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In Person
The Adolescent & Young Adult Collective (AYAC) 2026

When Help Harms: The Hidden Complexity of Treatment-Related Trauma (3B)

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Information

Date & Time

Description

This workshop explores the complexity of working with individuals who have experienced trauma within treatment settings. It examines how therapeutic alliance, coercion, and system dynamics can impact engagement, trust, and long-term outcomes. Participants will learn to differentiate between genuine insight and performative compliance, and to recognize how prior treatment experiences shape client behavior. The workshop emphasizes balancing structure with autonomy while maintaining relational safety. Practical frameworks will be provided to support more effective, ethical, and trauma-informed clinical work.

Learning Objectives

Participants will be able to:

  • Recognize how coercion and power dynamics can undermine therapeutic outcomes.

  • Utilize relational and trauma-informed approaches to strengthen therapeutic alliance and promote authentic engagement.

  • Identify the impact of treatment-related trauma on client engagement, trust, and behavior.

Educational Goal

Effective treatment is not just about interventions, but about the quality of the relational experience in which they occur. When care becomes coercive or unsafe, it can undermine trust and engagement, making it essential to balance structure with autonomy and prioritize authentic, trauma-informed connection.

Target Audience

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

Presenters

Stella B. Keitel, PsyD, is a Clinical and Forensic Psychologist who completed her Doctoral training at Ferkauf Graduate School of Psychology, Albert Einstein College of Medicine at Yeshiva University. She specializes in treatment refractory, co‑morbid disorders, and high‑risk behaviors. She co‑founded Breaktide out of her passion for providing quality supports to those in need.
Kevin co-founded Voyage after two decades of experience in substance use disorder treatment. ​He had previously been Clinical Director at The Hanley Center.
Beginning recovery from​​ substance use issues in 1990, Kevin did the hard work of figuring out how to be a teenager in sobriety, reuniting with his family, returning to high school, and finding his place in the local Twelve Step community.
In 1997, he began his career in treatment, accepting an entry level position as peer staff in an adolescent treatment center. Since then Kevin has worked at all levels of care within the treatment continuum, from tech to Executive Director.
Kevin’s passion is working with young men and their families, and he has developed multiple family recovery programs over his years in the field. He believes that recovery is possible for all members of the family and that long term remission must be a team effort. When he is not working with patients or families, you’ll find Kevin immersed in the experiential programming at Voyage. He's a passionate ambassador of recovery in the sun and saltwater of beautiful South Florida, and is committed to helping young men find and nurture their passion while in treatment.

Financially Sponsored By

  • Visions Adolescent Treatment Centers