RDI Relationship Development Intervention

[Guest guest]

To all Creative Arts therapist in the tri-state area working with

children and families with Autism.

On January 18-19th Dr. Steve Gutstein and Dr. le Sheely,

founders of the RDI program, Relationship Development Intervention,

will be presenting a 2 day workshop in South Orange, New Jersey .

There will be a Professional break out session for those interested

in the certification program.

I am currently an RDI Consultant in Training and I am working with

several families using this intervention with wonderful results. This

is a great program for creative arts therapist who want to consult

with and teach parents to become the agents of change for their

children. RDI is a cutting edge remediation program that educates

parents about the core deficits of autism based on current research

on developmental psychology, brain research, and education. RDI is

often called the " missing link " in autism treatment. As consultants

we prepare parents to make changes that increase connections, and we

assess the parent-child interaction to look for developmental holes

where the child failed to meet particular objectives. We then go back

and redo those objectives through a mindful process. Dr. Gutstein and

Dr. Sheely have found 1100 objectives that children have to master in

order to have successful relationships. They have also created an

online operating system, a virtual community, for families with

autism to communicate with each other and contribute resources for

those in even the most remote areas of the world.

This program has informed my work like no other post graduate

curriculum. When I went into private practice, I struggled with what

to do with the parents. I did see results in the sessions, but what I

was doing was not being carried over into the home. I searched for

parent coaching programs and became a certified parent coach for

neurotypical children, but that did not address the kids I was

attracting with Apergers and High Functioning Autism.

I attended the RDI 2 day workshop last year at this time in NYC and

within days applied to become certified. It was one of the smartest

investments I have made in my professional career. As a dance

therapist, I use my skills of movement analysis and observation to

help parents find the dance between themselves and their children, a

critical developmental objective. If you want to know more about RDI

and the certification process go to www.rdiconnect.com or email me

and I will send you the 2 day brochure electronically.

Sincerely,

Theresa Haney