Gestalt Art Therapy Centre: 2020 COVID19 Public announcement

7 Apr 2020

2020 COVID19 Public announcement

Dear Gestalt Art Therapy Centre clients

Information related to our services and COVID-19

Dear Gestalt Art Therapy Centre clients,

We inform you about the situation of our Centre in relation to the Covid-19

We are taking the threat of COVID-19 very seriously, and have implemented a number of precautionary measures including cancelling face to face workshops, Art Therapy Retreats and Therapy Sessions/ Supervision and providing the opportunity to participate in our events in an online format (we are working on that, available very soon) and/or reschedule workshops/ Retreats.

We hope we will be able to re-open our centre, once we will receive the information from government letting us know when it will be safe running groups again and sharing common spaces and Art materials, as is our case in Art therapy practice.

It’s important that you take care of yourself. During this time, you may feel anxious or stressed.

If you would like to make an appointment with us, for an online session, please contact us by email: gestaltarttherapycentre@gmail.com. We are offering to Gestalt Art Therapy members, and people in need, and Art Therapy session free (duration of 30 minutes by Skype, dates availability depending on the number of appointments/times)

If you are a member of the Gestalt Art Therapy Centre, we are still offering you discounts, in online workshops and you will receive our newsletter. (We had the newsletter already to be sent, but now we need to re-adjusts the content to the delicate global situation "Here and now")

if you paid your participation in an upcoming workshop, please contact us to arrange an optional online training or reschedule the workshop. If you booked our Art Therapy Retreats, please contact us, we arranged the new dates to July 3rd, 4th, and 5th, 2020 (These dates may change again later, due government information).

We apologize that this inconvenience may cause to you, as you know, it is outside of everybody control, and we are doing these "temporal adjustments" in relation to support the objective of minimizing the infections and taking care of Gestalt Art Therapy Centre participants and members.

Here you can see some helpful information from the government:

Coronavirus (COVID-19) – What you need to know

Below is some important information about how to protect yourself against infection and prevent the virus from spreading.

Keeping Australians safe from the coronavirus is the Government’s number one priority. This will be a challenging time but it will be temporary. By working together, practising good hygiene and maintaining appropriate social distancing, Australia will overcome this public health challenge.

PLEASE NOTE: because the situation is rapidly evolving, it is important to always check the most up-to-date medical information at health.gov.au.

Protecting yourself and others

It’s important to practice good hygiene and social distancing to protect against infection and to prevent the virus from spreading. You can prevent the spread of COVID-19 and other respiratory infections by making sure you:

Wash your hands frequently with soap and water

Cover your cough/sneeze and dispose of tissues

Avoid contact with others if you’re feeling unwell

Avoid large gatherings if they’re not essential

Keep a distance of 1.5 meters between you and other people whenever possible

Minimize unnecessary physical contact with others, especially those at higher risk, such as older people and people with existing health conditions

Read the Department of Health’s guidance on social distancing attached in this email.

Staying informed

It’s important to keep up-to-date with accurate and reliable information about coronavirus as the situation develops. The best place to find the latest information is at health.gov.au

Additional resources, including specific fact sheets and guidelines for parents, older Australians and international travellers, can be found at https://www.health.gov.au/news/health-alerts/novel-coronavirus-2019-ncov-health-alert/coronavirus-covid-19-resources

Should I get tested?

You should be tested for COVID-19 if:

you are experiencing cold and flu symptoms and have recently returned from overseas; or

you have been in direct contact with someone who is known to have contracted coronavirus.

Additional testing may also be appropriate for healthcare workers.

Mass gatherings and social distancing

From Monday 16 March, the National Cabinet agreed that non-essential organised mass gatherings of more than 500 people should not occur.

These measures should not prevent the operation of essential functions including schools, universities and workplaces, or prevent the operation of public transport.

However, the principle of social distancing should still apply in these settings.

Read the Department of Health’s guidance on social distancing attached in this email

Travelling overseas?

Regardless of your destination, age or health, if your overseas travel is not essential, you should consider carefully whether now is the right time.

This is because the health risks from the global COVID-19 pandemic are increasing, you may be more exposed to contracting COVID-19 overseas, and overseas travel has become more complex and unpredictable.

The Government has upgraded its Smartraveller travel advice for all Australians travelling overseas to level 3 - ‘reconsider your need for overseas travel at this time.’

For more information, visit the Smartraveller website.

Support available for households and businesses

The Government has recently announced a $17.6 billion economic stimulus package to keep Australians in jobs, keep businesses in business and support households and the Australian economy.

This package has four parts:

Cash flow assistance to help the small and medium-sized business to stay in business and keep their employees in jobs;

Support for business investment;

Targeted support for the most severely affected sectors, regions and communities; and

Household stimulus payments to strengthen the broader economy. The Government will provide a one-off $750 payment to age pensioners and other social security, veteran and other income support recipients and eligible concession cardholders. This will be paid automatically from 31 March 2020.

For more information on the Government’s Economic Response to the Coronavirus visit treasury.gov.au/coronavirus.

Other key contacts:

If you’re unsure about what to do, call the Coronavirus Health Information Line (operating 24/7) on 1800 020 080.

For travel advice visit https://www.smartraveller.gov.au/

Please contact us if you have any questions,

Take care, think positive, write your feelings in an Art Journal, contact us if you need support, contact with family and friends, support others.

"We will overcome this health challenge, working in the community for the good of the community"

WE ARE ALL ONE!

Gemma & Yaro

Directors

Yaro Starak

B.A., M.S.W, Adv.Dip.SW, Dip.GT.

Former Lecturer at the University of Queensland

Gestalt Psychotherapist.

Gestalt Art Therapist CAT®

Men leadership training

Author of books on Gestalt Psychotherapy & Group facilitation

Co-Director Gestalt Art Therapy Centre-Australia

Gemma Garcia

Dip GT. Dip Ericksonian Hypnosis. Aura-Soma Therapist L2. Dip.Visual Arts

Gestalt Therapist

Gestalt Art Therapist CAT®

Co-Director Gestalt Art Therapy Centre - Australia

Visual Artist. Art Instructor. Freelance Book Editor

Freelance Curator, Coordinator Art Group Exhibitions.

Director of APE Brisbane (Art Performances and Exhibitions)

More Information:

English Training:

https://www.arttherapygestalt.com/

www.gestaltarttherapycentre.blogspot.com

Contact:

gestaltarttherapycentre@gmail.com

Spanish Training:

Contact:

arteterapiagestalt@gmail.com

http://www.arteterapiagestalt.es

http://www.arteterapiagestalt.blogspot.com

Gestalt Art Therapy centre acknowledges Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples as the First Peoples of Australia, and we pay our respects to their Elders past and present with whom we share this great country.

Instagram

ART THERAPY - A GESTALT APPROACH

Hello! Welcome to our creative therapy centre!

Here you will find everything related to Art Therapy using the Gestalt approach.

What is Art ?:

Art is genarally known as what is done by a person whose purpose is to express a message through symbols.

These symbolic tools can be music, paintings, sculptures, theater and so on.

What is Gestalt Therapy ?:

Gestalt therapy is a methodology within psychology that grew out of the research and work of the psychiatrist Dr.Fritz Perls and his wife Dr.Laura Perls.

These two professionals were coming from the psychoanalytic perspective and felt that this method was not enough to work with clients. Today we are clearly aware that no one single method can resolve the issues that involve a range of human suffering and growth.

Gestalt is a German word roughly meaning "Shape" or "configuration".

This concept is understood, in gneral terms, that all individual experiences are shaped by a figure and a background. As time goes on, and our needs change, the figure can become the background and vice versa. So in the client's experience, the figure is changing at all times from becoming a background and as the needs arise, the figure emerges seeking completion.

When we block or prevent this process, we become unaware and suffer. That is a part of the theoretical foundations of Gestalt therapy.

Gestalt therapy, therefore, is a "philosophy", a way of being in the world in the "here and now" and taking "response-aibility" without pushing the river. Thus life is a flow ..

What is GESTALT Art Therapy?

It is the sum of the two previous concepts, Gestal therapy and the use of tools we learn to use in art therapy.

Using the artistic tools and adding the gestalt language between client and psychotherapist we work jointly to decode the messages hidden in the intrinsic symbols representing the client's situation. The Psychotherapist accompanies the client in the process of "discovering" what is helpful and not analysing or interpreting, but suggesting and asking the client what it is he or she knows are the answers and supports client's need to discover the ncessary solutions.

WE ARE SURE THAT YOU WILL BE ATTRACTED by this new way of working with emotions, whether or not you are a professional psychologist or therapist, since many of the exercises can be used personally for your own growth.

Our work is done in Australia & Spain and other countries. We have given workshops and participated in conferences throughout the world. We are located in our offices at the Gestalt Art Therapy Centre in Brisbane -Australia.

BE HAPPY HERE AND NOW..... AND BE CREATIVE !

Yaro Starak - Gestalt Psychoterapist
Gemma Garcia- Gestalt Therapist- Ericksonian Hypnosis

SEE LABELS ON THE RIGHT SIDE

1-TRAINING MODULES FOR SALE: Gestalt art therapy

1.1-FOR PSYCHOLOGY & THERAPY PROFESSIONALS:

Here you will find and carry out therapeutic work with tools that combine art and gestalt method.

You can learn new ways of providing therapeutic treatment depending on the particular situation and client needs.

1.2-ART AS PERSONAL GROWTH

These modules can be practical exercises for your "realize" how do you do in your life.

There are specific modules that you can play with your partner and / or family.

SKYPE - ON LINE THERAPY

We offer brief therapy sessions via Skype. You may request a no-obligation appointment with us, the first session is free.

This is a way of doing personal therapy we call "Emergency work" used in very special cases and situations. For us, the therapy session should be mainly for the benefit of the client needing immediate help.

BOOKS FOR SALE:

GESTALT THERAPY theory and practice - some books written by Yaro Starak

A GESTALT TEST: you can acquire to discover your potentials.

VIDEOS & DVD focussing on gestalt work and art therapy work.

ARTICLES: Written by varoius therapists from Australia, NZ and overseas.

Yaro Starak

He graduated in Psychology from the University of Manitoba and in Social Work from the University of British Columbia, Canada. He continued his doctoral studies at the University of Toronto, specializing in group psychotherapy and Adult Education. He trained in Gestalt Therapy with Jorge Rosner at the Gestalt Institute of Toronto and after graduation, he was a faculty member for four years. He worked as a professor at the University of Queensland, Australia and is the founder of the Gestalt Center in Brisbane and Terrigal near Sydney in this country. Yaro conducts gestalt training workshops in Spain, Mexico, Denmark, Germany, and Canada. He also gives workshops for groups of men using indigenous rituals. Yaro is Gestalt Art Therapist CAT®. Co-Director of the Gestalt ART Therapy center (Australia). Co-Director of the Arteterapia Gestalt (Gestalt Art Therapy training in the Spanish language)
Yaro has an interesting range of Books related to the Gestalt works, Couples & Groups work.

Gemma Garcia

Gestalt Art Therapist CAT® Gestalt Art Therapy. Gestalt Therapist Master diploma from the Gestalt Institute Valencia (Spain). Art Therapist using the Gestalt approach CAT. Master in Ericksonian Psychology at the University of Valencia (Spain). Communications Operator at the Provincial Emergency Coordination center and Fire Consortium (Castellon, Spain) Naval radiotelephone operator. Group work and individual psychological intervention in crisis and emotional impact on collective emergencies with firefighters, policemen, paramedics using Gestalt art therapy techniques. Aurasoma Therapist Level 2. Dip. of Visual Arts. Curator. Coordinator-Art Group exhibitions. Co-Director of the Gestalt ArtbTherapy center (Australia). Co-Director of the Arteterapia Gestalt (Gestalt Art Therapy training in the Spanish language)