REBTOZ

Sofia was new to the country and was vivacious and good humoured. She was an enthusiastic student, who worked hard at her studies and had a wide circle of friends. She had a ready smile and a caring nature, sensitive to the needs of others, a delight to teach. On many occasions she would accompany me on yard duty and we would talk about things and inevitably the topic of discussion would turn to friendships and her concern about a particular student who did not seem to like her. This student would generally ignore her and chose not to associate with her in the classroom or in the yard. Sofia would become tearful and I would ask why she felt so sad. She said that she didn’t understand why this student didn’t seem to want to be her friend as ‘everyone else liked me, why doesn’t she?’ On another occasion Sofia said she wasn’t happy because this student wasn’t her friend and she would say ‘she makes me sad.’ As an REBTer (Rational Emotive Behaviour Therapy counsellor) I used some of the st...

Constructivist theory says we learn to behave according to what we observe going on around us. Our models of behaviour show us how to get what we want, how to respond to situations and how we can interact with others. If these models are helpful they will teach us that we can wait for things if we have to, that we can respect others (even when we don’t wish to associate with them) and we can remain confident even when we fail at something or suffer the rejection of others. If we live amongst such role models we will internalize (construct) some very useful ‘rules for living.’ Conversely if those around us show low frustration tolerance, who may get what they want through aggression and who take failure and rejection to heart then we are likely to internalise a different set of ‘rules for living.’ Such habits of thinking and behaving (helpful or unhelpful) will determine how successful or not we may be in achieving our goals in life. According to Dr Albert Ellis we can deconstruct those...

Another workshop is scheduled for September due to the very positive response of participants to the April workshop held at the Education Development Centre in Hindmarsh. People from various organisations attended and reported a strong satisfaction in the balance of theory and practical application of REBT. The group responded very positively to Dr. Debbie Joffe Ellis' demonstration of REBT using volunteers from the audience. People witnessed the very skillful way that Dr. Debbie listened reflectfully to her client, identified the core issues of concern and quickly honed in on the self defeating philosophical beliefs that were causing her clients emotional and behavioural problems. Her demonstration clearly illustrated the efficiency of Dr Albert Ellis' ABC Theory of Emotional Disturbance when applied skillfully and firmly. Participants witnessed how the client volunteer was encouraged to identify and confront the underlying irrational beliefs that caused and maintained their ...

Recent research by Giulio Bortolozzo and Dr. Ken Rigby has shown that low self worth is associated with a tendency to be victimised. Dr. Ellis' Unconditional Self Acceptance (USA) helps individuals understand that others’ views of them don't define who they are. These individuals understand that rejection and failure cannot diminish their worth - they can be rejected but can never be a reject, they can fail but are never a failure. The research also shows that bullies tend not to accept others. They may view others who are different as being losers or nerds and decide it's ok to bully them because they are not 'normal'. Ellis calls this Conditional Other Acceptance (COA). The research establishes that there is a relationship between how people view themselves and others and bully and victim behaviour. Ellis invites educators to teach the self-helpful rational beliefs of Unconditional Self/Other Acceptance. If children develop (construct) the belief that they are on...

An REBT workshop is scheduled for Adelaide which will be of interest to anyone working in the mental health/education fields. Guest speaker Dr. Debbie Joffe Ellis will be coming from New York to share her expertise and experience as an REBT therapist and to talk to us about the pioneering work of her late husband Dr. Albert Ellis who created Rational Emotive Behaviour Therapy. We will look at practical ways of applying Dr. Ellis' ABC Theory of Emotional Disturbance in addressing issues such as anger, anxiety and depression. We will also look at ways in which REBT can be applied in the school setting as an educative, restorative practice through BEHAVIOUR EDUCATION. This workshop will explore the theory and principles of REBT in an interactive and practical way . Learn about MUSTURBATORY thinking/behaviour, awfulising and the greatest sickness known to humankind 'self esteem!' Learn how to help ourselves and others to be better managers of our feelings and behaviour so tha...

We don't get upse t but rather we make ourselves upset because of the way we think about (our philosophical views) ourselves, others and the world. Epictetus said in 100 AD that events don't make us feel and act as we do but it is the way we think of them that drives how strong we feel and the actions we take.' Did he 'make me mad' beacuse he wouldn't let me join in the game or did I make myself mad beacuse I believe 'he should have' let me join in and he didn't? Dr. Albert Ellis' Rational Emotive Behaviour Therapy embraces Epictetus' wisdom and through his ABC Theory of Emotional Disturbance Ellis has provided us with the tools to help us understand how we can make ourselves upset and how we can better manage our self inflicted disturbances. Dr. Albert Ellis strongly encourages us to apply the theory and practice of REBT in the school setting so that students can learn to manage themselves emotionally and behaviourally more successfully. ...