intention was to honour the teachings of Etuaptmumk // Two-Eyed Seeing as described by Elders Albert and Murdena Marshall of the Mi’kmaw Nation.
2014 Publication: Stoking the Embers of Ancient Fire: Counselling First Nations adolescents within a narrative approach. The International Journal of Narrative Therapy and Community, Dulwich Centre - Please click this link for a copy of this article
2012 to 2013: I have been involved in research to assess the meaningfulness and impact of professional development geared to understanding the emotional and attachment needs of children in the school context. This research was conducted with a research team along with the assistance of the Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario.
2009 Evaluation Report: Dr. Gordon Neufeld in Ottawa (with Susan Dafoe-Abbey and Dr. David Abbey)
2008 Ontario Lighthouse Funded Research: Attachment-based strategies to re-engage disengaged youth (Renfrew County District School Board)
2006 CYC Chronicle of Ontario: A school-wide approach to support pro-social student behaviors
Odyssey 2005 - The Ontario Provincial Principals Conference: A school-wide approach to support pro-social student behaviors (Renfrew County District School Board)
2002-2003 Renfrew County Board of Education: Pilot research into approaches to support pro-social student behavior in three elementary schools (attachment based)
1994 Thesis Focus: Aboriginal People of Mixed-Ancestry: Strategies of Self-Identification and Aboriginality. Carleton University.
Editorial Publications...
The Roots...
Spring is Here and... Love is in the Air
Beware the Overlies...
Sibling Tensions: Staying outside of details and inside relationships...
Moments of Connection with our Children
Children, Teens, and Technology
The Season of Giving
Bedtime Struggles
Absence of 'Parent' in the Life of the Adolescent