This 2-hour training introduces therapists to Life-Serving Boundaries, a core relationship competency in Mindful Compassionate Dialogue (MCD) Therapy.

Through lecture, discussion, and experiential exercises, participants will learn how life-serving boundaries in MCD Therapy are not defenses against others, but practices that protect clarity, stability, and alignment with one’s needs and values. Rather than focusing on what clients want to avoid, life-serving boundaries support clients in discerning and directing energy toward what they are taking care of and making space for in their lives.

The training introduces six practical skills therapists can learn to recognize, model, and facilitate within a counseling session. These include identifying the need a client is saying yes to when they say no, distinguishing different types of relational boundaries, clarifying non-negotiable boundaries, working with limiting beliefs that interfere with boundary setting, recognizing internal and relational indicators that boundaries need attention, and establishing boundaries through words, behavior, or body language.

Therapists will leave with a clear conceptual framework and client-friendly tools to support boundary work that honors self-connection and relational care.

Learning Objectives: 

After completing this 2-hour live, online training, participants will be able to:

1. Describe life-serving boundaries as a relationship competency that supports clarity, stability, and alignment with needs and values, rather than avoidance or disconnection.
   
   

2. Help clients identify the need they are saying yes to when expressing a boundary.
   
   

3. Differentiate three types of relational boundaries and understand how boundary confusion can contribute to relational distress in couples.
   
   

4. Describe how non-negotiable boundaries provide an internal reference point that supports consistent, values/needs-aligned relational decision-making.
   
   

5. Recognize limiting beliefs that interfere with boundary setting and identify expansive beliefs that support life-serving boundaries.
   
   

6. Identify internal and relational indicators that signal when boundaries are becoming difficult to maintain.
   
   

7. Describe ways clients may establish life-serving boundaries through words, behavior, or body language that honor both self-connection and relational care.

Jennifer “Ava” Frank, MS, LPC, Certified Hakomi Therapist

Ava is a Licensed Professional Counselor, Certified Hakomi Therapist, and founder of Mindful Compassionate Dialogue Therapy, an integrative approach to relational healing grounded in mindfulness, somatic awareness, and compassionate communication. Based in Portland, Oregon, Ava earned her Master’s Degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling in 2014 and has been licensed since 2017.

With two decades of study in Nonviolent Communication and over a decade of practice in Hakomi Mindful Somatic Psychotherapy.

Known for her clarity, warmth, and depth of presence, Ava meets students in present-moment experience and models the consciousness at the heart of MCD Therapy as she teaches. Through Wise Heart PDX, she also offers MCD education courses directly to couples, supporting a culture of mindful and life-serving connection in relationships and communities.

MCD Therapy LLC welcomes participants of all abilities and is committed to making our programs accessible in accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

If you need any accommodations to support your participation, please email ava@mcdtherapy.com. You’re encouraged to reach out at least two weeks before the program begins so we can best plan for your needs.

Each request will be reviewed promptly, and together we’ll explore reasonable ways to make sure you can fully engage in the training experience.

Cancellation & Refund Policy:  To meet needs for inclusion, security, and predictability, refunds are only given if requested 7 days before the start of a course. If you need to cancel your registration, please email ava@mcdtherapy.com.

MCD Therapy LLC reserves the right to cancel live trainings 10 days prior to the first day of the scheduled training if it does not meet its minimum attendance requirement. A full refund will be provided should this occur.

MCD Therapy LLC  also reserves the right to cancel and reschedule any live training session if something occurs that is beyond our ability to control. This includes, but is not limited to, severe weather, national disaster, pandemic, sudden illness, or family emergency for the scheduled trainer.

If MCD Therapy LLC, needs to cancel a scheduled training, participants will receive 100% of their registration fee in the form of a credit toward future training or will receive a full refund to their method of payment.

Program Complaints and Dispute Resolution: Participants may submit a complaint or concern about any MCD Therapy program by emailing ava@mcdtherapy.com. Ava Frank, LPC will acknowledge receipt within 5 working business days, review the concern, and provide a written response within 30 days.  All complaints are reviewed to determine appropriate corrective action, and records of each complaint are maintained for audit purposes.

Confidentiality of Participant Information: MCD Therapy LLC will make every reasonable effort to assure privacy. We will never sell your information.  We will not share your personal information except as necessary to comply with the reporting requirements of the various accrediting organizations that enable us to provide CE credit or if required to do so by governmental or law enforcement agencies. We do not retain or store any credit card payment information on our server.  All records are retained securely for a minimum of five (5) years.

If a participant’s image, voice, or name will appear in a recorded program, written consent will be obtained prior to use.

Participant Evaluation Policy: Each participant receives an evaluation form at the conclusion of every continuing education program. The evaluation gathers feedback on content relevance, presenter knowledge, materials quality, accessibility, and overall satisfaction. MCD Therapy LLC reviews all evaluations within 30 days to identify improvements for future programs. Evaluation summaries are retained for five (5) years in accordance with NBCC record-keeping requirements.

Proprietary Information: The PowerPoint presentations and videos are considered proprietary information and may not be reproduced or cited by MCDT students or alumni.  Please do not share your login information with anyone. 

All materials in the course workbook are © MCD Therapy LLC and are designed for professional continuing education purposes. Therapists may reproduce the designated client-handout pages for psychoeducation or clinical use, provided proper attribution is given to MCD Therapy. The workbook and its exercises may not be altered, sold, or distributed outside of authorized trainings or beyond individual client use.

Provider Contact Information: 1008 SE 112th Ave, Portland OR 97216. ava@mcdtherapy.com , 971-266-0036