Adults who have experienced traumatic events as children can present with a myriad of complex symptoms and dysfunctional lifestyles later in life. Studies show that Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE’s) can have long-term profound effects on your physical, mental, and emotional health. ACE’s can affect how adults respond to anxiety-producing situations, how they communicate with others, and how they experience life overall. This interactive workshop will assist attendees with understanding how trauma from ACE’s “shows up” in adulthood, will inform attendees of the long-term effects of ACE’s, and will identify ways adults can build long-term resiliency.

Due to their widespread availability and lethality, guns fuel the United States’ high suicide and homicide rates, with devastating mass shootings on the rise across the nation. Social workers can lead the way in mitigating gun violence through careful assessment, education, and policy advocacy efforts rooted in our profession's core values. Together, we will learn more about how gun violence is affecting our clients and communities, and ways that social workers can intervene at the micro, mezzo, and macro levels of practice.

This live workshop explores the profound and often overlooked traumatic stress experienced by children growing up in undocumented and mixed-status families in the era of mass deportation, surveillance, and heightened immigration enforcement. Drawing from trauma-informed and family systems perspectives, participants will examine how chronic fear, separation threats, and systemic discrimination shape attachment, development, and identity among these children. Through case examples, current research, and reflection, we will consider the emotional, relational, and educational toll of living in constant uncertainty while identifying practical, culturally responsive strategies for promoting safety, connection, and healing in clinical, school, and community settings.

Sexuality is a vital part of human identity, yet many clients struggle to bring it into therapy—and many therapists feel unprepared to welcome it. This workshop introduces the PLISSIT and EX-PLISSIT models, practical frameworks that help therapists address sexual health with clarity, confidence, and sensitivity.