Sandra Salzillo, MA, CAGS, LMHC, APA, a licensed mental health clinician with the Program in Women’s Oncology at Women & Infants Hospital of Rhode Island, a Care New England hospital, was invited to deliver presentations at two upcoming conferences, one focused on end-of-life care and one designed to illuminate the unconscious forces of feminine oppression.
Salzillo is a nationally-acclaimed visual artist, expressive arts facilitator and archetypal pattern analyst. She is a senior faculty member at The Assisi Institute and an adjunct professor in the holistic counseling master’s program at Salve Regina University.
It is for The Assisi Institute’s “Seeing Red Conference” from October 6 to 7 in Stonington, CT, that she will co-present “Envisioning Medusa: The Serpent Archetype as Midwife in the Individuation Process of Women.” This, Salzillo says, is a workshop that will focus on the significance of the serpent’s relationship to the feminine, exploring the myth of Medusa as well as the historical relationship of this powerful image in ancient artifacts, dreams, and artwork to healing and transformation.
For more information on the conference, which includes some of the world’s leading scholars, psychologists, artists and trauma experts, visit www.seeingredconference.com or call (860) 415-5004.
On November 1 to 3, Salzillo will join the program coordinated by the Hospice & Palliative Care Federation of Massachusetts for its “Smooth Sailing: Navigating End-of-Life Care Today” conference in Norwood, MA. There, she will speak about helping patients and caregivers create meaningful dialogue at the end of life by discussing their dreams and understanding images and patterns that can appear in artwork as well.
“Images are universal and I have seen specific motifs associated with end of life,” Salzillo explains. “My work is to educate caregivers on this process as it provides a context for patients to explore inner emotions and fears that, once articulated, can allow for meaningful dialogue to occur.”
For more information on this conference, visit www.hospicefed.org.
Salzillo works with cancer patients at the Program in Women’s Oncology at Women & Infants, where she facilitates groups and workshops, and provides individual counseling to patients. Her work is based on connecting women to their imaginative abilities, which allows for a deeper understanding of their personal process. For more information, call (401) 453-7520.