By The Associated Press

Copyright © 2001 Blethen Maine Newspapers Inc. (Portland, Maine)

AUGUSTA, Maine — Victims of clergy abuse are being invited to a workshop that uses an uncommon therapy to help victims deal with their abuse.

The workshop, scheduled for Aug. 16 to 18, will have eight therapists who use a therapy known as therapeutic spiral model, in which victims act out their pain with professionals, said Katherine Amsden, a counselor in Auburn who is organizing the workshop.

Amsden said therapeutic spiral modeling uses art, drama and song "and gives people a chance, if they feel strong enough, to act out their trauma and look at their trauma within a circle of safety within a group."

She said the therapy is intended to go deeper than talking sessions allow. Even if abuse happened years or decades ago, it still can scar a person, wreaking havoc with relationships and the victim's ability to trust others, Amsden said.

"No matter how many years ago it happened, it stays in the body. It's something that doesn't go away," she said. "There are visual scenes of it in flashbacks. In psychodrama, you safely re-enact scenes. You confront your abuser (played by a therapist) and say what you feel, things you couldn't say then."

Amsden said she is organizing the workshop because she is Catholic and the church abuse scandal has affected the whole "Catholic family."

The scandal has resulted in the removal of more than 170 priests from churches nationwide this year. In Maine, three priests have been removed and prosecutors say they have a list of allegations against 33 inactive or retired priests who are still alive and 18 who are dead.

Amsden said the therapeutic spiral model approach was developed by Kate Hudgins of Virginia, who has treated trauma victims in South Africa and Northern Ireland and will be at the Augusta workshop.

The Catholic Church is not endorsing or opposing the workshop, said Sue Bernard of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland.

The workshop will cost $350, which will cover the travel expenses of the therapists, who are volunteering their time, Amsden said. There is financial assistance for those who need it.

The workshop is also being offered to victims' family members, Amsden said.


Copyright © Blethen Maine Newspapers Inc.