Wholehearted.org and Recovery Bookstore are proud to announce a very special weekend of events with Gabor Maté M.D.

Over three days, in separate events aimed at different audiences, Gabor will present current research-based findings that help us to gain new insights into the origin and treatment of addiction.

Family members will learn to better understand and relate to each other, and get to the core of dysfunction that interferes with long-term recovery.

Mental health and addiction treatment professionals will have the opportunity to more deeply explore how their own issues can interfere with client progress, and to learn new, evidence-based approaches to understanding and healing addiction.

Read below to learn more about each program and the intended audiences for each day.

Please note: All events will be filmed and recorded for eventual release as educational video and clinical training products. All attendees must agree to be filmed, and must sign a release at the time of filming.  Please do not buy a ticket if you are unwilling or unable to sign a release.

Gabor Maté MD is an author, speaker and thought leader in the fields of addiction and trauma, well known for his research into the connection between mind and body health, and for his innovative approaches to treatment. Notably, he worked with patients challenged by drug addiction, mental illness and HIV in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside for over a decade. Throughout his career, he has been a passionate advocate for social change in the prevention and treatment of addiction.

Gabor is an international speaker and bestselling Canadian author whose books have sold over 400,000 copies in his own country and over 300,000 in the U.S. Between them, his four books have been published in twenty-five countries, on five continents.

In 2011 Gabor retired from over three decades of medical work that ranged from family practice to palliative care, addiction medicine, and psychotherapy, in order to focus on writing, teaching, and public conversations aimed at  changing how we view addiction.   In July, 2018 he was awarded his country’s highest civilian distinction, the Order of Canada, for his pioneering medical work and writing.

His most recent book, In The Realm of Hungry Ghosts, winner of the Hubert Evans Prize for literary non-fiction, was a #1 national bestseller in Canada and has enjoyed acclaim and strong sales in the U.S. Widely appreciated by lay readers, it is used in addiction courses throughout North America and was chosen “common book of the year” for health care students at the University of Washington.

Gabor is Adjunct Professor in the Faculty of Criminology at Simon Fraser University. He is the recipient of an honorary degree from the University of Northern British Columbia and of an Outstanding Alumnus Award from Simon Fraser University.

!! Earlybird Special !! – 0 tickets available

Open to all. In this enlightening presentation, Gabor will offer a new, evidence-based perspective on addiction, its underlying causes, and how we can effectively prevent and treat it. Through an easy-to-understand yet profound explanation of the role of early childhood influences on brain chemistry, Gabor brings a fresh perspective to an important topic.  (More…)

West Sacramento Black Box Theater, West Sacramento, CA   7pm – 10pm   $29 Earlybird (until 10/29)

0 tickets available

Intended for families. In an intimate setting, using compassion and insight, Gabor will explore the underlying issues and wounds that cause family dysfunction and miscommunication. We will examine how these factors influence addiction, why they can get in the way of effective long-term recovery, and what we can do to change family dynamics to improve communication and benefit everyone.  Some family members will have the opportunity to work directly with Gabor.  (More…)

West Sacramento Black Box Theater, West Sacramento, CA   9:30am – 5pm   $80 (total) for up to 4 family members

1 tickets available

Intended for Mental Health and Addiction Professionals. In an intimate setting, Gabor will discuss practical, evidence-based techniques for creating safety in the counseling space.  Participants will learn advanced strategies to cultivate deep attunement as a core tool for repatterning the neural pathways that underlie addiction and addictive behaviors.  Gabor will also lead an exploration of how the counselor/therapist’s own unresolved issues, even among those of us with decades of experience,  can and often do impact our ability to deeply and fully engage our client’s most powerful healing.  The day will include opportunities for interaction and question-and-answer, and some participants will have the opportunity to work directly with Gabor. (More…)

West Sacramento Black Box Theater, West Sacramento, CA, 9:30am – 5pm $299 (total) per person. CE credits available.