Virginia Satir used the terms, "beliefs, "family rules" and "survival messages" interchangeably. She believed that as children we behave according to our family's rules in order to survive. These beliefs should be blessed for helping us survive but some may be hindering us now in terms of our ability to express ourselves or interact effectively as adults.

The goals of this 3-day workshop are to focus on how we communicate with one another and to become aware that:

How we communicate can affect how we feel about ourselves, each other, and our current situation. Our feelings affect our communication. We have thoughts, feelings, and body responses at any moment, and we express them differently under differing conditions. We react to the ways others express their feelings, thoughts, and body sensations.

To promote these awarenesses, Virginia Satir has developed various experiential exercises, for example, temperature reading, family mapping, stances, ingredients of interaction, family rules, etc..."

• To become aware of emotional, mental, physical patterns which affect our relationships with self, others and our environment.
• To acknowledge the positive intent of these coping mechanisms; how they serve us and how they inhibit us.
• To accept our ability to choose to use old behavioral patterns, or different more productive patterns.
• To act by choosing congruent ways of being "more fully human".
• the meaning of congruence;
• to identify different coping mechanisms;
• their positive intent and negative impact the stages of change and how to empower ourselves within them;
• how family rules and unmet expectations trigger our coping mechanisms;
• tools to be more aware of these triggers and how to diffuse their impact or dissolve them
• how to choose congruence as a means to deepen your relationships with yourself, others and environment;
• ways to unleash your creative force to enrich your life experience through congruent interaction.

This workshop consists of both theoretical and experiential components. A variety of tools (i.e. ingredients of an interaction; temperature reading; coping stances; family mapping, etc...will be explored through psychodrama, gestalt, sculpting triadic groups.