Course Title:  Zen Buddhism and Psychodynamic Psychotherapy (12 CE credits, IL)

Instructor:  Zak Mucha, LCSW

Meeting dates (2023):  September 23, 30; October 7, 14, 21, 28

Meeting time:  Saturdays, 10:00 a.m. – noon (CST), in person

Meeting location:  1122 W. Catalpa Avenue, Chicago, IL   60640

Course Description:

In this in-person course, we will explore how the basic tenets of Zen Buddhism closely align with those of psychodynamic psychotherapy.  Clinical examples will be used to illustrate how the practices of Zen and psychotherapy can support and enhance one another, both for ourselves as clinicians and for our clients.

Zen is not about finding a blissful state of enlightenment, nor is it a nihilistic stance toward the world.  Rather, Zen is a means of actively participating in life by paying attention to our mind/body in order to better understand the difference between pain and suffering and to guide us in living with less anxiety.  The means of developing this through the Zen practices of mindfulness, acceptance, and non-attachment dovetail with the teachings of various psychoanalysts and psychodynamic psychotherapists, notably Karen Horney, Erich Fromm, Mark Epstein, and Barry Magid.  We will consider their writings and their clinical examples to develop a fundamental understanding of the Zen Buddhist principles that can augment and deepen our clinical practices.

Biographical Information:

Zak Mucha, LCSW is Visiting Faculty and a Board Member at the Chicago Center for Psychoanalysis.  He is a psychoanalyst in private practice.  Previously, Zak was the supervisor of an Assertive Community Treatment (ACT) program that provided 24/7 services to persons suffering from severe psychosis, substance abuse issues, and homelessness.  In addition, he has served as a counselor and consultant for U.S. combat veterans undergoing training for digital forensic investigations in child pornography.

Before becoming a clinician, Zak worked as a freelance journalist, truck driver, furniture mover, construction worker, union organizer, and staff member at a juvenile DCFS locked unit.  He is the author of Emotional Abuse:  A Manual for Self-Defense (2016) as well as the forthcoming Swimming to the Horizon:  Crack, Psychosis, and Street-Corner Social Work.