From the powerful personal story that inspired one therapist’s campaign to raise awareness of the impact of the menopause, to thought-provoking talks on body modifications, cosmetic surgery and social media.
Our Private Practice conference captivated the audience with a variety of informative and inspiring presentations on the theme of ‘mind or body: what’s in charge?’
Around 300 people attended the annual conference in London, with another 900 watching on the webcast and on-demand service.
Positive feedback
Lesley Ludlow, chair of our Private Practice division, said: “There’s always a buzz about the Private Practice conference. It’s been great to hear so much positive feedback about the event this year.
“Our two keynote speakers were very different and were both brilliant for very different reasons. Looking around the room, it was fantastic to see people captivated by both of them.”
The main speakers were therapist and menopause awareness campaigner Diane Danzebrink and Alessandra Lemma whose presentation ‘Under the skin: body modification and its psychic functions’ kicked off the day.
Members could also attend workshops during the day on a variety of topics including: eating disorders; neuroscience; the influence of social media on body image; sleep; the cosmetic industry and therapy and body dysmorphic disorder.
There was also a presentation by Para Dressage athlete Mari Durward-Akhur, who gave a first-hand account of living with a degenerative condition.
Lesley added: “I had a member come up to me after Mari’s talk to say how important it was that he had heard her story about living with her condition. That was great to hear.
Interesting talks
“We are very conscious that we need the conference to appeal to students who are training as well as people who have been working in the profession for years. I really believe we achieved that with the range of interesting talks this year.”
Our members shared their thoughts on the conference and speakers via Twitter throughout the day, using the hashtag #PPConf2019.
