Back to All Events

Motivational Interviewing and the Neuroscience of Stress

  • CODAC 45 Royal Little Drive Providence (map)

Stress is often perceived as solely an emotional experience, but decades of research demonstrate its impact on physical health and wellbeing. We will explore the neuroscience explaining how stress manifests in humans and how, through intentional use of MI skills, we can help the people we work with mitigate stress at the psychological, physical and epigenetic level.

Many MI skills and tools naturally lead to stress reduction. MI is based on the principle of meeting people as equals and experts on their own lives, with a desire to empower them. This approach eliminates the need for power struggles that can exacerbate environmental stressors. MI is also highly relational, activating pro-social areas of the brain. An MI exploration of intrinsic motivation highlights personal values, which can lead to organic changes in perspective and subsequent actions.

The highly interactive format of this course will increase your ability to work intentionally with MI Spirit and specific MI skills to quickly de-escalate situations, build collaborative partnerships and set achievable next steps.

A working knowledge of MI Spirit, OARS skills, and Change Talk are prerequisites for this class.

Objectives:

Review MI Spirit and OARS skills, with a focus on reflective listening

Explore the science of stress as a mind-body experience with common health impacts

Discover the elements that make MI an interpersonal stress management approach

Learn how to use MI to de-escalate interactions and build partnership

Practice real-world scenarios from your scope of practice

Course is offered in person at CODAC

Registration and more information

Previous
Previous
October 12

Role of Peers for the Behavioral Health Workforce: 2026 Recordings

Next
Next
October 15

Recovery Storytelling Workshop