Workshop Description

Trainer: Dr Paula Hall

How the Pivotal Recovery programme can help your clients

Not all clients who offend or are at risk of offending struggle with pornography use, but for those who do, reducing or stopping compulsive use is often an essential part of therapy. This presentation offers counsellors information and tools for working with clients presenting with problematic or compulsive pornography use through the Pivotal Recovery Course. The course provides a psycho-educational framework to help clients understand compulsive behaviours from a bio-psycho-social perspective and draws on 30 years of clinical experience. It is trauma-informed, sex-positive, and integrates CBT, ACT, and psychodynamic approaches. While designed as a self-help resource, outcomes often improve when clients are supported by a therapist or other health professional. Pivotal has already been used by over 3000 people and includes a validated assessment tool, a partner support programme, and both a low-cost full programme and a free introductory course.

This training supports counsellors with limited training in porn addiction to work confidently with clients using the Pivotal programme. It also offers valuable insights for experienced practitioners looking to integrate the course into their practice or use it in aftercare. The session will include:

• A foundational understanding of Compulsive Sexual Behaviour Disorder (CSBD), often referred to as sex or porn addiction
• An introduction to the suite of Pivotal programmes
• A comprehensive overview of the 60-day Pivotal programme
• Research outcomes from the Pilot Study
• Research findings specific to offenders
• A clinician’s guide to supporting clients through the programme

Bio

Dr Paula Hall is a senior accredited psychotherapist with 30 years’ experience, 18 of which have been specialising in providing services for compulsive sexual behaviour and porn addiction. She is also founder of the Laurel Centre, the UK’s largest provider of therapy for people struggling with CSBD and more recently, Pivotal Recovery, a not-for-profit organisation that provides anonymous, accessible self-help through their podcast based Pivotal Recovery Course. Dr Hall is author of Understanding & Treating Sex & Pornography Addiction (Routledge 2018), Sex Addiction – The Partner’s Perspective (2016) and Sex Addiction – A Guide for Couples (Routledge 2019). She has been published in a number of peer-reviewed journals and is Course Director for ISAT Training who provided accredited training to professionals wanting to work in this field.

Additional Information

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