Research on the relationship between attachment styles and complicated/prolonged grief reveals that insecure attachment patterns, particularly attachment anxiety, often face greater challenges in processing loss, leading to a greater risk of and more severe symptoms of complicated/prolonged grief.

In this workshop, Sonya will draw on her experience working with individuals exhibiting anxious attachment styles who are diagnosed with Prolonged Grief Disorder (PGD). She will share valuable insights into the common emotional and cognitive derailers these clients experience and offer practical strategies for addressing these challenges within the framework of Prolonged Grief Therapy (PGT). Through case examples participants will gain a deeper understanding of how the anxious attachment style can influence the grief process and acquire tools to enhance their therapeutic practice with individuals struggling with prolonged grief.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

1. Summarize the research on complicated/prolonged grief and anxious attachment styles.
2. Describe three common emotional and cognitive derailers that bereaved individuals with anxious attachment styles experience.
3. Explain three strategies within the framework of Prolonged Grief Therapy (PGT) that address these derailers.

ABOUT THE PRESENTER

Sonya Lott, Ph.D., is a licensed psychologist with extensive experience in the field, having been licensed in Pennsylvania since 1991. Since 2020, she has also been licensed to provide telepsychology services across the District of Columbia and forty U.S. states through PSYPACT.

Dr. Lott maintains a private practice with a specialization in death-related loss. She is an affiliate of the Center for Prolonged Grief at Columbia University, where she co-facilitates continuing education workshops on Prolonged Grief Disorder (PGD) and Prolonged Grief Therapy (PGT). Additionally, she is a contributing author to the 2024 edition of Living With Grief: Understanding Prolonged Grief Disorder, published by the Hospice Foundation of America.

Beyond her clinical work, Dr. Lott is the founder and CEO of Continuing Education in Multicultural Psychology (CEMPSYCH, LLC), where she develops and leads continuing education workshops for mental health professionals, within an integrated multicultural perspective.