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Live Webinar

Rethinking Forgiveness in Betrayal Recovery Therapy

LaDonna Carey, MA, SPE
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Information

Date & Time

Learning Objectives

Participants will be able to:

  • Differentiate clinical definitions of forgiveness, reconciliation, emotional release, and accountability as they apply to betrayal trauma treatment.

  • Identify at least three common logical fallacies or cognitive distortions that may arise in sessions related to forgiveness discussions with clients.

  • Apply three trauma-informed and attachment-based interventions to support clients in betrayal recovery, while critically evaluating their own implicit biases around forgiveness as a therapeutic goal.

Educational Goal

The educational goal of this workshop is to enhance clinical sophistication in working with betrayal trauma by helping therapists recognize the complex emotional and cognitive responses clients have to forgiveness pressure, including common logical fallacies that surface in the therapy room. Participants will gain evidence-informed strategies to navigate these challenges and will critically examine their own assumptions and biases around forgiveness, leading to more ethical and effective future clinical work.

Description

This clinically focused training challenges the assumption that forgiveness is an essential outcome in the healing process after betrayal. Based on over three decades of experience working with individuals and couples facing infidelity, deception, and relational abandonment, this course examines how traditional forgiveness models can undermine trauma recovery, especially when applied too early or without attention to power dynamics and attachment history.

Participants will learn to distinguish between forgiveness, reconciliation, and emotional release, and explore alternatives that promote client agency, integrity, and post-traumatic growth. Through a trauma-informed and attachment-sensitive lens, the course introduces practical strategies for addressing unresolved grief, rage, and ambivalence—without pressuring clients toward moral closure. Emphasis is placed on clinical ethics, cultural influences, and the nuanced realities of trauma treatment related to betrayal.

Target Audience

  • Addiction Professional
  • Counselor
  • Marriage & Family Therapist
  • Psychologist
  • Social Worker

Presenters

LaDonna Carey, MA, SPE
LaDonna Carey, MA, SPE, is a Senior Psychological Examiner with over 35 years of experience specializing in attachment wounds, betrayal trauma, and Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM). She earned her Master’s degree in Clinical Psychology from East Tennessee State University in 1989, later returning as an adjunct instructor from 2014 to 2020. Based in Kingsport, TN, LaDonna runs a private practice offering in-person and virtual therapy, with a focus on helping individuals and couples heal from betrayal trauma through personalized sessions and intensives. Trained in Partner Trauma Therapy and multiple couples therapy modalities, she integrates trauma-informed approaches tailored to each client. She is also the author of Healing from Betrayal, a workbook for rediscovering Self after betrayal. LaDonna provides continuing education for psychotherapists nationwide and, as a seasoned CISM responder, has supported industries such as manufacturing, banking, retail, and nuclear through crisis recovery and employee support.

Financially Sponsored By

  • Betrayal Recovery Center