Karen Woodall – Psychotherapist, Writer, Researcher, Trainer

Based upon my clinical work with alienated children between 2009 and the present day, my new book is called ‘The Journey of the Alienated Child’ and introduces you to Structural Therapeutic Parenting for alienated children and what I have called the ‘Right Action at the Right Time protocol.’

Being close to alienated children means being witness to the attachment maladaptations they make as they progress through the stages of disorganised attachment, into the psychologically split state of mind and then as they emerge with disturbances in their internal sense of self which is best conceptualised as a complex post traumatic stress response. Helping them to overcome this response, in conjunction with the parent in the rejected position, has been my work over the past decade and now I am ready to share that with you, alongside the tools to help you to respond to your child’s reaction to this form of psychological and emotional child abuse.

Based in attachment, interpersonal neurobiology, internal family systems therapy and object relations theory, this new book is a synergy of therapeutic modalities which are interwoven with therapeutic parenting and the understanding of the structural requirements necessary to help children experiencing coercive control in parental relationships.

As we await the publication of the book, I will introduce you to the stages of the journey and the right action/right time protocol which puts you in the driving seat for helping and healing your child. I look forward to sharing all of this with you and with two start times, one in the morning BST and one in the late afternoon, you can join me wherever you are in the world.

Saturday Seminar – April 5th 2025

The Journey of the Alienated Child

A two and a half hour introductory seminar to Karen Woodall’s new work on the psychological journey that the child takes through the attachment maladaptations which are popularly referred to as ‘alienation.’

Alienation is a good word for what happens to the child who is pressured into a strong alignment and concurrent rejection of their parents. Rather than thinking about this from the perspective of what is happening in the relationship with their parents however, Karen Woodall begins this work from the perspective of what is happening to the child. Using contemporary trauma theory, Karen examines the onset of what the Family Separation Clinic refers to as self alienation, a state of mind which is caused by traumatic events which are overwhelming to a child.

Dr Gabor Mate, the Hungarian Physician, tells us that:

         ‘the primary impact of unresolved trauma, particularly as a result of our childhood experiences, is alienation, from ourselves, from our work and from others.’

and notes that: 

          ‘trauma isn’t what happens to us, it is what happens inside of us.’

And Dr Janina Fisher, the US Psychologist tells us that:

         ‘self-alienation is when someone disowns parts of themselves that are painful or unacceptable. This can be a way to maintain attachment to abusive caregivers.’

Working with the trauma impact of divorce and separation, Karen has assisted well over a hundred psychologically and emotionally abused children to recover their relationship with their own integrated sense of self and with the parent they were forced to reject. Working with the internal shifts that the child has had to make, Karen’s experience in enabling self understanding and integration in children, young people and adults who have been abused, brings healing and hope for those whose trauma has been misunderstood or invisible for too long.

This seminar introduces two new concepts in working with alienated children:

• the journey the child takes, including the stages they pass through from onset of disorganised attachment behaviour through to integration in recovery
• how to use ‘right action at the right time’ protocol, to maximise the chances of being able to assist the child to speed up the journey back to integration

This seminar is suitable for all parents who are interested in using therapeutic parenting to assist their alienated child, it is an entry level seminar so no prior experience in therapeutic parenting is needed. Those who join this seminar will get priority access to the new upcoming course entitled The journey of the alienated child, which will be available in the summer.

The journey of the alienated child
An online event for parents of alienated children and their families with Karen Woodall

Saturday April 5 2025
This seminar will be delivered on Zoom between 09:00 and 11:30 UK Time.

To check your local start time, please click the link below, ensure ‘Date’ is selected, and enter 09:00 – 2025-03-29 – London in the right-hand boxes, here: https://dateful.com/time-zone-converter

A Zoom link for this event will be included in your order confirmation (if you do not receive this, please check your spam folder). 

Cost £60.00

T&Cs: Please read our terms and conditions here

15% Discount Voucher: Those who join this seminar will receive a 15% Discount Voucher for the new upcoming course entitled The Journey of the Alienated Child, which will be available in the summer. The voucher will be sent via email before the new course opens for bookings (please see T&Cs here).