Professional Certificate in Compassion Focused Therapy (CFT)

Working with Shame and Self-Criticism

What you'll learn
- Identify the three emotional regulation systems (Threat, Drive, Soothing) and recognize which is imbalanced in clients.
- Use basic CFT assessment tools including the Shame Cascade Model and Multiple Selves Assessment.
- Teach clients foundational techniques like Soothing Rhythm Breathing and compassionate imagery.
- Structure a basic CFT session with opening, middle, and closing components.
- Apply introductory CFT approaches to anger, panic, and depression.
- Recognize common client blocks to compassion and respond appropriately.
- Integrate basic CFT principles into your existing therapeutic practice.
- Understand the difference between shame and self-criticism in clinical work.
- Use screening questions to determine if CFT is suitable for your clients.
- Practice self-compassion techniques to maintain your own wellbeing as a therapist.

Requirements
- Basic knowledge of counselling or psychotherapy principles (or currently studying in a mental health field).
- Experience working with clients or currently in clinical training (this course is designed for practicing or training professionals).
- Familiarity with common mental health issues like anxiety, depression, or trauma (no advanced expertise required).
- Willingness to practice CFT techniques on yourself before applying them with clients.
- No prior experience with CFT is necessary—this course starts from the basics.

Description
Transform how you help clients struggling with chronic shame, harsh self-criticism, and treatment resistance.This comprehensive training in Compassion Focused Therapy (CFT) teaches you the evidence-based techniques that work when traditional cognitive approaches fall short. You'll learn to address the emotional tone of thoughts—not just their content—creating lasting change for your most challenging cases.

Master Evidence-Based Techniques to Help Treatment-Resistant Clients Break Through Shame and Self-Criticism

✓ Learn the three-system brain model that explains client behaviour✓ Apply ready-to-use protocols for anger, panic, and depression✓ Integrate CFT seamlessly into your CBT, ACT, or DBT practice✓ Navigate client resistance with proven assessment tools✓ Structure complete CFT sessions from opening to closing

Understanding Compassion Focused Therapy and Why It Works

Compassion Focused Therapy is a revolutionary approach rooted in evolutionary psychology and neuroscience. Developed to specifically address shame and self-criticism—the emotions most correlated with treatment resistance and suicide risk—CFT recognises that how we think matters as much as what we think. A harsh internal voice saying "you can do this" creates completely different results than a compassionate one. This approach is particularly effective for clients who understand their negative thoughts cognitively but still can't change emotionally. CFT affects physiology directly through the parasympathetic nervous system, creating measurable changes in the body while transforming the mind. Mental health professionals worldwide use CFT to enhance traditional therapeutic approaches, adding emotional depth to cognitive interventions that weren't quite reaching their most challenging clients.

What You'll Learn in This Comprehensive 6-Module Training

This course takes you from CFT foundations through advanced integration, taught by Dr Chandril Ghosh. In Module 1, you'll discover why traditional cognitive restructuring falls flat with shame-based clients and learn the evolutionary perspective that instantly reduces client resistance. Module 2 teaches you the three-system brain model—Threat, Drive, and Soothing systems—so you'll know exactly which system is broken in each client and how to activate it. You'll master the Three Flows of Compassion and assess the 12 Core Competencies that pinpoint where clients are blocked.

Module 3 provides professional assessment tools, including the Shame Cascade Model, Multiple Selves Assessment, and Compassionate Mind Interview. You'll learn to distinguish shame from self-criticism and uncover the loneliness driving your clients' symptoms. In Module 4, you'll practice Soothing Rhythm Breathing—the foundational CFT technique—and learn powerful interventions like the Three Chair Protocol, Magic Wand Technique, and Double Standard Exercise. These are ready-to-use tools you can implement in your very next session.

Module 5 gives you specific protocols for your toughest presentations. You'll learn Compassionate Exposure Therapy for panic, how to work with anger while maintaining social connection, and how to enhance Behavioural Activation for depression using CFT principles. Module 6 covers integration, showing you exactly how to add CFT to your existing practice without starting over. You'll learn common pitfalls to avoid, how to navigate client resistance and grief responses, session structuring from opening to closing, and screening questions to determine CFT suitability.

Complete with professional assessment templates, session structure guides, and client worksheets, you'll gain practical tools for immediate application.This course emphasises experiential learning—you'll practice the three flows of compassion yourself before guiding clients. You'll discover how to work with resistance as therapeutic content, address fears like "I don't deserve compassion," and structure sessions that create physical shifts in the nervous system. The training includes self-care practices to prevent burnout, reminding you that compassion requires courage, not just kindness.

What Makes This Training Unique

Unlike purely theoretical courses, this training focuses on practical application you can use immediately. You'll get exact protocols down to the minute, screening questions word-for-word, and techniques demonstrated with real client examples. The course teaches CFT as an enhancement to your existing skills—whether you practice CBT, ACT, DBT, or another modality—not as a replacement. You'll learn to avoid costly mistakes that derail progress, including moving too fast with compassion, trying to eliminate the inner critic, and relying too much on psychoeducation rather than experiential work. Dr Ghosh emphasises CFT as a practice you embody, not just a technique you apply, with the philosophy that change is gradual and practice matters more than perfection.

Who Should Take This Course

This training is designed for licensed therapists, counsellors, clinical psychologists, social workers, and mental health professionals who work with clients experiencing shame, self-criticism, perfectionism, trauma, or treatment resistance. It's ideal for CBT practitioners wanting to add emotional texture to cognitive interventions, ACT and DBT therapists looking to enhance attachment science, and any helping professional frustrated by clients who "get it" cognitively but don't change emotionally. Students and trainees in psychology, counselling, or social work programs will gain cutting-edge skills that differentiate them in the field.

What You'll Walk Away With

By completing this course, you'll confidently work with shame and self-criticism using evidence-based techniques that affect physiology at the vagal nerve level. You'll assess the three emotional regulation systems, screen clients for CFT suitability, and structure complete sessions with clear opening, middle, and closing phases. You'll navigate patient resistance and grief responses, knowing precisely what to say when clients express fears about compassion. You'll integrate CFT principles into your existing therapeutic approach, making your current interventions more powerful for emotion-based issues. Most importantly, you'll stand out as the therapist who can help when traditional methods don't work—the professional whom other therapists refer their most challenging cases to.

Start Your CFT Journey Today

Complete with lifetime access to all six modules, downloadable worksheets, assessment templates, and session structure guides, this course provides everything you need to apply Compassion Focused Therapy confidently. Whether you're adding a new dimension to your practice or seeking practical tools for your most challenging cases, you'll discover the transformative power of compassion rooted in neuroscience. Join mental health professionals worldwide who are helping treatment-resistant clients finally break free from shame and self-criticism. Remember: it's not your fault; it's neuroscience—a principle that applies to both your clients and you.

Note:This course is designed for professional development and does not substitute for formal clinical training or supervised practice. Please check your local licensing requirements regarding the scope of practice before applying these techniques.

Who this course is for:
- Counsellors
- Psychotherapists
- Clinical Psychologists
- Psychiatrists
- Social Workers
- Psychiatric Nurses
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