04/24/2026
2 HOUR CE! Saturday, May 16, 2026, 10 a.m. to noon.
Topic: "Let’s talk about the 'talk' in talk therapy"
This workshop will focus on our oral use of language in our interactions with clients -- the talk therapy we provide. (See full description, below)
Speaker:
Warren B. Roby, MS, Ph.D, LPC (Arkansas and Oklahoma)
President-elect NWArMHCA
Free to ArMHCA/NWArMHCA members, $20 for guests. Cash or check only (no card payments).
Please pre-register by noon on Friday, May 15 for the program (link to be created & shared in a future post soon). Walk-ins are always welcome, but the pre-registration makes for a quicker and easier sign-in at the event and gives us a head count for snacks.
Location: Pure Balance Mind Body (now part of Ascend Wellness Centers), 3608 Southern Hills Blvd., Unit #4, in Rogers.
CE program description:
We counselors are professional conversationalists. We are paid to discuss people’s lives. After an intake session we write a treatment plan. We compose a note after each meeting. We draft letters at a client’s request. We might be called upon to testify in court. Language pervades all of our work.
This workshop will focus on our oral use of language in our interactions with clients -- the talk therapy we provide. Topics we will touch on: when and how to use questions, handling profanity, capturing client quotes, the judicious use of jargon, verbal analogs to “healing touch,” the language used in the session (English, Spanish, ???), repairing communication breakdowns, adolescent lingo, and helping clients find their voice. The Communication Disorders portion of the DSM-5-TR will be mined for insights on how to help people with linguistic deficits.
The format will involve scenarios which will be discussed in pairs and then with the whole group. Participants will be encouraged to share their experiences. The presenter will sprinkle in insights he has garnered from his study of several languages and his training in linguistics. He will provide a list of resources for further study. The goal is to empower clinicians to better engage verbally with their clients.
