The Touchstone Institute

05/29/2026

OCD and perfectionism are not the same, but the two are often used interchangeably in conversation.

Learn how perfectionism distorts perinatal realities and how to support clients in overcoming perfectionist beliefs with Marcuetta Sims:

📖 Peace from Perfectionism: Breaking Perfection's Grip on Parents
▶️ On-demand
🔗 Start today at https://bit.ly/perfectionism-ondemand

05/28/2026

For many perinatal clients, rage shows up not just as an emotion, but as a survival strategy when needs go unmet and expectations are violated.

Explore what drives maternal rage and how to respond with clinical clarity and compassion:
📖 Maternal Rage: Implications & Interventions
🗓️ June 1
🔗 Register at https://bit.ly/maternal-rage

What you’ll learn:
✅ How to recognize key triggers and patterns of maternal rage
✅ The Stages of Maternal Rage framework for assessment
✅ Evidence-based cognitive and somatic interventions
✅ Strategies for reducing shame and increasing support

05/27/2026

Mark Nickerson has received such fantastic feedback on his workshops!

Clinicians have shared how his framework and expertise have deepened their understanding of social and cultural trauma.

Enroll today to learn how to strengthen your culturally responsive practice:

📖 Addressing Social Identity, Cultural Trauma, and Current Societal Adversity within EMDR Therapy: Experiential Learning
🗓️ June 23 & 30
🔗 https://bit.ly/EMDR-ID-Live

05/26/2026

“It feels like drowning and exploding at the same time.”

That’s how one client described maternal rage to Nicole McNelis. And it changed the way she understood what so many parents are carrying.

This clip offers a glimpse into what shows up in session - and how we can meet it with care.

📖 Maternal Rage: Implications & Interventions
🗓️ June 1, 2026
🔗 Learn more and register at https://bit.ly/maternal-rage

05/25/2026

In June, we’re naming two forces that shape our clients’ distress in the therapy space but rarely get direct attention: maternal rage, and the impact of social identity, cultural trauma, and societal adversity across all clients:

🗓️ June 1: Maternal Rage: Implications & Interventions
🗓️ June 23 & 30: Addressing Social Identity, Cultural Trauma, & Current Societal Adversity within EMDR Therapy

Enroll today at https://bit.ly/touchstone-trainings

05/22/2026

Thank you to Therapist Network member, Hilary Waller, for shedding light on the application of EMDR for the perinatal population!

"When applied with attunement and flexibility, EMDR therapy provides a compassionate pathway for healing during a uniquely vulnerable stage of life." - Hilary Waller, LPC

Hilary Waller, EMDRIA member, shares a case example of promoting maternal mental health with EMDR therapy.

05/21/2026

Maternal rage might seem sudden, but it rarely is.

When needs and expectations are unmet, it creates tension. That sense of being on edge builds until anger either erupts or is tamped down. What happens next often depends on the support we have and the stories we've been told about anger.

Rage isn't a flaw, it's a signal that something needs to change.

Learn more with Nicole McNelis in her upcoming course:
📖 Maternal Rage: Implications & Interventions
🗓️ June 1
🔗 Enroll today at https://bit.ly/maternal-rage

05/20/2026

Meet Mark Nickerson!

Mark is an author and EMDRIA-Approved consultant and trainer, specializing in EMDR-informed therapy for cultural trauma, social identity, and societal adversity. With over 25 years of experience, he integrates trauma-informed care and cultural humility to support clinicians in addressing complex cultural and societal challenges.

Join Mark for his 2-part course, Addressing Social Identity, Cultural Trauma, & Current Societal Adversity within EMDR Therapy
🗓️ Part 1: June 23 | Part 2: June 30

You'll gain:
✅ Actionable strategies for integrating cultural humility into your clinical practice
✅ Understanding of how applying EMDR-informed methods to address culturally based trauma
✅ Skills to better support clients in exploring and understanding their social identities

Ready to deepen your clinical awareness and skills? Register for this essential EMDR advanced training at https://bit.ly/EMDR-ID-Live

05/19/2026

Join us on May 21 to explore how integrating EMDR and sandtray therapy offers a powerful approach to healing reproductive trauma.

You'll learn how to:
✅ Combine sandtray with every phase of the EMDR model
✅ Build bilateral stimulation naturally into the tray
✅ Use expressive arts as a bridge to embodied processing

📖 Integrating EMDR and Sandtray Therapy for Reproductive Trauma and Loss
🗓️ May 21, 2026
🔗 Register today at https://bit.ly/EMDR-Sandtray-Live

05/18/2026

You already know EMDR works. But when a client is carrying reproductive trauma or grief, something can still feel out of reach. Not due to a lack of skills, but because the body sometimes needs to communicate beyond words.

In her upcoming training, Lacey Castilleja Fisher shows you exactly how to integrate sandtray into every phase of EMDR. Not as an extra, but as a seamless extension of what you already do.

📖 Integrating EMDR and Sandtray Therapy for Reproductive Trauma and Loss
🗓️ May 21, 2026
🔗 Register today at https://bit.ly/EMDR-Sandtray-Live

05/14/2026

Two questions come up over and over when therapists talk about maternal rage:

☝️ What causes it?
✌️ What do we do with it?

Nicole McNelis created her course, Maternal Rage: Implications & Interventions, to answer both these questions with clarity, clinical depth, and tools you can bring straight into your sessions.

📖 Maternal Rage: Implications & Interventions
🗓️ June 1
🔗 Learn more and register at https://bit.ly/maternal-rage